Gauging labor lost to union disputes each year
In the event that the firms increase the hourly wage rate owing to the constant strikes that are brought by unions, the employees' annual salary is bound to increase. It is only possible if the employees utilize all the time available to them in their various workstations. The employers cannot pay for hours not worked, therefore, the longer the time taken in strikes, the more the employees are bound to lose in terms of their total salary. More time is taken in extended strikes, and this to a great extent hurts the pay slips of the employees. Even though in the end the employers give in to the demands of the unionized employees, the lost time cannot be recovered. Therefore, when taking into account the overall annual pay, the amount is lower as compared to when the employees could have worked in all the working days available for them.
Also, the firms increase the prices of the products produced in order to cater for the lost volumes of output and losses during the strikes. The same employees are the ones who at times consume the same products and they now get the products at a higher price than before. Their net salary in this case reduces since their expenditures will be more even though the hourly wage rate has been increased. Arguing from an economic point of view, there exists no difference between the coordinated sick day work stoppages and strikes. Both incidences lead to inefficiencies as the labor utilization is minimized. The employees in both cases spend more time out of work and therefore reduce the amount of output produced by the firms.
