Title:
What Is the Impact of Procedural and Distributive Worker Fairness Systems on U.S. Employees and Their Perceptions of Their Intention to Join or Remain in Unions?

Authors:
Steven V. Cates, DBA, Jason Jackson, PhD, Carrie O’Hare, DM, Nandakumar Vasudev Purohit, Barbara-Leigh Tonelli, PhD, Ernest Norris, PhD, Sean Doyle, PhD, USA

Abstract:

Research has shown that U.S. workers’ views of unions have become much more positive in the past decade, as membership rates in unions have remained near record lows. This raises the reality of a sizable “union representation gap” that persists between union interest and union coverage. This study examines how procedural and distributive justice systems, and employees' perceptions of them, relate to union beliefs and intentions. A sample of 600 employees (N = 600 U.S. workers) was collected with balanced groups (300 union / 300 non-union). The study was designed to obtain balanced responses to union and nonunion beliefs about unions from US employees.  The methods workflow included LASSO network analysis, Confirmatory Factor Analysis (CFA), and Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) using multi-group invariance testing. Distributive Justice and Union Instrumentality were combined into a joint construct: Justice–Instrumentality (JI). Procedural Justice (PJ) had a strong positive effect on Justice–Instrumentality (JI). Both Justice–Instrumentality (JI) – Union Orientation (UIO) and Procedural Justice (PJ) – Union Orientation (UIO) were found to be non-significant. The core contribution of this study is the discovery of the Cognition-Action Gap, with the implication that procedural fairness is necessary but not sufficient to drive union-oriented behavior.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.51505/IJEBMR.2026.10923