The Effect of Multinational Institutions on Strike Activity in Canada

The author estimates the influence of foreign corporate ownership and international unionism on strike activity in Canadian manufacturing between 1965 and 1985, controlling for several other determinants of strike activity that were largely ignored in previous studies. He finds, contrary to the results of other studies, that the incidence and duration of strikes did not differ significantly between foreign-owned and domestically owned firms or between international and national unions. Strike incidence was significantly lower, however, among unions affiliated with the AFL-CIO than among unions affiliated with a Canadian federation.