Study: Contracts aid lower-wage workers
By Joanne Kelley, Rocky Mountain News (Contact)
Published May 15, 2008 at 8 p.m.
Low-wage and middle-income workers benefit from union contracts through higher pay, according to a national study by the Center for Economic and Policy Research released jointly with Colorado's Bell Policy Center.
Unionization boost wages by 6.1 percent for the typical Colorado worker, while low-wage workers see a much bigger boost of 16.5 percent, according to the data.
"The data clearly show the value of unions in our economy," said Wade Buchanan, president of the Bell Policy Center. "They have proven to be a major gateway to opportunity for thousands of Colorado families."
The center has yet to take a position on several statewide ballot measures that could affect workers and unions.
The report, "The Union Wage Advantage for Low-Wage Workers," was funded by the Ford Foundation.
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