Tuesday, May 11, 2021
1. Introduction
Labor market concentration and its potential effects on workers is a topic increasingly debated among antitrust practitioners and academics. The potential link between labor market concentration and lower wages has led to questions of whether and how labor issues should inform merger review and, more broadly, antitrust investigations. Covid-19 has strained some industries (such as airlines) and may result in consolidation of some employers, further raising labor market concentration concerns. This article describes some of the current research regarding labor concentration and its impact on workers, how labor concentration issues are being raised in the courts, and how economic analysis can inform antitrust inquiry moving forward.