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on Human Capital and Human Resource Management |
| By: | Melanie Wallskog; Nicholas Bloom; Scott W. Ohlmacher; Cristina Tello-Trillo |
| Abstract: | Combining confidential Census worker and firm data, we find three key results. First, employees at more productive firms earn higher pay at all earnings levels. Second, this pay-productivity relationship strengthens with seniority, doubling from an elasticity of 0.07 for pay on productivity for the median-paid employee to 0.15 for the top-paid employee. Consequently, more productive firms have higher within-firm inequality. Our data suggests this is driven by their greater adoption of aggressive performance-pay bonus and management schemes. Finally, the magnitude of this pay-performance slope suggests rising productivity can explain 40% of the rise in within-firm inequality since 1980. |
| JEL: | J0 |
| Date: | 2024–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:nbr:nberwo:32240&r=hrm |
| By: | Andrew Caplin (New York University); Victoria Gregory (FRB St. Louis); Eungik Lee (New York University); Soeren Leth-Petersen (University of Copenhagen); Johan Saeverud (University of Copenhagen) |
| Abstract: | Earnings risk is central to economic analysis. While this risk is essentially subjective, it is typically inferred from administrative data. Following the lead of Dominitz and Manski (1997), we introduce a survey instrument to measure subjective earnings risk. We pay particular attention to the expected impact of job transitions on earnings. A link with administrative data provides multiple credibility checks. It also shows subjective earnings risk to be far lower than its administratively estimated counterpart. This divergence arises because expected earnings growth is heterogeneous, even within narrow demographic and earnings cells. We calibrate a life-cycle model of search and matching to administrative data and compare the model-implied expectations with our survey instrument. This calibration produces far higher estimates of individual earnings risk than do our subjective expectations, regardless of age, earnings, and whether or not workers switch jobs. This divergence highlights the need for survey-based measures of subjective earnings risk. |
| Keywords: | earnings risk, job transitions, subjective expectations |
| JEL: | D31 D84 E24 J31 |
| Date: | 2023–03–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:kud:kucebi:2301&r=hrm |
| By: | Melanie Arntz; Sebastian Findeisen; Stephan Maurer; Oliver Schlenker |
| Abstract: | This study quantifies the relationship between workplace digitalization, i.e., the increasing use of frontier technologies, and workers' health outcomes using novel and representative German linked employer-employee data. Based on changes in individual-level use of technologies between 2011 and 2019, we find that digitalization induces similar shifts into more complex and service-oriented tasks across all workers but exacerbates health inequality between cognitive and manual workers. Unlike more mature, computer-based technologies, frontier technologies of the recent technology wave substantially lower manual workers' subjective health and increase sick leave, while leaving cognitive workers unaffected. We provide evidence that the effects are mitigated in firms that provide training and assistance in the adjustment process for workers. |
| Keywords: | health, inequality, technology, machines, automation, tasks, capital-labor substitution |
| Date: | 2024–03–11 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp1984&r=hrm |
| By: | Simon Gächter (University of Nottingham); Esther Kaiser (ZHAW School of Management and Law); Manfred Königstein (University of Erfurt) |
| Abstract: | Explicit and implicit incentives and opportunities for mutually beneficial voluntary cooperation co-exist in many contractual relationships. In a series of eight laboratory gift-exchange experiments, we show that incentive contracts can lead to crowding out of voluntary cooperation even after incentives have been abolished. This crowding out occurs also in repeated relationships, which otherwise strongly increase effort compared to one-shot interactions. Using a unified econometric framework, we unpack these results as a function of positive and negative reciprocity, as well as the principals’ wage offer and the incentivecompatibility of the contract. Crowding out is mostly due to reduced wages and not a change in reciprocal wage-effort relationships. Our systematic analysis also replicates established results on gift exchange, incentives, and crowding out of voluntary cooperation while exposed to incentives. Overall, our findings show that the behavioral consequences of explicit incentives strongly depend on the features of the situation in which they are embedded. |
| Keywords: | principal-agent games; gift-exchange experiments; incomplete contracts, explicit incentives; implicit incentives; repeated games; crowding out |
| Date: | 2024–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:not:notcdx:2024-02&r=hrm |
| By: | Böckerman, Petri (University of Jyväskylä); Bryson, Alex (University College London); Ilmakunnas, Ilari (Finnish Centre for Pensions); Ilmakunnas, Pekka (Aalto University) |
| Abstract: | The management practices employers deploy may affect the utility workers derive from their jobs, potentially affecting the types of jobs they enter and also their propensity to exit the workforce. Ours is the first paper to assess whether employers' use of high involvement management (HIM) practices may influence workers' retirement intentions. Using linked survey and register data to analyze different combinations of HIM, we find that information sharing and employer-provided training lead to intentions to retire later among those who are close to the official retirement age in Finland. |
| Keywords: | retirement, high involvement management, information sharing, training |
| JEL: | J26 J32 |
| Date: | 2024–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16827&r=hrm |
| By: | Silva, Buddhika; Hasan, Amena |
| Abstract: | Driven by societal pressures and a growing focus on diversity, corporations are increasingly seeking to diversify their leadership teams. Female representation on corporate boards is a topic of growing interest, with many European countries recently implementing formal gender diversity requirements. This study analyzes existing research on gender diversity in boardrooms, examining the characteristics of women directors, the challenges they encounter, and the barriers hindering their advancement. Despite the recognized benefits of gender diversity, male-dominated boards and ingrained gender biases often confine women to lower-level positions. As women climb the corporate ladder, they face the "glass ceiling" and "glass cliff" phenomena, further limiting their progress. However, research reveals no significant difference in long-term financial performance between companies led by men and women. In fact, increased female representation can positively impact innovation. This suggests that the glass ceiling and other barriers are not based on a lack of talent among women but rather on unconscious biases and discriminatory practices. This article advocates for balanced board representation based on qualifications, fostering true gender diversity and unlocking its potential benefits for organizations. |
| Keywords: | Empowerment, innovation, leadership, biases, gender roles, discrepancies, financial performance |
| JEL: | D6 D60 D63 N3 N9 |
| Date: | 2023–03–06 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:120388&r=hrm |
| By: | Jose Garcia-Louzao; Ruben Perez-Sanz |
| Abstract: | Uneven family responsibilities are at the root of gender gaps. Using a new dataset covering all firm-level agreements signed in Spain between 2010 and 2018, we explore whether the presence of female worker representatives can facilitate the negotiation of family-friendly policies with management. We compare firms that operate under the same set of labor regulations but differ in the presence of women among employee representatives. Our findings suggest that having female representatives at the bargaining table can help transform workplaces to better meet women’s needs and ultimately close the gender gap. |
| Keywords: | women representation, bargaining, family-friendly firms |
| JEL: | J16 J32 J53 |
| Date: | 2024 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_10982&r=hrm |
| By: | Kopp, Daniel (ETH Zurich) |
| Abstract: | Part-time work is a popular way to reconcile work and family responsibilities. This study investigates how easy it is for men and women to get part-time jobs. To assess this question, I first analyze the hiring decisions of recruiters who screen jobseekers on an online recruiting platform and estimate contact penalties for men and women seeking part-time jobs. Second, I relate the number of hours advertised in online job postings to firms' confidentially reported gender preferences. I find that recruiters prefer full-time over part-time workers, and that part-time penalties are more pronounced for men than for women. Differences in job or workplace characteristics cannot explain these results. Instead, the preponderance of evidence points to bias due to gender stereotypes. |
| Keywords: | recruitment, part-time, gender equality, hiring, online labor markets |
| JEL: | J16 J23 M51 |
| Date: | 2024–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp16845&r=hrm |