Teacher Unionization and the Quality of Education in Peru: An Empirical Evaluation Using Survey Data

Abstract

Summary: In this paper we analyse the evolution and current profile teacher unionization and estimate the impact of unionization on the quality of public education in Peru. The research uses data from a 1999 household survey (ENAHO) and from a recent evaluation of a public program oriented to improve the quality of Peruvian public education. Regarding the evolution of unionization, we find evidence compatible with the hypothesis that the rate of teacher unionization has dropped during the last three decades, but especially during the 1990s, due basically to the hiring of temporary teachers. With respect to the profile of unionization, we find that unionized teachers are older and more experienced, and that males are more common in the union membership. We did not find empirical evidence that unionized teachers enjoy better access to educational infrastructure at the polidocente (larger) schools, but that they do have better access at the multigrado (intermediate) schools.