nep-hrm New Economics Papers
on Human Capital and Human Resource Management
Issue of 2010‒02‒27
nine papers chosen by
Fabio Sabatini
University of Siena

  1. The return to firm investments in human capital. By Almeida, R.; Carneiro, P.
  2. The impact of low-skilled immigration on the youth labor market By Christopher L. Smith
  3. Determinants of Lifetime Unemployment: A Micro Data Analysis with Censored Quantile Regressions By Schmillen, Achim; Möller, Joachim
  4. Training and Union wages. By Dustmann, C.; Schonberg, U.
  5. Development of Women Education in India By Sharmila, N; Dhas, Albert Christopher
  6. Which Immigrants Are Most Innovative and Entrepreneurial? Distinctions by Entry Visa By Hunt, Jennifer
  7. How can the impact of foreign direct investment on human development be measured and regulated?. By De Schutter, Olivier; Swinnen, Johan; Wouters, Jan
  8. Does Reading Proficiency at Age 15 Affect Pathways through Learning and Work By Tomasz Gluszynski; Justin Bayard
  9. Investments in Intangible Assets and Australia's Productivity Growth By Paula Barnes; Andrew McClure

  1. By: Almeida, R.; Carneiro, P.
    Abstract: In this paper we estimate the rate of return to firm investments in human capital in the form of formal job training. We use a panel of large firms with detailed information on the duration of training, the direct costs of training, and several firm characteristics. Our estimates of the return to training are substantial (8.6%) for those providing training. Results suggest that formal job training is a good investment for these firms possibly yielding comparable returns to either investments in physical capital or investments in schooling.
    Date: 2009–01
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ner:ucllon:http://eprints.ucl.ac.uk/16154/&r=hrm
  2. By: Christopher L. Smith
    Abstract: The employment-to-population rate of high-school aged youth has fallen by about 20 percentage points since the late 1980s. The human capital implications of this decline depend on the reasons behind it. In this paper, I demonstrate that growth in the number of less-educated immigrants may have considerably reduced youth employment rates. This finding stands in contrast to previous research that generally identifies, at most, a modest negative relationship across states or cities between immigration levels and adult labor market outcomes. At least two factors are at work: there is greater overlap between the jobs that youth and less-educated adult immigrants traditionally do, and youth labor supply is more responsive to immigration-induced changes in their wage. Despite a slight increase in schooling rates in response to immigration, I find little evidence that reduced employment rates are associated with higher earnings ten years later in life. This raises the possibility that an immigration-induced reduction in youth employment, on net, hinders youths' human capital accumulation.
    Date: 2010
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:fedgfe:2010-03&r=hrm
  3. By: Schmillen, Achim (IAB, Nürnberg); Möller, Joachim (IAB, Nürnberg)
    Abstract: The empirical literature on unemployment almost exclusively focuses on the duration of distinct unemployment spells. In contrast, we use a large German administrative micro data set for the time span 1975-2004 to investigate individual lifetime unemployment (defined as the total length of all unemployment spells over a 25-year period). This new perspective enables us to answer questions regarding the long-term distribution and determinants of unemployment for West German birth cohorts 1950-1954. We find that lifetime unemployment is highly unevenly distributed and employ censored quantile regressions to show that, for men, pursuing a disadvantageous occupation early in the professional career leads to a significantly higher amount of lifetime unemployment.
    Keywords: lifetime unemployment, censored quantile regressions, occupation-specific human capital
    JEL: J64 J24
    Date: 2010–02
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp4751&r=hrm
  4. By: Dustmann, C.; Schonberg, U.
    Abstract: This paper investigates whether unions, through imposing wage floors that lead to wage compression, increase on-the-job training. Our analysis focuses on Germany. Based on a model of unions and firm-financed training, we derive empirical implications regarding apprenticeship training intensity, layoffs, wage cuts, and wage compression in unionized and nonunionized firms. We test these implications using firm panel data matched with administrative employee data. We find support for the hypothesis that union recognition, via imposing minimum wages and wage compression, increases training in apprenticeship programs.
    Date: 2009–05
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ner:ucllon:http://eprints.ucl.ac.uk/16427/&r=hrm
  5. By: Sharmila, N; Dhas, Albert Christopher
    Abstract: Women constitute almost half of the population of the world. Education for women is the best way to improve the health, nutrition and economic status of a household that constitute a micro unit of a nation economy. In this context, it can be argued that lack of woman education can be an impediment to the country’s economic development. In India, women achieve far less education that of men. As per the Census report 2001, the literacy rate of women is 54.16 per cent and that of men is 65.38 per cent. There has been a sincere effort to improve the education attainment of women by both government and voluntary organizations. The changes in the policies and infrastructural supports on primary, secondary and higher education reflect the initiatives of the Government of India towards women education. This paper examined the trends in women education, the investments on education and infrastructural supports in India. The study revealed that there had been significant progress in the performance of women education revealed from female literacy levels and its change over time. It was also observed that the gaps between rural and urban female literacy rates are narrowing down. It was observed that rural poverty acts as a push factors for women’s education rather than as an obstacle to women’s education. The significant influence of urbanization on women’s education implied that urbanization had been playing a beneficial role in the attainment of women’s education in India. At the same time, the drop-out rate had a negative effect on women’s education. It revealed that that reduction of girl’s drop-out rates is necessary for achieving women’s education. The initiatives of the government through investment and infrastructure in developing education in India were examined. With regard to facilities in schools, it had improved significantly, but a lot more need to be done. In sum, the study revealed that there have been concerted efforts to encourage girls to attend schools, which would lead to higher literacy in future. The study also revealed that there are several infrastructural barriers to women education in India. The study calls for focused approach towards increasing women centred educational infrastructure so as to reduce the women drop-out rates and to improve female literacy levels in India.
    Keywords: Women Development; women education; women literacy; education infrastructure; Female literacy rate; women in India; Indian women; primary education; secondary education; higher education; India
    JEL: I2 A2 B54
    Date: 2010–02–15
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:20680&r=hrm
  6. By: Hunt, Jennifer (McGill University)
    Abstract: Using the 2003 National Survey of College Graduates, I examine how immigrants perform relative to natives in activities likely to increase U.S. productivity, according to the type of visa on which they first entered the United States. Immigrants who first entered on a student/trainee visa or a temporary work visa have a large advantage over natives in wages, patenting, commercializing or licensing patents, and publishing. In general, this advantage is explained by immigrants’ higher education and field of study, but this is not the case for publishing, and immigrants are more likely to start companies than natives with similar education. Immigrants without U.S. education and who arrived at older ages suffer a wage handicap, which offsets savings to the United States from their having completed more education abroad. Immigrants who entered with legal permanent residence do not outperform natives for any of the outcomes considered.
    Keywords: immigration, innovation, entrepreneurship, visa type, wages
    JEL: J61 J24
    Date: 2010–02
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp4745&r=hrm
  7. By: De Schutter, Olivier; Swinnen, Johan; Wouters, Jan
    Abstract: The lowering of barriers to foreign direct investment and waves of privatisation have caused amounts of FDI to increase greatly in recent decades, allowing enormous sums of money to flow into certain countries. Olivier De Schutter, Jo Swinnen and Jan Wouters introduce recent research focusing on the impact of FDI on Human Rights, beyond the much studied impact of FDI on growth, with a particular emphasis on measurement and policy issues.
    Date: 2009–11
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ner:leuven:urn:hdl:123456789/258855&r=hrm
  8. By: Tomasz Gluszynski; Justin Bayard
    Abstract: Over the last decade, Canada has experienced a substantial increase in the number of individuals participating in post-secondary education (PSE). This trend emphasizes the importance of understanding the pathways leading to PSE enrolment and the competencies that are associated with them. This chapter describes a range of possible education and work outcomes at the age of 21, and the pathways that led to them. It describes the wealth of information that is available in the combination of the PISA and YITS databases. This overview provides a useful context in which to consider the complexity and importance of transitioning to postsecondary education and work.<BR>Au cours des dix dernières années, le Canada a vu augmenter de façon substantielle le nombre de ses étudiants dans l’enseignement post-secondaire. Cette tendance montre bien l’importance de la compréhension des parcours menant à l’inscription dans l’enseignement post-secondaire et des compétences qui y sont associées. Le présent chapitre passe en revue une gamme de résultats possibles dans les études et sur le marché du travail à l’âge de 21 ans, ainsi que les parcours qui y ont mené. Il décrit l’abondance des informations disponibles via la mise en commun des bases de données PISA et EJET. Cette vue d’ensemble fournit un contexte utile pour examiner la complexité et l’importance des transitions vers l’enseignement post-secondaire et le travail.
    Date: 2010–02–10
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oec:eduaab:31-en&r=hrm
  9. By: Paula Barnes; Andrew McClure (Productivity Commission)
    Abstract: Investment in capital is important for economic growth. But capital is not just physical assets; firms also invest in 'soft' capital such as knowledge, firm-specific skills, and better ways of doing business. This investment results in accumulation of 'intangible assets'. Intangible assets have been categorised as computerised information, innovative property (including R&D) and economic competencies (including firm-specific human capital and organisational capital), and most are difficult to measure. These assets can depreciate more rapidly than physical capital, but they are investments nonetheless, delivering benefits over time, not just in the period the expenditure was made. Many elements of spending on intangibles are treated as a current expense in the national accounts rather than as an investment. This leads to an understatement of investment in the economy. It also may affect measures of multifactor productivity (MFP) growth. Applying the methodology of Corrado, Hulten and Sichel (2006) found that intangible investment currently is almost half the size of tangible investment in the market sector of the Australian economy. While experimental in nature, the estimates suggest that - market sector investment in intangibles was $57 billion in 2005-06, 80 per cent of which is currently not treated as investment in the national accounts; average annual growth in intangible investment has been about 1.3 times that of tangibles since 1974-75; including intangible investment in total investment largely removes the past downward trend in the market sector ratio of investment to output (gross value added); investments in organisational capital (strategic planning, adaptation and reorganisation) and computerised information have grown at relatively high rates — making up 27 and 13 per cent of intangible investment in 2005-06. Treating investment in intangible assets as capital raises measured final output and measured capital inputs and alters the capital-labour ratio, hence the effect on measured MFP growth is complex. However, in Australia, adjusting for intangible investment not currently included in the national accounts does not have a large direct effect on the level or pattern of conventionally-measured MFP growth. The views expressed in this paper are those of the staff involved and do not necessarily reflect those of the Productivity Commission.
    Keywords: multifactor productivity (MFP) growth, organisational capital, Intangible assets, economic growth, computerised information, innovative property, R&D, economic competencies, human capital
    JEL: O
    Date: 2009–03
    URL: http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ris:prodsw:0901&r=hrm

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