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on Labour Economics |
| By: | Caliendo, Marco (IZA); Tatsiramos, Konstantinos (IZA); Uhlendorff, Arne (University of Mannheim) |
| Abstract: | The generosity of the Unemployment Insurance system (UI) plays a central role for the job search behavior of unemployed individuals. Standard search theory predicts that an increase in UI benefit generosity, either in terms of benefit duration or entitlement, has a negative impact on the job search activities of the unemployed increasing their unemployment duration. Despite the disincentive effect of UI on unemployment duration, UI benefit generosity may also increase job match quality by allowing individuals to wait for better job offers. In this paper we use a sharp discontinuity in the maximum duration of unemployment benefits in Germany, which increases from 12 months to 18 months at the age of 45, to identify the effect of extended benefit duration on unemployment duration and post-unemployment outcomes. We find a spike in the re-employment hazard for the unemployed workers with 12 months benefit duration, which occurs around benefit exhaustion. This leads to lower unemployment duration compared to their counterparts with 18 months benefit duration. However, we also show that those unemployed who obtain jobs close to and after the time when benefits are exhausted are significantly more likely to exit subsequent employment and receive lower wages compared to their counterparts with extended benefit duration. |
| Keywords: | unemployment benefits, unemployment duration, employment probability, job match quality, regression discontinuity |
| JEL: | C41 J64 |
| Date: | 2009–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp4670&r=lab |
| By: | Randi Kjeldstad and Erik H. Nymoen (Statistics Norway) |
| Abstract: | The article analyses part-time work, both so-called voluntary and involuntary, in a gender perspective and discusses under what conditions women and men work part-time. The discussion is based on logistic regression models, including human capital, life-course- and household characteristics and job characteristics as independent variables. We use Norwegian Labour Force Survey data. The analysis shows that part-time work is a strongly gendered phenomenon, not only because it occurs much more frequently among women than among men, but also because the causes of part-time differ between the sexes. We find, as expected, that involuntary part-time is mainly tied to job characteristics, whereas voluntary part time is equally predicted by worker characteristics and job characteristics. The effect of gender is strong and significant, however less significant when controlling for job characteristics than when controlling for worker characteristics. |
| Keywords: | Voluntary part-time; involuntary part-time; gender; job- and labour-market approach; individual- and life-course approach; time bargaining |
| JEL: | J22 J23 J24 |
| Date: | 2009–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ssb:dispap:602&r=lab |
| By: | Heckman, James J. (University of Chicago); Jacobs, Bas (Erasmus University Rotterdam) |
| Abstract: | Trends in skill bias and greater turbulence in modern labor markets put wages and employment prospects of unskilled workers under pressure. Weak incentives to utilize and maintain skills over the life-cycle become manifest with the ageing of the population. Reinvention of human capital policies is required to avoid increasing welfare state dependency among the unskilled and to reduce inefficiencies in human capital formation. Policy makers should acknowledge strong dynamic complementarities in skill formation. Investments in the human capital of children should expand relative to investment in older workers. There is no trade-off between equity and efficiency at early ages of human development but there is a substantial trade-off at later ages. Later remediation of skill deficits acquired in early years is often ineffective. Active labor market and training policies should therefore be reformulated. Skill formation is impaired when the returns to skill formation are low due to low skill use and insufficient skill maintenance later on in life. High marginal tax rates and generous benefit systems reduce labor force participation rates and hours worked and thereby lower the utilization rate of human capital. Tax-benefit systems should be reconsidered as they increasingly redistribute resources from outsiders to insiders in labor markets which is both distortionary and inequitable. Early retirement and pension schemes should be made actuarially fairer as they entail strong incentives to retire early and human capital is thus written off too quickly. |
| Keywords: | family policy, (non)cognitive skills, returns to education, inequality, dynamic complementarity, training, retirement, labor supply, human capital, skill formation, training policy, active labor market policy, tax, pension, benefit systems, welfare state |
| JEL: | H2 H5 I2 I3 J2 J3 |
| Date: | 2009–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp4680&r=lab |
| By: | Mason, Patrick L. |
| Abstract: | This study examines whether there is differential productivity associated with teachers trained within Florida Agricultural & Mechanical University’s college of education relative to teachers trained in other colleges and schools affiliated with the same university. We also examined whether there is differential productivity associated with alternative majors within and between the college of education and other academic units. We measure the productivity of a teacher by the educational achievement of pupils assigned to that teacher during a given year. We find that among pupils taught by recent graduates of FAMU, there is greater academic achievement among elementary school pupils taught by a teacher with a college major in elementary education than among elementary school pupils taught by a teacher with a college major in either secondary education or a non-education subject area. However, relative to secondary education and non-education majors, elementary education majors provide less value-added in middle school and high school. |
| Keywords: | teacher quality; value-added model; historically black colleges and universities; HBCU; teacher productivity; education and value-added |
| JEL: | J45 I2 J44 J15 J48 |
| Date: | 2010–01–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:20060&r=lab |
| By: | Lehmann, Hartmut (University of Bologna); Muravyev, Alexander (IZA) |
| Abstract: | This paper offers a first comprehensive study of the relationship between labor market institutions and policies and labor market performance in the countries of Eastern Europe and Central Asia, which in the last two decades experienced radical economic and institutional transformations. Based on a new and unique hand-collected dataset, the paper first documents the evolution of labor market institutions and policies in the transition region. The data show a clear trend towards liberalization of labor markets, especially in the countries of the former Soviet Union, but also substantial differences across the countries studied. Second, the paper takes advantage of the large variation in the key economic and institutional variables to test several predictions concerning the role of institutions and polices in explaining labor market outcomes. The results of our econometric analysis are generally consistent with the view that institutions matter for labor market outcomes, and that deregulation of the labor markets improves their performance. The analysis also suggests several significant interactions between different institutions, which are in line with the idea of reform complementarity and broad reform packages. We also show that there are important advantages of focusing on a broader set of labor market outcomes, and not only on the unemployment rate, which until now has been the main approach in the empirical literature. |
| Keywords: | labor market institutions, unemployment, transition economies |
| JEL: | E24 J21 P20 |
| Date: | 2009–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp4673&r=lab |
| By: | Caliendo, Marco (IZA) |
| Abstract: | In view of the demographic trends, most EU countries face the problem of a declining work force in the future. Understanding the interaction between income support systems (such as unemployment benefits, social assistance, early retirement and pension systems) and total labor supply is of crucial importance to combat problems and ensure economic growth in the future. The German labor market has been plagued by high and persistent unemployment in the last two decades in combination with a relatively low labor force participation of women. This created a situation where labor market reforms were unavoidable. The speed and depth of the reforms are remarkable, mainly aimed at activating people by increasing their incentives to take up work. The aim of this paper is to give a brief overview of the German income support systems and labor market polices, their recent reforms and – where already possible – effects of these reforms. Overall, Germany seems to be on the right track. The recent reforms helped to tackle some labor market problems but also created high political unrest. It remains to be seen how future governments react to worsened economic conditions in light of these experiences. |
| Keywords: | unemployment, labor force participation, labor supply, benefit systems, public policy |
| JEL: | J26 J38 J68 |
| Date: | 2009–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp4665&r=lab |
| By: | Dennis Wesselbaum |
| Abstract: | Shocks driving the business cycle have different effects on low-skilled and high-skilled workers. This paper studies the effects of temporary and permanent sector-specific shocks in a New Keynesian matching model. We show that temporary sector-specific shocks have reallaction and aggregate effects. Permanent shocks explain wedges in real wages and different performances in labor markets. Furthermore, the model is able to replicate an aggregate Beveridge curve |
| Keywords: | Beveridge Curve, Matching, Sectoral Productivity Shock |
| JEL: | E24 J24 J41 |
| Date: | 2010–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:kie:kieliw:1585&r=lab |
| By: | Belot, Michèle; James, Jonathan |
| Abstract: | This paper provides field evidence on the effects of diet on educational outcomes, exploiting a campaign lead in the UK in 2004, which introduced drastic changes in the meals, offered in the schools of one Borough â Greenwich - shifting from low-budget processed meals towards healthier options. We evaluate the effect of the campaign on educational outcomes in primary schools using a difference in differences approach; comparing educational outcomes in primary schools (key stage 2 outcomes more specifically) before and after the reform, using the neighbouring Local Education Authorities as a control group. We find evidence that educational outcomes did improve significantly in English and Science. We also find that the campaign lead to a 15% fall in authorised absences â which are most likely linked to illness and health. |
| Keywords: | Child nutrition, Child health, School meals, Education, Natural Experiment, Placebo effect, Food Consumption/Nutrition/Food Safety, Health Economics and Policy, J13, I18, I28, H51, H52, |
| Date: | 2009–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aawewp:56207&r=lab |
| By: | Kalenkoski, Charlene M. (Ohio University); Pabilonia, Sabrina W. (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics) |
| Abstract: | We use detailed time-diary information on high school students' daily activities from the 2003-2008 American Time Use Surveys (ATUS) to investigate the effects of employment on the time a student spends on homework and other major activities. Time-diary data are more detailed and accurate than data derived from responses to 'usual activity' survey questions underlying other analyses and capture the immediate effects of working that may well accumulate over time to affect future outcomes. Our results suggest that employment decreases the time that high school students spend on human-capital-building activities such as homework and extracurricular activities, but also decreases screen time, which may be considered unproductive time. Results for sleep suggest that working teens may not suffer from reduced sleep time. |
| Keywords: | teenagers, employment, high school, time allocation |
| JEL: | J13 J22 J24 |
| Date: | 2009–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp4666&r=lab |
| By: | Ant Bozkaya (Centre Emile Bernheim, Solvay Brussels School of Economics and Management, Université Libre de Bruxelles, Brussel and MIT and NBER); William R. Kerr (Harvard University and NBER) |
| Abstract: | European nations substitute between employment protection regulations and labor market expenditures (e.g., unemployment insurance benefits) for providing worker insurance. Employment regulations more directly tax firms making frequent labor adjustments than other labor insurance mechanisms. Venture capital and private equity investors are especially sensitive to these labor adjustment costs. Nations favoring labor expenditures as the mechanism for providing worker insurance developed stronger private equity markets in high volatility sectors over 1990-2004. These patterns are further evident in US investments into Europe. In this context, policy mechanisms are more important than the overall insurance level provided. |
| Keywords: | employment protection regulations, dismissal costs, unemployment insurance benefits, private equity, venture capital, buy-outs, entrepreneurship. |
| JEL: | G24 J21 J65 L26 M13 O31 O32 O52 |
| Date: | 2009–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sol:wpaper:09-055&r=lab |
| By: | Digdowiseiso, Kumba |
| Abstract: | While income inequality in third world countries has aggressively been commented and studied extensively, little analysis is relatively available on measuring inequality in other dimensions of human development. The main findings suggest that inequality in education as measured by education Gini is negatively associated with average years schooling, implying that higher education attainments are more likely to achieve equality in education. Moreover, a clear pattern on an education Kuznets curve exists if standard deviation of schooling is used. Furthermore, gender gaps are related to education inequality and the relation between these variables become stronger over time. |
| Keywords: | Education; Inequality; Indonesia |
| JEL: | A20 I21 |
| Date: | 2010–01–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:19865&r=lab |
| By: | Sebastian Kube; Michel André Maréchal; Clemens Puppe |
| Abstract: | Contractual incompleteness characterizes many employment relations. High work morale is therefore fundamental for sustaining voluntary cooperation within the firm. We conducted a natural field experiment testing to what extent wages affect work morale. The results provide clear-cut evidence showing that wage cuts have a detrimental impact on work morale. An equivalent wage increase, however, does not result in any productivity gains. Theses results highlight a strongly asymmetric response of work morale to wage variations. |
| Keywords: | Morale, reciprocity, gift exchange, field experiment |
| JEL: | C93 J30 |
| Date: | 2010–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zur:iewwpx:471&r=lab |
| By: | Yuksel, Mutlu (IZA) |
| Abstract: | In this paper, I analyze intergenerational mobility of immigrants and natives in Germany. Using the German Socioeconomic Panel (GSOEP), I find intergenerational elasticities that range from 0.19 to 0.26 for natives and from 0.37 to 0.40 for immigrants. These elasticity estimates are lower than typically found for the U.S. and imply higher mobility in Germany than in the U.S. However, as in the U.S., I find greater mobility among German natives than among immigrants. Moreover, I investigate to what extent the lower mobility among immigrants in Germany is due to “ethnic capital” as suggested by Borjas (1992). I find that the impact of father’s earnings on son’s earnings remains virtually unchanged when including a measure of ethnic capital, suggesting that the higher father-son correlation found among immigrants is not due to omitting ethnic capital. However, I do find a large independent effect of ethnic capital on sons’ earnings (the coefficient is 0.81 as opposed to 0.25 found by Borjas (1992)). These results are consistent with estimates from Microcensus data, where the combined effect of parents’ and ethnic capital is close to unity. Thus, contrary to the U.S. results which suggest convergence of immigrants’ earnings towards natives’ earnings, the German results suggest divergence of immigrant earnings. |
| Keywords: | immigration, intergenerational mobility, natives, ethnic capital |
| JEL: | J61 J62 |
| Date: | 2009–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp4677&r=lab |
| By: | Khamis, Melanie (IZA) |
| Abstract: | This paper provides a detailed analysis of various dimensions of informality in the Mexican labor market. To understand the nature of informality in terms of regulations and compliance, the legalistic view, and in terms of productivity view of the labor market this paper makes an empirical contribution to the debate in the literature on the concept of informality. Questions related to these various concepts, social security and benefits coverage, contractual information, legal status of migrants, the nature of self-employment and job history information are analyzed in terms of their relationship to each other and are also related to individual and household characteristics. This paper finds a substantial overlap between the various concepts, current legal arrangements of social security coverage or contract and also in the individual's job history. In terms of individual characteristics age, education, martial status and scores in the Raven's test, an ability measure, are significant determinants for the various forms of informality, with some degree of variation across the different categories. Overall, a case is made for further studies of household survey data and the implementation of questions relating to different dimensions of informality and their inter-linkages. |
| Keywords: | informality, social security, contracts, illegal migration, self-employment, job history, Mexico |
| JEL: | J40 O17 |
| Date: | 2009–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp4676&r=lab |
| By: | Andrén, Daniela (Department of Business, Economics, Statistics and Informatics) |
| Abstract: | Legally binding treaties or memorandums have been used over time to regulate the issue of national borders of many European countries. As a result, relatively large groups of people have become ethnic minorities in other countries. They may conserve their ethnic identities, and therefore their children may accumulate ethnic human capital (e.g., language, culture, and religion) in addition to the general human capital of the country. Therefore, they can get access to an appropriate occupation linked by tradition or other factors to their ethnic group. This paper uses estimates from a selection model with an endogenous switch among three broad types of occupational groups to analyze the composition of the wage gap between Romanians and ethnic Hungarians in Romania before and during the transition from a planned to a market economy. The results suggest that the institutional settings of the controlled economy allowed Romanians to work in occupations that gave them the best returns, while the changes during the transition years allowed ethnic Hungarians to work in occupations that gave them the best returns. |
| Keywords: | ethnic wage gap; occupation; selection model with an endogenous switch; wage gap decomposition |
| JEL: | J31 J38 J39 J71 P27 |
| Date: | 2010–01–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:oruesi:2010_001&r=lab |
| By: | Peter Huber (WIFO); Ulrike Huemer (WIFO) |
| Abstract: | We use recent advances in the statistical analysis of Oaxaca-Blinder decompositions for non-linear models to analyse the contribution of individual variables to total gender differences in participation and duration of training. Results suggest that effects stemming from the intra-household division of labour contribute significantly to gender differences, but that segregation of the labour market as well as differences in the access to training by tenure, age, occupation, profession and sectors are more important. |
| Keywords: | gender differences, training |
| Date: | 2009–12–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wfo:wpaper:y:2009:i:353&r=lab |
| By: | Xuehua Shi; Xiaoyun Liu; Alexander Nuetah; Xian Xin (College of Economics and Management, China Agricultural University Center for Rural Development Policy, China Agricultural University) |
| Abstract: | This article uses multivariate regression and decomposition analyses to assess household income mobility determinants and their contributions to income mobility in rural China from 1989 to 2006 using panel data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS) database. The findings indicate that households with low initial income level, high share of wage income, high educational level of household members, high number of non-agricultural employed household members, and younger heads are more mobile. Moreover, besides initial income, change in the share of wage income, change in the share of non-agricultural employed household members, and change in average year of education of household members are the most important factors that account for income mobility. These findings necessitate more emphasis on policies that promote non-agricultural employment and education to enhance household income mobility in rural China. |
| Keywords: | Income Mobility, Determinants, Rural Household, China |
| JEL: | D31 O15 |
| Date: | 2010–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cau:wpaper:1002&r=lab |
| By: | Olivier Bargain (University College Dublin); Karina Doorley (University College Dublin) |
| Abstract: | In-work transfers are often seen as a good trade-off between redistribution and efficiency, as they alleviate poverty among low-wage households while increasing financial incentives to work. The present study explores the consequences of ex- tending these transfers in Ireland, where support for low-wage households has been of limited scope. The employment and poverty effects of alternative policies are an- alyzed thanks to counterfactual simulations built using a micro-simulation model, the Living in Ireland Survey 2001 and labour supply estimations. Firstly, we study the effect of recent extensions of the existing scheme, the Family Income Supplement (FIS), and of its replacement by the refundable tax credit in force in the UK. Sec- ondly, little is known about the impact of macro-level changes on the distribution of resources at the household level, which is particularly relevant in a country deeply affected by the current economic downturn. We suggest a preliminary analysis of the capacity of alternative in-work transfer scenarios to cushion the negative impact of earnings losses and cuts in the minimum wage. |
| Keywords: | Microsimulation; Working Poor; Welfare; Labour supply; Take-up |
| Date: | 2009–12–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ucn:wpaper:200930&r=lab |
| By: | E. Han Kim; Paige Ouimet |
| Abstract: | How employee share ownership plans (ESOPs) affect employee compensation and shareholder value depends on the size. Small ESOPs, defined as those controlling less than 5% of outstanding shares, benefit both workers and shareholders, implying positive productivity gains. However, the effects of large ESOPs on worker compensation and shareholder value are more or less neutral, suggesting little productivity gains. These differential effects appear to be due to two non-value-creating motives specific to large ESOPS: (1) To form management-worker alliances ala Pagano and Volpin (2005), wherein management bribes workers to garner worker support in thwarting hostile takeover threats and (2) To substitute wages with ESOP shares by cash constrained firms. Worker compensation increases when firms under takeover threats adopt large ESOPs, but only if the firm operates in a non-competitive industry. The effects on firm valuation also depend on the strength of product market competition: When the competition is strong (weak), most of the productivity gains accrue to employees (shareholders). Competitive industry also implies greater job mobility within the industry, enabling workers to take a greater portion of productivity gains. |
| Keywords: | ESOPs, Employee Incentives, Worker Wages and Compensation, Product Market Competition |
| JEL: | G32 M52 J54 J33 |
| Date: | 2009–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cen:wpaper:09-44&r=lab |
| By: | Henry Hyatt |
| Abstract: | Consideration of the "best interests" of Workers Compensation (WC) claimants often involves the assumption that those who receive benefits in a "lump-sum" behave "too myopically" with respect to labor supply. However, many attorneys argue that lump-sum settlements induce a beneficial "sense of closure." In this paper, I provide an empirical context for these ideas using a unique set of linked administrative databases owned by the State of California. Upon receipt of a court-approved lump-sum settlement, WC claimants immediately increase labor supply. No such change is found for claimants who receive a court-approved settlement in which the insurer provides benefits over time, suggesting that the method of litigation settlement is a determinant of labor supply. |
| JEL: | K41 J32 H53 |
| Date: | 2010–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cen:wpaper:10-01&r=lab |
| By: | Catalina Franco Buitrago |
| Abstract: | Immigration has been one of the main driving forces that have contributed to shape the United States as it is today. The current wave of immigration started in 1965 and has different characteristics to the previous inflows of immigrants1. In particular, the 1965 Immigration Act had an impact in shifting the national origin of U.S. immigrants mostly to Latin Americans and Asians, widening therefore the gap between natives and immigrants in terms of language and culture (Card, 2005). Since immigration from Latin America has constituted between 40 and 50 percent of total immigration in the current wave, and given that Latin Americans are relatively less skilled than U.S. natives and other immigrants, it is worth studying the wage differentials that potentially exist between natives and Latin American immigrants. |
| Date: | 2010–01–18 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:col:000118:006447&r=lab |
| By: | Björn Bartling (University of Zurich); Ernst Fehr (University of Zurich); Klaus M. Schmidt (University of Munich) |
| Abstract: | In recent decades, many firms offered more discretion to their employees, often increasing the productivity of effort but also leaving more opportunities for shirking. These “high-performance work systems” are difficult to understand in terms of standard moral hazard models. We show experimentally that complementarities between high effort discretion, rent-sharing, screening opportunities, and competition are important driving forces behind these new forms of work organization. We document in particular the endogenous emergence of two fundamentally distinct types of employment strategies. Employers either implement a control strategy, which consists of low effort discretion and little or no rent-sharing, or they implement a trust strategy, which stipulates high effort discretion and substantial rent-sharing. If employers cannot screen employees, the control strategy prevails, while the possibility of screening renders the trust strategy profitable. The introduction of competition substantially fosters the trust strategy, reduces market segmentation, and leads to large welfare gains for both employers and employees. |
| Keywords: | job design, high-performance work systems, screening, reputation, competition, trust, control, social preferences, complementarities |
| JEL: | C91 D86 |
| Date: | 2009–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:trf:wpaper:297&r=lab |
| By: | Kang Yu; Xiaoyun Liu; Ping Guo; Xian Xin (College of Economics and Management, China Agricultural University Center for Rural Development Policy, China Agricultural University) |
| Abstract: | This article uses multivariate regression and decomposition analyses to assess household income mobility determinants and their contributions to income mobility in rural China from 1989 to 2006 using panel data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS) database. The findings indicate that households with low initial income level, high share of wage income, high educational level of household members, high number of non-agricultural employed household members, and younger heads are more mobile. Moreover, besides initial income, change in the share of wage income, change in the share of non-agricultural employed household members, and change in average year of education of household members are the most important factors that account for income mobility. These findings necessitate more emphasis on policies that promote non-agricultural employment and education to enhance household income mobility in rural China. |
| Keywords: | Foreign Direct Investment, Income Inequality, Region |
| JEL: | F21 O18 |
| Date: | 2010–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cau:wpaper:1003&r=lab |
| By: | Becker, Sascha O.; Woessmann, Ludger |
| Abstract: | This paper uses recently discovered data on nearly 300 Prussian counties in 1816 to show that Protestantism led to more schools and higher school enrollment already before the industrialization. This evidence supports the human capital theory of Protestant economic history of Becker and Woessmann (2009), where Protestantism first led to better education, which in turn facilitated industrial development. It rules out that the existing end-of-19th-century evidence can be explained by a Weberian explanation, where a Protestant work ethic first led to industrialization which then increased the demand for education. |
| Keywords: | Pre-Industrialization; Protestantism; Education |
| Date: | 2010–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:stl:stledp:2010-01&r=lab |
| By: | Brunello, Giorgio (University of Padova); Fabbri, Daniele (University of Bologna); Fort, Margherita (University of Bologna) |
| Abstract: | We use the compulsory school reforms implemented in European countries after the II World War to investigate the causal effect of education on the Body Mass Index (BMI) and the incidence of overweight and obesity among European females. Our IV estimates suggest that years of schooling have a protective effect on BMI. The size of the estimated effect is not negligible but smaller than the one found in comparable recent work for the US. We depart from the current empirical literature in three main directions. First, we use a multi-country approach. Second, we complement the standard analysis of the causal impact of years of schooling on BMI with one relying on a broader measure of education, i.e. individual standardized cognitive tests, and show that the current focus in the literature on years of schooling as the measure of education is not misplaced. Last, we evaluate whether the current focus on conditional mean effects should be integrated with an approach which allows for heterogeneous responses to changes in compulsory education. Although our evidence based on quantile regressions is mixed, there is some indication that the protective effect of schooling does not increase monotonically from the lower to the upper quantile of the distribution of BMI. Rather, the marginal effect is stronger among overweight (but not obese) females than among females with BMI above 30. |
| Keywords: | obesity, human capital, Europe |
| JEL: | I12 I21 |
| Date: | 2009–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp4667&r=lab |
| By: | Tamvada, Jagannadha Pawan |
| Abstract: | We examine the spatio-temporal dynamics of self-employment in India using geoadditive models and pseudo panel techniques. We test the claim of Iyigun and Owen (1999) that individuals invest in professional human capital and not in entrepreneurial human capital as an economy develops. The results suggest that in non-agriculture, higher education decreases the likelihood of individuals choosing self-employment over time; however, it has an opposite effect in agriculture. While increases in land possessed increase the likelihood of self-employment choice in agriculture, individuals with small land holdings are more likely to transition into self-employment in non-agriculture. Belonging to a backward class has a negative effect on self-employment choice in both sectors; however, the effect has increased in non-agriculture and remained stable in agriculture. The geoadditive models suggest that the propensity to be self-employed has decreased across most spatial units, although there are few pockets where self-employment is rising again. |
| Keywords: | Entrepreneurship; Self-employment; Developing Countries; Dynamics; Pseudo Panels |
| JEL: | J24 L26 J23 |
| Date: | 2010–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:20042&r=lab |
| By: | Mariya Aleksynska; Ahmed Tritah |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates the contribution of immigration to income and productivity of host countries. Using a dataset constructed from census data and labor force surveys for 20 OECD countries in the period from 1960 to 2005, we explore the information on age and educational attainment of immigrants to assess the contribution of immigration to income components: changes in physical capital, human capital, employment, and total factor productivity. We combine level accounting approach with panel income regressions, and also account for the endogeneity of migration choices to productivity shocks. Our main findings are that, overall, higher shares of immigrants over natives have a positive effect on income and productivity of their host countries. Under the assumption that older immigrants are also the ones with the longest duration of stay, this effect is due to the long run changes in TFP, and is robust to educational disparities between immigrants and natives. The decomposition by age and education suggests that only unskilled immigrants have a non-neutral impact on income and productivity, which is negative in the short run but positive, and larger in magnitude, in the long run. We also find a dispersed impact of the presence of other immigrant groups on some income channels. |
| Keywords: | International migration; productivity; income; employment; instrumental variable; channel accounting |
| JEL: | F22 J24 J31 O31 |
| Date: | 2009–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cii:cepidt:2009-23&r=lab |
| By: | Viola Angelini (University of Padua); Danilo CAVAPOZZI (University of Padua); Luca CORAZZINI; Omar PACCAGNELLA (University of Padua) |
| Abstract: | In this paper we investigate the role of response styles in the dynamics of work disability reporting. Using the 2004 and 2006 waves of the Survey of Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe (SHARE), we document that in Europe surprisingly large fractions of individuals change their self-reported disability status within two years. We find that this dynamics can be largely explained by the fact that respondents change the way they evaluate the severity of work disability problems over time. |
| Keywords: | Work disability, vignettes, reporting heterogeneity. |
| JEL: | I10 J14 C33 |
| Date: | 2010–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pad:wpaper:0104&r=lab |
| By: | Javier J. Pérez (Banco de España); A. Jesús Sánchez (Universidad Pablo de Olavide) |
| Abstract: | Do public sector wages exert presures on private sector wages, or has private sector a leadership role in wage setting?. This paper tries to isolate the pure signalling effect that one sector might exert on the other by controlling for other determinants of wages (prices, productivity, institutions) for the main euro area economies (Germany, France, Italy and Spain) and the periods 1980-2007 and 1991-2007. It exploits avilable quarterly information not yet used in the literature, and combine different data sources in the framework of mixed frequencies time series models. The quarterly frequency of our data allows us to check the existence of strong evidence of public wages’ leadership, either in conjunction with bidirectional links from the private sector (Germany and Spain) or pure public wage leadership (France in the sample 1991-2007, Italy for within-the-year linkages). |
| Keywords: | government wages, private sector wages, signalling, causality, mixed frequency data, casual graph |
| JEL: | C32 C53 J30 J51 E62 E63 H50 H6 |
| Date: | 2009–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:bde:wpaper:0934&r=lab |
| By: | Théophile T. Azomahou; Bity Diene; Mbaye Diene (CREA, University of Luxembourg) |
| Abstract: | We use 29 OECD countries data spanning over 1960-2000 to study the growth strategy when countries are close to the technology frontier. Relying on a semi-parametric generalized additive model, we estimate labor productivity equations. We find that the number of agents enrolled in higher education is a determinant of growth. Moreover, when a country is sufficiently near the technology frontier thanks to an increasing R&D expenditure, it becomes optimal to invest in fundamental research, since after a short period of efficiency, business R&D can no longer ensure the transition toward the technology frontier, while higher education presents the opposite shape. These findings support the main assertion of Aghion and Cohen (2004) that countries which are near the technology frontier have to invest in higher education while those far away from the frontier make their technology level growing up by investing in primary and secondary schooling. |
| JEL: | I23 J24 O40 |
| Date: | 2009 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:luc:wpaper:09-19&r=lab |
| By: | Ehrenberg, Ronald G. (Cornell University); Jakubson, George H. (Cornell University); Martin, Mirinda L. (Cornell University); Main, Joyce B. (Cornell University); Eisenberg, Thomas (Swarthmore College) |
| Abstract: | Our paper focuses on the role that the gender composition of the leaders of American colleges and universities- trustees, presidents/chancellors, and provosts/academic vice presidents - plays in influencing the rate at which academic institutions diversify their faculty across gender lines. We use institutional level panel data that we have collected for a large sample of American academic institutions. We find that, other factors held constant including our estimate of the "expected" share of new hires at an institution that should be female, that institutions with female presidents/chancellors and female provosts/academic vice presidents, and those with a greater share of female trustees, increase their share of female faculty at a more rapid rate. The magnitudes of the effects of these leaders are larger at smaller institutions, where central administrators play a larger role in faculty hiring decisions. A critical share of female trustees must be reached before the gender composition of the board matters |
| Keywords: | academic institutions, diversifying the faculty, gender, trustees, presidents, provosts |
| JEL: | J16 J44 I21 |
| Date: | 2009–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp4664&r=lab |
| By: | Martin Hering; Thomas R. Klassen |
| Abstract: | This paper seeks to contribute to a forward-looking debate on possible reform options for the Canada Pension Plan (CPP) and the Quebec Pension Plan (QPP). Even though it focuses on the CPP, most of its analysis applies to the QPP as well since the two programs are largely identical. This paper does not provide a broad survey of all possible reform options, but rather analyzes one vital option that has received insufficient attention in previous debates: raising the normal retirement age from 65 to 67 years. A discussion of this option is warranted not only because it could prevent future financing problems in Canada’s public pension insurance programs, but also because it could improve fairness across generations. The significant increase in life expectancy raises the question of whether the current retirement ages of 60 years, for earliest CPP and QPP benefits, and 65 years, for full benefits, are too low. Should future generations pay for the longevity increases of the current generation of workers, or should current workers share the costs by retiring at a later age? We conclude that raising the normal age from 65 to 67 years—and the earliest age from 60 to 62 years—is a financially effective, intergenerationally fair, and politically acceptable option for improving the CPP and for addressing the QPP’s problems. We suggest that the option of raising the retirement age needs to be discussed well before longevity increases or funding problems occur and that a broad consultation with stakeholders and citizens would be an essential part of a debate on raising the retirement age in Canada. |
| Keywords: | pension systems, pensions, retirement, retirement age, life expectancy, Canada |
| JEL: | H53 H55 J20 J26 J32 L38 |
| Date: | 2010–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:mcm:sedapp:263&r=lab |
| By: | Cohen-Zada, Danny (Ben Gurion University); Gradstein, Mark (Ben Gurion University); Reuven, Ehud (Ben Gurion University) |
| Abstract: | Using a rich individual-level dataset on secondary public schools in Israel, we find strong evidence for discontinuities in the relationship between enrollment and household characteristics at cutoff points induced by a maximum class size rule. Our findings extend existing work that documents such discontinuities only among private schools (Urquiola and Verhoogen, 2009). These discontinuities violate the assumptions underlying the regression discontinuity design, which are crucial for identification. Consequently, IV estimates of class size effects are likely to be seriously biased. Potential manipulation of the treatment assignment rule by public schools warrants caution in applying a regression discontinuity design to estimate class size effects and indicates that institutional context is crucial for its scope of applicability. |
| Keywords: | regression discontinuity design, class size |
| JEL: | I20 |
| Date: | 2009–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp4679&r=lab |
| By: | Werner Hölzl (WIFO); Peter Huber (WIFO) |
| Abstract: | We study the evolution and cyclical dependency of the cross sectional distribution ofrm level job creation rates from 1975 to 2004 for the Austrian private sector. We find that the share of firms that does not adjust has declined over time, but that the share of entries, exits, growing and declining firms increased. The share of firms adjusting is higher in upswings than in downturns and the higher order moments of the job creation distribution follow distinct cyclical patterns. The smallest firms and firms at the extremes of the growth rate distribution are largely unaffected by the business cycle. |
| Keywords: | Employment Adjustment, Business Cycle, Firm growth |
| Date: | 2009–10–20 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:wfo:wpaper:y:2009:i:348&r=lab |
| By: | J. Alvarez; D. Forrest; I. Sanz; JD. Tena |
| Abstract: | When skilled labour is imported, skill levels of local workers may be raised by contact with new techniques and practices. European basketball offers an opportunity to test this general claim. For a panel of 47 countries observed over more than twenty years, we model probability of qualification for, and performance in, international tournaments. We demonstrate that an increase in the number of foreigners in a domestic league tends to generate an improvement in the performance of the national team (which comprises only local players). Given this, we develop a theoretical framework for how a regulator might take this into account. |
| Keywords: | Basketball; migration; spillovers. |
| JEL: | J6 J7 |
| Date: | 2009 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cns:cnscwp:200914&r=lab |
| By: | Akay, Gokhan H. (Trinity University); Yuksel, Mutlu (IZA) |
| Abstract: | Using U.S. manufacturing data, Griliches (1969) found evidence suggesting that capital equipment was more substitutable for unskilled than skilled labor. Griliches formulated this finding as the capital-skill complementarity hypothesis. The purpose of this study is to determine whether the capital-skill complementarity framework holds for Ghana manufacturing plants in industry and aggregate level. We use an unbalanced panel of plant-level data for manufacturing firms in Ghana during the 1991 and 1997 in four industries (food-bakery, textiles-garments, wood-furniture and metal-machinery). Our findings suggest that capital-skill complimentarity holds in aggregate level and wood-furniture sector in Ghana. However, we reject the capital-skill complementarity hypothesis for food-bakery, textile-garment and metal-machinery sectors. |
| Keywords: | capital-skill complementarity, elasticity of substitution, translog cost function |
| JEL: | J30 O55 |
| Date: | 2009–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp4674&r=lab |
| By: | Constant, Amelie F. (DIW DC, George Washington University); Nottmeyer, Olga (DIW Berlin); Zimmermann, Klaus F. (IZA, DIW Berlin and Bonn University) |
| Abstract: | This chapter investigates the integration processes of immigrants in Germany by comparing certain immigrant groups to natives differentiating by gender and immigrant generation. Indicators which are supposed to capture cultural integration of immigrants are differences in marital behavior as well as language abilities, ethnic identification and religious distribution. A special feature of the available data is information about overall life satisfaction, risk aversion and political interest. These indicators are also presented. All of these indicators are depicted in comparison between natives and immigrants differentiated by ethnic origin, gender and generation. This allows visualization of differences by ethnic groups and development over time. Statements about the cultural integration processes of immigrants are thus possible. Furthermore, economic integration in terms of female labor force participation is presented as an additional feature. Empirical findings suggest that differences among immigrants and between immigrants and Germans do exist and differ significantly by ethnic origin, gender and generation. But differences seem to diminish when we consider the second generations. This indicates greater adaptation to German norms and habits, and thus better cultural, socio-economic and political integration of second generation immigrants in Germany. |
| Keywords: | cultural integration, immigrants, Germany, ethnic origin, gender, generation |
| JEL: | F22 J15 J61 Z13 |
| Date: | 2009–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp4675&r=lab |
| By: | Caliendo, Marco (IZA); Kritikos, Alexander S. (DIW Berlin) |
| Abstract: | When unemployed persons go into business, they often are characterized as necessity entrepreneurs, because push factors, namely their unemployment, likely prompted their decision. In contrast to this, business founders who have been previously employed represent opportunity entrepreneurs because pull factors provide the rationale for their decision. However, a data set of nearly 1,900 business start-ups by unemployed persons reveals that both kind of motivation can be observed among these start-ups. Moreover, a new type of entrepreneur emerges, motivated by both push and pull variables simultaneously. An analysis of the development of the businesses reflecting three different motivational types indicates a strong relationship between motives, survival rates and entrepreneurial development. We find in particular that start-ups out of opportunity and necessity have higher survival rates than do start-ups out of necessity, even if both types face the same duration of previous unemployment. |
| Keywords: | entrepreneurship, push and pull motives, survival and failure, job creation |
| JEL: | D81 J23 M13 |
| Date: | 2009–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp4661&r=lab |
| By: | Matthias Doepke; Fabrizio Zilibotti |
| Abstract: | In recent years, a number of governments and consumer groups in rich countries have tried to discourage the use of child labor in poor countries through measures such as product boycotts and the imposition of international labor standards. The purported objective of such measures is to reduce the incidence of child labor in developing countries and thereby improve children’s welfare. In this paper, we examine the effects of such policies from a political-economy perspective. We show that these types of international action on child labor tend to lower domestic political support within developing countries for banning child labor. Hence, international labor standards and product boycotts may delay the ultimate eradication of child labor. |
| Keywords: | Child labor, political economy, labor standards, trade sanctions |
| JEL: | J20 J88 O10 |
| Date: | 2010–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zur:iewwpx:467&r=lab |
| By: | Olivier Bargain (University College Dublin); Herwig Immervoll (OECD); Heikki Viitamäki (VATT) |
| Abstract: | The main objectives of social assistance benefits, including poverty alleviation and labor- market or social reintegration, can be seriously compromised if support is difficult to access. While recent studies point to high non-take-up rates, existing evidence does not make full use of the information recorded by benefit agencies. Most studies have to rely on interview-based data, with misreporting and measurement errors affecting the variables needed to establish both benefit receipt and benefit entitlement. In this paper, we exploit a unique combination of Finnish administrative data and eligibility simulations based on the tax-benefit calculator of the Finnish authorities, carefully investigating the measurement issues that remain. We find rates of non-take-up that are both substantial and robust: 40% to 50% of those eligible do not claim. Using repeated cross-section estimations for years 1996-2003, we identify a set of stable determinants of claiming behavior and suggest that changes in behavior could drive the observed downward trend in take-up rates during the post-recession period. We discuss the poverty implications of our results. |
| Keywords: | take-up, social assistance, poverty, register data |
| Date: | 2009–12–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ucn:wpaper:200931&r=lab |
| By: | Yamamura, Eiji; Shin, Inyong |
| Abstract: | This paper uses panel data from Japan to decompose productivity growth measured by the growth of output per labor unit into three components of efficiency improvement, capital accumulation and technological progress. It then examines their determinants through a dynamic panel model. In particular, this paper focuses on the question of how inequality, trust and humans affect the above components. The main findings derived from empirical estimations are: (1) Inequality impedes not only improvements in efficiency but also capital accumulation. (2) A degree of trust promotes efficiency improvements and capital accumulation at the same time. However, human capital merely enhances improvements in efficiency. |
| Keywords: | Heterogeneity; Inequality; Trust; Data envelopment analysis |
| JEL: | E25 O15 O40 |
| Date: | 2010–01–15 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pra:mprapa:20083&r=lab |
| By: | Pollitt, M.G. |
| Abstract: | It is around 5 years since my colleague, Tooraj Jamasb, and I reviewed the EU’s progress with electricity reform (Jamasb and Pollitt, 2005). At that time many countries were still struggling to implement elements of the EU wide policy on electricity sector liberalisation that they had signed up to. In this short update paper we review the latest evidence on progress with electricity liberalisation in the EU. We begin with a short review of the legislative background. We continue with a look at the evolution of markets and trading in electricity across the EU. Next we outline progress with the key reform elements and their impact on market structure issues within the EU. We look at the performance of the whole sector and company level performance. We proceed to discuss progress in reducing emissions and promoting renewables. In closing we note recent developments in electricity reform. |
| Keywords: | Single European Electricity Market, Electricity Directive |
| JEL: | L11 L22 L Q48 |
| Date: | 2009–12–16 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cam:camdae:0953&r=lab |
| By: | Andrew E.Clark; Yannis Georgellis |
| Abstract: | We look for evidence of adaptation of well-being to major life events in sixteen waves of British panel data. We find that, with the exception of unemployment, adaptation to other life events including marriage, divorce, birth of a child and widowhood is rapid and complete. These findings are remarkably similar to those found in previous analysis of German panel data. Equally, the time profiles of well-being as measured by life satisfaction data are very close to those from the analysis of a twelve-item scale of psychological functioning. As such, the phenomenon of adaptation may be a general one, rather than being only found in German data or using single-item measures. Last, we uncover some systematic differences in adaptation profiles according to "Big Five" personality measures. |
| Date: | 2010 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:pse:psecon:2010-02&r=lab |
| By: | Klaus M. Schmidt (University of Munich) |
| Abstract: | There is a general presumption that social preferences can be ignored if markets are competitive. Market experiments (Smith 1962) and recent theoretical results (Dufwenberg et al. 2008) suggest that competition forces people to behave as if they were purely self-interested. We qualify this view. Social preferences are irrelevant if and only if two conditions are met: separability of preferences and completeness of contracts. These conditions are often plausible, but they fail to hold when uncertainty is important (financial markets) or when incomplete contracts are traded (labor markets). Social preferences can explain many of the anomalies frequently observed on these markets. |
| Keywords: | Social preferences, competition, separability, incomplete contracts, asset markets, labor markets. |
| JEL: | C9 D5 J0 |
| Date: | 2009–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:trf:wpaper:298&r=lab |
| By: | Christian Bjørnskov (Aarhus School of Business, Aarhus University); Niklas Potrafke (University of Konstanz) |
| Abstract: | This paper examines how political ideology influenced economic freedom in the Canadian provinces. We analyze the dataset of economic freedom indicators compiled by the Fraser Institute in 10 Canadian provinces over the 1981-2005 period and introduce two different indices of political ideology: government and parliament ideology. The results suggest that government ideology influenced labor market reforms: market-oriented governments promoted liberalization of the labor market. Parliamentary ideology did not influence economic liberalization at all. This finding (1) identifies differences between leftist and rightwing governments concerning the role of government in the economy and (2) indicates that ideological polarization concerns governments but less parliamentary fractions in the Canadian provinces. |
| Keywords: | economic freedom, taxation, regulations, ideology, panel data |
| JEL: | O51 P16 R11 R50 |
| Date: | 2009–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:sol:wpaper:09-054&r=lab |
| By: | Federico Perali (Department of Economics (University of Verona)); Antonella Caiumi (ISAE) |
| Abstract: | This paper measures how the costs of children are shared between the father and the mother by estimating a gender specific demand system related to the demand for market goods, household products and leisure within a collective approach. The estimates illustrate how the intra-household distribution of resources varies across households with and without children and how wages and non-labor income affect the allocation rule in both one-earner and double-earner households. In the presence of a child, both parents, but mothers especially, increase their involvement in home production at the expense of the enjoyment of leisure. This commitment decreases as the child gets older. In general, mothers control less than half of the household resources, while they bear more than half of the cost of maintaining a child. |
| Keywords: | cost of children, intra-household allocation, household production, full income, sharing rule |
| JEL: | D12 D13 J22 |
| Date: | 2010–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ver:wpaper:1/2010&r=lab |
| By: | Herwig Immervoll |
| Abstract: | Almost all OECD countries operate comprehensive minimum-income programmes for working-age individuals, either as last-resort safety nets alongside primary income replacement benefits, or as the principal instrument for delivering social protection. Such safety-net benefits aim primarily at providing an acceptable standard of living for families unable to earn sufficient incomes from other sources. This paper provides an overview of social assistance and other minimum-income programmes in OECD countries, summarises their main features, and highlights a number of current policy challenges.<BR>Presque tous les pays de l’OCDE ont des programmes de revenu-minimum globaux envers les individus en âge de travailler, soit comme des filets de protection de dernier recours accompagnant des prestations principales de remplacement de revenu, soit comme instruments principaux pour apporter une protection sociale. De tels filets de protection ont pour but principalement d’apporter un standard de vie acceptable pour les familles incapables de gagner suffisamment de revenus d’autres sources. Ce document présente un aperçu de l’assistance sociale et d’autres programmes dans les pays de l’OCDE, résume leurs principales caractéristiques et met l’accent sur un nombre de défis politiques actuels. |
| Keywords: | negative income tax, poverty, social assistance, welfare to work, assistance sociale, impôt sur le revenu négatif, pauvreté, protection sociale à l’emploi |
| JEL: | D31 H31 H53 I38 |
| Date: | 2010–01–07 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oec:elsaab:100-en&r=lab |