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on Central and South America |
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Issue of 2009‒05‒16
three papers chosen by |
| By: | Ederington, Josh (University of Kentucky); Minier, Jenny (University of Kentucky); Troske, Kenneth (University of Kentucky) |
| Abstract: | Gary Becker's theory of discrimination argues that increasing competition will reduce discrimination in the labor market. We use the Colombian trade liberalization episode over the period 1984–91 to investigate this claim on plant-level data in three ways. First, we examine whether women are concentrated in exporting plants. Second, we examine whether the increase in foreign competition due to unilateral trade liberalization disproportionately drove discriminating plants out of the market. Finally, we investigate whether trade liberalization affected hiring decisions (and thus gender segregation) by Colombian firms. |
| Keywords: | discrimination, trade, competition |
| JEL: | J7 |
| Date: | 2009–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp4131&r=lam |
| By: | Luis Eduardo Arango Thomas; Mónica Alexandra Gómez; Carlos Esteban Posada |
| Abstract: | Se hallan las funciones de demanda por trabajo calificado (número horas laboradas por personas que tienen doce o más años de educación) y no calificado (número de horas laboradas por personas que tienen a lo sumo once años de educación) a partir de un proceso de minimización de costos de una firma representativa del sector urbano formal no gubernamental que emplea una tecnología de producción CES de dos niveles en la que se utilizan capital y trabajo diferenciado por años de educación. El período muestral va de 1986 a 2006. Tanto los salarios de cada tipo de trabajo como la tasa de interés, el cambio técnico y el producto constituyen las variables fundamentales que explican la evolución de la demanda de trabajo calificado y no calificado en el largo plazo. En el período 2003 – 2006, la elasticidad de la demanda de trabajo calificado a su salario es -0,30 en tanto que la del trabajo no calificado es -0,33. La elasticidad de la demanda factorial al producto es 1,218. |
| Date: | 2009–05–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:col:000094:005518&r=lam |
| By: | Rada, Nicholas E.; Buccola, Steven T.; Fuglie, Keith O. |
| Abstract: | Brazil now is the largest coffee, sugar, and fruit juice producer, second-largest soybean and beef producer, and third-largest corn and broiler producer. It has overtaken the U.S. in poultry exports, nearly matches the U.S. in soybean exports, and dominates global trade in frozen orange juice. To test and better understand these advances, we draw on decennial farm censuses to examine technical change and efficiency in Brazilian agriculture. Our approach is to estimate a stochastic, multi-product, output distance frontier, using a translog functional form and data disaggregated to the micro-region (sub-state) level. Using two consecutive decennial farm censuses, we combine state-level Fisher productivity-change indexes with state-level translog distance function estimates of technical efficiency change to impute state-level technical shifts. We find, leading up to the soon-to-be-released 2006 agricultural census, that Brazilâs multi-factor productivity growth rate between 1985 and 1996 was 20.2%. Mean state-level technical efficiency was 91.2%, which implies the production frontier expanded 22.2% over the reference time period. |
| Keywords: | Brazil, Shephard distance function, stochastic frontier, technical change, technical efficiency, International Development, Production Economics, Productivity Analysis, Research and Development/Tech Change/Emerging Technologies, |
| Date: | 2009 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ags:aaea09:49317&r=lam |