Do collective bargaining rights save lives? A rare event analysis of firefighter fatalities in the United States
In: Risk, hazards & crisis in public policy, Band 13, Heft 2, S. 100-117
ISSN: 1944-4079
AbstractRisk analysis research often focuses on regulation, assessment, and management rather than risk governance. This study contributes to the risk governance literature by analyzing the relationship between collective bargaining rights for firefighters and firefighter fatalities in the United States. Using state‐level data from 2009 through 2018, this analysis shows that states with duty‐to‐bargain rights for firefighters have fewer firefighter fatalities than those without duty‐to‐bargain rights. Further, this analysis shows that the benefit of duty‐to‐bargain rights dissipates in states with a high percentage of fully volunteer fire departments. This study concludes with a discussion of the implications for fire departments and public policy.