Barry Hirsch received his Ph.D. in 1977 from the University of Virginia and is now professor of Economics at the Florida State University. His research has focused on the determination of wages and employment in labour markets and on the role of labour unions. He is author of Labor Unions and the Economic Performance of Firms, co-author with John Addison of The Economic Analysis of Unions: New Approaches and Evidence, and co-author with David Macpherson of an annual source book, Union Membership and Earnings Data Book: Compilation from the Current Population Survey published by the Bureau of National Affairs.