Better Safe than Sorry? Toxic Waste Management after Union Elections

U.S. manufacturing facilities generate approximately 30 billion pounds of hazardous waste annually, 10% of which is released into the environment. The negative economic and health impacts of such toxic chemicals are significant (Currie et al., 2015; Aguilar-Gomez et al., 2022). It is therefore crucial to understand the factors which influence the production, release, and treatment of toxic waste and its resulting pollution.
Unions are designed to advocate for workers’ health and safety, but their impact on toxic waste management remains unclear. This study investigates how union elections affect the balance between workplace safety and environmental sustainability. Union election wins lead to a significant increase in air pollution and the release of toxic waste and to a significant decrease in waste treatment (e.g. recycling and energy recovery) at facility sites. Even though unionised facilities engage more often in innovative pollution prevention activities, these efforts are insufficient to offset the increased release of toxic waste. Unionised facilities prioritise worker safety by limiting the handling of hazardous waste, but this occurs at the expense of environmental sustainability.

Schoonjans, Eline (2025), Better Safe than Sorry? Toxic Waste Management after Union Elections, ZEW policy brief No. 25-03, Mannheim