The value of shareholders vs. employees

Morch et.al., 1989, "Alternative mechanisms for corporate control", The American Economic Review, vol 79 (4) pp. 842-852

On the other hand, when the whole industry is suffering, the board is reluctant to make changes that raise market value. In particual, even when board members know how to raise value, they may refuse to do so because the required changes in a declining industry (layoffs, investment cutbacks, and divestitures) harm employees, who are considered more important to the organization than shareholders who are only " out for speculative profit"