|
on Microeconomic European Issues |
|
Issue of 2019‒01‒28
thirty-one papers chosen by Giuseppe Marotta Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia |
| By: | Emanuele Brancati; Raffaele Brancati; Dario Guarascio; Andrea Maresca; Manuel Romagnoli; Antonello Zanfei |
| Abstract: | This paper provides an in-depth study on the main firm-level drivers of external competitiveness during the recent crisis in Italy. We contribute to the debate on the Italian international position by presenting evidence based on a unique sample survey database (the MET dataset). Overall, our results confirm the high degree of heterogeneity of the Italian corporate sector and the well-known differences between internationalised and domestic companies in terms of performance as well as structure and behaviour. In particular, the data highlight not only the correlation between internationalisation and innovative activities but also a positive change of attitude of Italian firms towards these strategies. Our analysis shows that, whilst structural factors play a key role for external competitiveness (size, location, industry, etc.), other critical firm-level aspects, especially those related to strategic profiles, technological capabilities, and ‘proactive’ behaviour, trigger superior performances. To this extent, our policy suggestions focus on the need to sustain and foster innovative activities to improve aggregate competitiveness. |
| JEL: | F14 L25 O31 O33 |
| Date: | 2018–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:euf:dispap:087&r=all |
| By: | Antoine Dechezleprêtre; Caterina Gennaioli; Ralf Martin; Mirabelle Muûls; Thomas Stoerk |
| Abstract: | Does unilateral climate change policy cause companies to shift the location of production, thereby creating carbon leakage? In this paper, we analyse the effect of the European Union Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) on the geographical distribution of carbon emissions of multinational companies. The empirical evidence is based on unique data for the period 2007-2014 from the Carbon Disclosure Project, which tracks emissions of multinational businesses by geographical region. Because they already operate from multiple locations, multinational firms should be the most prone to carbon leakage. Our data includes regional emissions of 1,122 companies, of which 261 are subject to EU ETS regulation. We find no evidence that the EU ETS has led to a displacement of carbon emissions from Europe towards the rest of the world, including in countries with no climate policy in place and within energy-intensive companies. A large number of robustness checks confirm this finding. Overall, the paper suggests that modest differences in carbon prices between countries do not induce carbon leakage. |
| Keywords: | Carbon leakage, EU-ETS, CO2 emissions, multinational companies. |
| JEL: | H23 Q53 Q54 Q58 |
| Date: | 2019–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cgs:wpaper:97&r=all |
| By: | Eichfelder, Sebastian; Schneider, Kerstin |
| Abstract: | We analyse how tax incentives in the form of accelerated depreciations ("bonus depreciation") affect business investment. By exploiting exogenous variation in tax regulation of a regional bonus depreciation program in the former East Germany, we identify and quantify the impact from bonus depreciation on building and equipment investments at the extensive and intensive margins in the German manufacturing industry. We observe a stronger response for building investments and from large firms. There is only weak evidence of subsidy shopping but stronger evidence of investment shifting to years with more generous bonus depreciation regulations. |
| Keywords: | bonus depreciation,tax incentive,business taxation,heterogeneity |
| JEL: | G11 H25 H32 M41 |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:arqudp:231&r=all |
| By: | Ghirelli, Corinna (Banco de Espana); Havari, Enkelejda (European Commission – JRC); Santangelo, Giulia (European Commission – JRC); Scettri, Marta (Office of Statistics and Evaluation of the Umbria Region) |
| Abstract: | This paper provides an evaluation of a training programme for graduates entitled "Work Experience for Graduates" (WELL - Work Experience Laureati and Laureate) that was recently implemented in Italy. The aim of the programme was to increase the career prospects of unemployed graduates in the region of Umbria. It consisted of two measures: (i) on-the-job training for unemployed graduates, and (ii) wage subsidies to firms and organisations for hiring the trainees at the end of the programme. We rely on administrative data and match- ing methods to evaluate the effectiveness of the intervention in terms of the employability of participants. Results indicate that WELL participants are more likely to be employed and to sign an apprenticeship contract within the region. We also find substantial gender differences in employability and the type of contract obtained, with men having a higher probability of finding a job (permanent contract or apprenticeship). We show that this may be explained by different choices in terms of field of study, with males being more prone to enrolling in scientific areas and females in the humanities. |
| Keywords: | training; graduates; matching; propensity score; policy evaluation; Italy |
| JEL: | I0 J0 D04 J48 |
| Date: | 2018–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:jrs:wpaper:201814&r=all |
| By: | Giulia Bettin (Department of Economics and Social Sciences, Universita' Politecnica delle Marche); Agnese Sacchi (Department of Economics and Law, Sapienza University) |
| Abstract: | The welfare impact of immigration is a hot topic especially for countries at the external borders of the European Union. This paper studies how immigrants affect public health expenditure across Italian regions during the period 2003-2015. Identification strategy is based on shift{share instruments, which are also robust to pull factors that might attract immigrants in Italy and to internal migration of natives. We find that a 1 percentage point increase in immigrants over total population leads to a decrease in public health expenditure per capita by about 3.9% (i.e. around 70 euro per capita). This evidence is confirmed when focusing on needy immigrants from low income countries with less developed welfare systems. Among possible channels, we find no support for any crowding out effects from public to private health services by natives due to increasing immigration neither for the effect of entry barriers limiting the immigrants' reliance on public healthcare. Our results are driven by immigrants' demographic structure: foreigners are mostly males and younger workers that call for less health spending, according to a positive selection mechanism. |
| Keywords: | immigration, public health expenditure, demographic structure, positive selection |
| JEL: | F22 H51 H41 I10 J61 |
| Date: | 2019–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:anc:wpaper:433&r=all |
| By: | Erik Canton; Anna Thum-Thysen; Peter Voigt |
| Abstract: | In this paper we perform stochastic frontier analyses to assess the quality of public spending on education in Europe. To measure the corresponding efficiency, three dimensions are taken into account: (1) quantity (tertiary educational attainment), (2) quality (PISA scores in the area of science), and (3) inclusiveness (proxied by the inverse of young people not in employment, training or education (NEET rates)). All EU Member States are covered over the period 2002 – 2015. Based on pooled and fixed effects regressions, the EU Member States' efficiency scores are assessed both with a view at an EU-wide frontier to allow for cross-country comparisons as well as concerning country-specific frontiers to identify individual trends and possibly remaining deficiencies. The results reveal that some Member States manage to achieve high efficiency in all observed output dimensions 'quantity', 'quality' and 'inclusion', such as e.g. the Netherlands and the United Kingdom - which implies that there is not necessarily a trade-off between the individual output dimensions. Evidence suggests, moreover, that most Member States made remarkable progress over time in terms of efficient use of public resources in reaching large numbers of highly educated young adults. With a view at quality and inclusiveness of public spending on education, however, in many Member States seems to remain still room (and need) for further improvements. |
| JEL: | I2 H52 O15 |
| Date: | 2018–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:euf:dispap:081&r=all |
| By: | Fumarco, Luca (STATEC Research – National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies); Baert, Stijn (Ghent University) |
| Abstract: | We contribute to the literature on relative age effects on pupils' (non-cognitive) skills formation by studying students' social network. We investigate data on European adolescents from the Health Behaviour in School Aged Children survey and use an instrumental variables approach to account for endogeneity of relative age while controlling for confounders, namely absolute age, season-of-birth, and family socio-economic status. We find robust evidence that suggests the existence of a substitution effect: the youngest students within a class e-communicate more frequently than relatively older classmates but have fewer friends and meet with them less frequently. |
| Keywords: | relative age, adolescents, education, Europe, social network |
| JEL: | I21 |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp11972&r=all |
| By: | Tijan L. Bah |
| Abstract: | This paper aims at investigating how the occupational placement of immigrants relative to their qualifications a ect their self-selection. Using an administrative matched employer-employee data set for Portugal for the years 2002-2009, we first estimate the probability that an average worker from a particular country is overeducated, matched, or undereducated relative to the skill needs of the occupation he takes upon immigration. Second, using these estimated probabilities, we analyze how overeducation and appropriate skill-occupation matches a ect selection of immigrants from 40 origin countries. The results suggest that overeducation leads to negative self-selection of immigrants into the Portuguese labor market. Furthermore, the evidence suggests that appropriate occupation-skill matches a ect migration selection positively. These results imply that receiving countries' selective policies aimed at attracting high skilled immigrants should also focus on reducing occupation-skill mismatch probably through degree recognition and standardization in collaboration with sending countries. |
| Keywords: | Selection, Occupation-Skill Mismatch, Portugal, Immigrants, Waste, Immigration |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:unl:novafr:wp1804&r=all |
| By: | Bussolo, Maurizio; Krolage, Carla; Makovec, Mattia; Peichl, Andreas; Stockli, Marc; Torre, Ivan; Wittneben, Christian |
| Abstract: | European countries have the world’s most redistributive tax and transfer systems. While they have been well equipped to deal with vertical inequality – that is, fostering redistribution from the rich to the poor – less is known about their performance in dealing with horizontal inequality, that is, in redistributing among socio-economic groups. In a context where individuals may not only care about vertical redistribution, but also about the economic situation of the specific groups they belong to, the horizontal dimension of redistribution becomes politically salient and can be a source of social tensions. We analyze the performance of the 28 EU countries on redistribution across i) age groups; ii) occupational groups; and iii) household types over the period 2007-2014 using counterfactual simulation techniques. We find a great degree of heterogeneity across countries: changes in the tax and transfer system have particularly hit the young and the losers of occupational change in Eastern European countries, while households with greater economic security have benefited from these changes. Our findings suggest that horizontal inequality is a dimension which policy makers should take into account when reforming tax and transfer systems. |
| Date: | 2019–01–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ese:emodwp:em1-19&r=all |
| By: | Cardullo, Gabriele (University of Genova); Conti, Maurizio (University of Genova); Sulis, Giovanni (University of Cagliari) |
| Abstract: | In this paper we present a search and matching model in which firms invest in sunk capital equipment. By comparing two wage setting scenarios, we show that a two-tier bargaining scheme, where a fraction of the salary is negotiated at firm level, raises the amount of investment per worker in the economy compared to a one-tier bargaining scheme, in which earnings are entirely negotiated at sectoral level. The model's main result is consistent with the positive correlation between investment per worker and the presence of a two-tier bargaining agreement that we find in a representative sample of Italian firms. |
| Keywords: | unions, investment, hold-up, two-tier bargaining, control function |
| JEL: | J51 J64 E22 |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp12008&r=all |
| By: | Thomas Fackler; Yvonne Giesing; Nadzeya Laurentsyeva |
| Abstract: | Does the emigration of skilled individuals necessarily result in losses for source countries due to the brain drain? Combining industry-level patenting and migration data from 32 European countries, we show that emigration in fact positively contributes to innovation in source countries. We use changes in the labour mobility legislation within Europe as exogenous variation to establish causality. By analysing patent citation data, we further provide evidence that these positive effects are driven by knowledge flows that are triggered by emigrants. While skilled migrants are not inventing in their home country anymore, they contribute to cross-border knowledge and technology diffusion and thus help less advanced countries to catch up to the technology frontier. |
| Keywords: | migration, innovation, knowledge spillovers, patent citations, EU enlargement |
| JEL: | F22 J61 O33 O31 O52 |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_7420&r=all |
| By: | Vandenberghe, Vincent |
| Abstract: | The rising cost of old-age dependency in Europe and elsewhere invariably leads to reforms aimed at raising the effective age or retirement. But do older individuals have the health/cognitive capacity to work longer? Following Cutler et al. (2012), this paper asks how much older individuals could work if they worked as much as their younger (50-54) counterparts in similar health/with equal cognitive performance. Contrary to existing papers, this one uses international, European, comparable panel evidence available in the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE). It considers both physical health and cognition; and health consists of subjective and objective measures. Also, it examines the extensive and intensive margins of work (employment and hours): existing papers only consider the former. Results are essentially fivefold. First, declines in health significantly affect employment. Second, the impact on hours is statistical significant but of much smaller magnitude. People suffering from ill health rarely adjust hours; they rather stop working altogether. Third, cognition is not fundamentally affected by ageing, and it adds little to our capacity to predict how work capacity evolves with age. Fourth, identification issues exist and must be addressed. They comprise unobserved heterogeneity across respondents, justification bias or proxying/measurement errors regarding health. Finally, declining health/cognition explain at most 31% of the actual labour supply reduction between 50 and 70. This confirms the existence of a, currently largely underused, work capacity among older individuals. |
| Keywords: | Ageing,Health,Cognition,Labour Supply,Work Capacity |
| JEL: | J22 I10 J26 |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:glodps:295&r=all |
| By: | Vidar Christiansen; Zhiyang Jia; Thor Olav Thoresen |
| Abstract: | Taking a piecemeal tax reform approach to tax analysis in the spirit of Feldstein (1976), we establish a framework for assessing perturbations of the income tax schedule. It decomposes a reform into a change in tax level and a structural reform part. Focussing on the latter, the analysis singles out four effects: A social efficiency effect measured as the change in tax revenue due to behavioural changes, distributional impact due to mechanical effects, total distributional effects, and overall welfare effects conditional on inequality aversion. When applying our approach to changes in the piecewise linear income tax in Norway during 2016-2018, we identify the cut-off value for the inequality aversion for which the reform is just welfare preserving. For lower inequality aversion the decision makers have accepted a reform which enhances social efficiency at the expense of redistribution in favour of the better-off households. |
| Keywords: | income tax, tax reform, tax perturbation |
| JEL: | H21 |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_7428&r=all |
| By: | Brigitte Dormont (UP9 - Université Paris 9, Dauphine - Université Paris-Dauphine); Carine Milcent (PJSE - Paris Jourdan Sciences Economiques - UP1 - Université Panthéon-Sorbonne - ENS Paris - École normale supérieure - Paris - INRA - Institut National de la Recherche Agronomique - EHESS - École des hautes études en sciences sociales - ENPC - École des Ponts ParisTech - CNRS - Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique) |
| Abstract: | There is ongoing debate about the effect of ownership on hospital performance as regards efficiency and care quality. This paper proposes an analysis of the differences in productivity and efficiency between French public and private hospitals. In France, public and private hospitals do not only differ in their objectives. They are also subject to different rules as regards investments and human resources management. In addition, they were financed according to different payment schemes until 2004: a global budget system was used for public hospitals, while private hospitals were paid on a fee-for-service basis. Since 2004, a prospective payment system (PPS) with fixed payment per stay in a given DRG is gradually introduced for both private and public hospitals. Payments generally differ for the same DRG, depending on whether the stay occurred in a private or public hospital. A convergence of payments between the nonprofit and for profit sectors was planned by 2018 by the previous government, but this project has been abandoned by the newly elected government. Pursuing such a convergence comes down to suppose that there are differences in efficiency between private and public hospitals, which would be reduced by the introduction of competition between these two sectors. The purpose of this paper is to compare the productivity of public and private hospitals in France. We try to assess the respective impacts, on productivity differences, of differences in efficiency, patient characteristics and production composition. We have chosen to estimate a production function. For that purpose, we have defined a variable measuring the volume of care services provided by each hospital, synthetizing the hospital multiproduct activity into one homogenous output. Our data comes from two administrative sources which record exhaustive information about French hospitals. Matching these two database provides us an original source of information, at the hospital-year level, about both the production composition (number of stays in each DRG), and production factors (number of beds, facilities, number of doctors, nurses, of administrative and support staff, etc.). We observe 1,604 hospitals over the period 1998-2003, of which 642 hospitals are public, 126 are private not-for-profit and 836 are private-for-profit. This database is relative to acute care and covers more than 95 % of French hospitals. We use a stochastic production frontier approach combined with hospitals fixed effects. We find that the lower productivity of public hospitals is not explained by inefficiency (distance to the frontier), but oversized establishments, patient characteristics and production characteristics (small proportion of surgical stays). Once patient and production characteristics are taken into account, large and medium sized public hospitals appear to be more efficient than private hospitals. As a result, payment convergence would provide incentives for public hospitals to change the composition of their supply for care. |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:journl:halshs-01960338&r=all |
| By: | Damiani, Mirella; Pompei, Fabrizio; Ricci, Andrea |
| Abstract: | We investigate the role of Italian firms in labour productivity performance. We find that family-owned firms have lower labour productivity than their non-family counterparts. In a second step, we estimate the role of firm-level bargaining (FLB) to determine whether family-controlled firms that adopt this type of bargaining may partially close the gap in terms of labour productivity with their non-family competitors. Our results, obtained through IV estimation to control for endogeneity bias, suggest that enterprises under family governance achieve significant labour productivity gains — greater than those achieved by their non-family counterparts — when they adopt firm-level bargaining. |
| Keywords: | Family firms, corporate governance, labour productivity, firm-level bargaining |
| JEL: | D24 G32 G34 |
| Date: | 2018–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:91329&r=all |
| By: | Stéphane Goutte (LED - Université Paris 8); Philippe Vassilopoulos |
| Abstract: | The concept of flexibility is not one you find in standard microeconomics textbooks , yet it already plays a major role in the remuneration of the resources that generate and consume electricity every day and is likely to play an even larger role with the penetration of large intermittent renewable capacities. In this paper we attempt to quantify the net revenues that can be captured by a flexible resource able to react to the short term price variations on the day-ahead and intraday markets in Germany. We find that the difference between day-ahead and intraday revenues for a flexible resource has been increasing (although the profitability has been decreasing on both markets). This difference is more pronounced once 15mn price variations can be captured by a flexible resource. The net revenues from the local 15mn auction (which is held 3 hours after the hourly "coupled" day-ahead auction) are more than eight times higher than the day-ahead hourly auction but |
| Date: | 2019–01–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:wpaper:hal-01968081&r=all |
| By: | Juan J. Dolado (European University Institute); Cecilia Garcia-Peñalosa (Aix-Marseille University, EHESS, CNRS, Central Marseille & AMSE); Linas Tarasonis (Vilnius University & Bank of Lithuania) |
| Abstract: | The Great Recession has strongly influenced employment patterns across skill and gender groups. This paper analyzes how the resulting changes in non-employment have affected selection into jobs and hence gender wage gaps. Using data for the European Union, we show that male selection into the labour market, traditionally disregarded, has become positive. This is particularly so in Southern Europe, where dramatic drops in male unskilled employment have taken place during the crisis. As regards female selection, traditionally positive, we document two distinct effects. An added-worker effect has increased female labour force participation and hence reduced selection in some countries. In others, selection has become even more positive as a result of adverse labour demand shifts in industries which are intensive in temporary work, a type of contract in which women are over-represented. Overall, our results indicate that selection has become more important among men and less so among women, thus changing traditional gender patterns and calling for a systematic consideration of male non-employment when studying gender wage gaps. |
| Keywords: | Sample selection, gender wage gaps, gender employment gaps |
| JEL: | J31 |
| Date: | 2019–01–14 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:lie:wpaper:58&r=all |
| By: | Giudo De Blasio; Maria De Paola; Vincenzo Scoppa; Samuele Poy (Dipartimento di Economia, Statistica e Finanza "Giovanni Anania" - DESF, Università della Calabria) |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates the impact of risk attitudes on the decision to become an entrepreneur. In contrast to previous research, we handle endogeneity issues relying on an instrumental variables strategy considering as a source of exogenous variation in risk aversion the early exposure to a massive earthquake. Using several waves of the Bank of Italy Survey of Household Income and Wealth (SHIW), we find that individuals experimenting an earthquake become significantly more risk averse. Second-stage estimates show that risk aversion has a significant negative impact on the probability of becoming an entrepreneur. |
| Keywords: | Entrepreneurship, Risk Attitudes, Natural Disasters, Instrumental Variables |
| JEL: | D81 D91 L26 C36 |
| Date: | 2019–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:clb:wpaper:201901&r=all |
| By: | Laura Alfaro; Manuel García-Santana; Enrique Moral-Benito |
| Abstract: | We consider the real effects of bank lending shocks and how they permeate the economy through buyer-supplier linkages. We combine administrative data on all firms in Spain with a matched bank-firm-loan dataset on the universe of corporate loans for 2003-2013 to identify bank-specific shocks for each year using methods from the matched employer-employee literature. We construct firm-specific exogenous credit supply shocks and estimate their direct and indirect effects on real activity using firm-specific measures of upstream and downstream exposure. Credit supply shocks have sizable direct and downstream propagation effects on investment and output throughout the period, especially during the 2008-2009 global financial crisis. In terms of mechanisms, trade credit extended by suppliers and price adjustments play a role in accounting for downstream propagation of financial shocks. |
| JEL: | E44 G21 L25 |
| Date: | 2019–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:25458&r=all |
| By: | Anne-Lore Fraikin; Alain Jousten; Mathieu Lefebvre |
| Abstract: | The paper traces labor market reforms over the last four decades. It provides estimates of retirement incentives for a selected set of typical worker profiles across time and socioeconomic groups and links these series to the labor market performance in Belgium. The results show that the numerous retirement and social security program reforms have had a marked impact on incentives at the micro level. At the aggregate level, results are less clear-cut given the extreme diversity of programs and features in the Belgian institutional context. |
| JEL: | H55 J26 |
| Date: | 2018–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:25375&r=all |
| By: | Damiani, Mirella; Pompei, Fabrizio; Ricci, Andrea |
| Abstract: | Insufficient attention has been paid to the different roles of wage incentives in the competitiveness of family and non-family firms. This paper addresses this issue and uses a sample of listed and non-listed Italian firms for 2007 and 2010 to show that family firms that adopt incentive wages obtain greater gains in competitiveness with respect to non-family firms. Unlike what occurs in non-family firms, the efficiency enhancing effect of incentive wages more than compensates for the premiums paid to employees and enables family firms to achieve significant gains in terms of competitiveness. |
| Keywords: | Family firms Performance-related pay Labour productivity Wages Competitiveness |
| JEL: | D24 G32 J33 |
| Date: | 2018–11–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:91303&r=all |
| By: | Jahn, Vera; Steinhardt, Max Friedrich |
| Abstract: | This paper analyzes in how far immigration affects firm formation at the regional level. For this purpose, we exploit a placement policy in Germany in the 1990s for immigrants of German origin from Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union. Our panel regressions suggest that immigration had a positive impact on regional firm formation. The most likely mechanisms driving this result are labor supply-side effects and positive implications of cultural diversity. Overall, our paper demonstrates that immigration induced changes in local labor supply can partially be absorbed by the creation of firms. |
| Keywords: | immigration,placement policy,economic impact,firms |
| JEL: | F22 L26 R11 |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:rwirep:787&r=all |
| By: | Haslanger, Patrick |
| Abstract: | This paper adds to the literature of external corporate venturing, especially corporate venture capitals (CVCs) and corporate accelerators (CAs) by providing an overview of the German corporate venturing market and by offering first intriguing findings based on a novel and unique hand-collected dataset. It presents insights regarding the set-up, organization and staffing of corporate venturing units, as well as characteristics of start-ups under management. This study distinguishes between the corporate venturing unit's mission, organization, governance and network as well as vehicle leads. Moreover, differences in the characteristics of start-ups supported by corporate venturing units are detected. This work offers unique insights on the German corporate venturing landscape and thereby serves as starting point for future and more elaborate research. |
| Keywords: | corporate venturing,entrepreneurship,corporate venture capital (CVC),corporate accelerator (CA),Germany |
| JEL: | G24 L26 M13 O3 |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:auguow:0119&r=all |
| By: | Fumarco, Luca (STATEC Research – National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies); Baert, Stijn (Ghent University) |
| Abstract: | This is the first study to investigate whether age gaps between classmates (that is, relative age) affect life-satisfaction gaps in adolescence. To this end, we analyse data from the multi-country Health Behaviour in School-Aged Children (HBSC) survey. We find evidence that relative age negatively impacts adolescents' life-satisfaction. A twelve-month age gap decreases life-satisfaction, rated on a 0-10 scale, by 0.3 points. This negative effect is consistent across countries. Finally, this negative effect does not decrease with the increase in absolute age. |
| Keywords: | relative age, adolescents, education, Europe, life-satisfaction |
| JEL: | C26 I21 I31 Z13 |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp11990&r=all |
| By: | Judit Kreko |
| Abstract: | This paper evaluates the effect of the Hungarian disability quota - levy system on disabled employment and firm behavior, and also aims to shed light on factors influencing the effectiveness of employment tax incentives. According to the quota rule, firms above a certain size threshold have to employ at least five percent disabled employees or pay a levy in case of non-compliance. The special feature of the Hungarian quota system is the uniquely high levy, which is accompanied by poor labor market integration of the disabled. The estimation exploits two significant policy changes: the drastic raise of the levy in 2010 and the increase of the firm size threshold from 20 to 25 employees in 2012. The policy effect on disabled employment is estimated on firm level data with regression discontinuity design. The baseline RDD results are adjusted to account for the potential bias arising from non-random firm selection, as many firms adjust their size to avoid the quota. The estimated disabled employment effect is high in international comparison, however, almost three-quarter of the quota is not fulfilled. I find evidence that the ratio of disabled population influences the disabled employment effect of the quota. This suggests that low effective labor supply and high (perceived) non-wage costs of hiring disabled are factors behind low quota fulfillment. |
| Date: | 2019–01–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ceu:econwp:2019_1&r=all |
| By: | Chiara Mussida (DISCE, Università Cattolica); Raffaella Patimo (Dipartimento di Economia e Finanza, Università degli Studi di Bari Aldo Moro.) |
| Abstract: | TPersistently low employment of women in some countries can still be attributed to a traditional perception of women’s role in society. According to observed data and prevailing social and cultural norms, women have been bearing the primary burdens of housework, childcare and other family responsibilities. The unequal share of these care responsibilities between women and men further worsens the disadvantages of women in balancing public and private life, with an impact on their employment and health outcomes. In this paper we investigate the role of family responsibilities in shaping employment and health outcomes by gender, in Italy and France before and after the economic downturn. We find results supporting the fact that gender differences in the share of responsibilities roles in the public and private sphere influence the employability and health perception of women. |
| Keywords: | Employment, Gender gap, Care responsibilities, Health |
| JEL: | C33 D13 I10 J13 J21 |
| Date: | 2018–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ctc:serie2:dises141&r=all |
| By: | Benedetto Lepori (Universitá della Svizzera italiana, Switzerland.); Aldo Geuna (University of Turin; BRICK, Collegio Carlo Alberto, Italy.); Antonietta Mira (Universitá della Svizzera italiana, Switzerland.) |
| Abstract: | By using a comprehensive dataset of US and European universities, we demonstrate super-linear scaling between university revenues and their volume of publications and citations. We show that this relationship holds both in the US and in Europe. In terms of resources, our data show that three characteristics differentiate the US system: (1) a significantly higher level of resources for the entire system, (2) a clearer distinction between education-oriented institutions and doctoral universities and (3) a higher concentration of resources among doctoral universities. Accordingly, a group of US universities receive a much larger amount of resources and have a far higher number of publications and especially citations when compared to their European counterparts. These results demonstrate empirically the pervasiveness of a social order where financial resources are tightly coupled with a measure of ‘excellence’ associated with international rankings and, additionally, where the widely accepted measures of ‘excellence’ in reality ‘prime’ resources. They therefore raise important questions for policy-making and for the management of higher education institutions. |
| Keywords: | Social Sciences, Economic Sciences |
| Date: | 2018–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sru:ssewps:2018-22&r=all |
| By: | Pompei, Fabrizio; Damiani, Mirella; Andrea, Ricci |
| Abstract: | This article analyses how Italian family firms (FFs) have acted during the global great crisis in comparison to their nonfamily counterparts using a sample of almost 4500 firms for 2007 and 2010. We study whether family control affects labor productivity, labor costs, and competitiveness and how family and nonfamily firm (NFFs) have responded to the great crisis. Furthermore, we test whether the adoption of performance-related pay (PRP) for employees offers an efficacious strategy to mitigate the effects of the crisis. Quantile regression techniques have been used to test the heterogeneous role of PRP, and its possible endogeneity has been taken into account in the empirical investigation. After the outbreak of the crisis, the distance in terms of the competitiveness of FFs in relation to their nonfamily counterparts increased. However, we also find that FFs may take advantage of the adoption of incentive schemes, such as PRP, to encourage commitment and motivation from their employees more than NFFs do. The positive role of PRP on labor productivity, coupled with a moderate influence of these schemes on wage premiums, enables them to regain competitiveness. In addition, for FFs located in industrial districts in which social rules prevail on formal rules, the adoption of PRP has exerted additional positive effects under hostile pressures, such as those characterizing the strong global crisis. |
| Keywords: | Family firms, performance-related pay, quantile regressions, productivity |
| JEL: | D24 G32 J33 |
| Date: | 2018–12–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:91301&r=all |
| By: | Nicole Bosch (CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis); Maja Micevska Scharf (CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis); Casper van Ewijk (CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis); Sander Muns (CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis) |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates the incidence of pension contributions using a unique longitudinal administrative dataset covering individual employees at different pension funds in the Netherlands for the period 2006-2012. With a panel-based difference-indifference approach, we estimate the response of wages, labor cost and hours worked to both marginal and average contribution rates, which provides us insight into the mechanisms underlying incidence. In contrast to the standard demand and supply model of labor we fi nd that average contribution rates matter more for incidence than marginal rates. Moreover, we fi nd that a substantial part of the burden (some 70%) is borne by employers. This is in line with the statutory contribution rates (on average 70-30 for employers and employees) but could also be explained by other factors such as non-salience or bargaining. Together our findings indicate that incidence is best explained by a bargaining model of wages, at least in the short and medium term considered in our analysis. |
| JEL: | D91 G11 G23 |
| Date: | 2019–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cpb:discus:388&r=all |
| By: | Nicolai Suppa |
| Abstract: | This paper proposes a measure for deprivation in social participation, an important but so far neglected dimension of human well-being. Operationalisation and empirical implementation of the measure are conceptually guided by the capability approach. Essentially, the paper argues that deprivation in social participation can be convincingly established by drawing on extensive non-participation in customary social activities. In doing so, the present paper synthesizes philosophical considerations, axiomatic research on poverty and deprivation, and previous empirical research on social exclusion and subjective well-being. An application using high-quality German survey data supports the measure’s validity. Specifically, the results suggest, as theoretically expected, that the proposed measure is systematically different from related concepts like material deprivation and income poverty. Moreover, regression techniques reveal deprivation in social participation to reduce life satisfaction substantially, quantitatively similar to unemployment. Finally, questions like preference vs. deprivation, cross-country comparisons, and the measure’s suitability as a social indicator are discussed. |
| Keywords: | Social participation, capability approach, deprivation, life satisfaction, multidimensional poverty, SOEP |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:diw:diwsop:diw_sp998&r=all |
| By: | Anne Hannusch |
| Abstract: | Childbirth causes persistent gender differences in labor force participation and the difference in employment rates of married women with and without pre-school children varies substantially across countries. To what extent can child-related transfers account for this differential? To answer this question, I develop a life-cycle model of joint labor supply, in which female human capital evolves endogenously and a fraction of households has access to informal childcare. I calibrate the model to the US and Denmark, two countries in which the gap in employment rates of women with and without pre-school children differs in sign and magnitude: the gap is 13.2% in the US and -3.7% in Denmark. After taking the labor income tax treatment of married couples and variation in childcare fees into account, I find that child-related transfers are key to explaining the positive gap in the US and the negative gap in Denmark. I show that this mechanism is quantitatively important to account for variation in the maternal participation gap across other European countries as well. |
| Keywords: | Maternal Labor Supply, Two-earner Households, Family Transfers, Taxation |
| JEL: | E62 H31 J12 J22 |
| Date: | 2019–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bon:boncrc:crctr224_2019_067&r=all |