Institute for the Study of Labor

About: Institute for the Study of Labor is a nonprofit organization based out in Bonn, Germany. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Wage & Unemployment. The organization has 2039 authors who have published 13475 publications receiving 439376 citations.

The Incidence of Mandated Employer-Provided Insurance: Lessons from Workers' Compensation Insurance

Abstract: Workers' compensation insurance provides cash payments and medical benefits to workers who incur a work-related injury or illness Many features of the workers' compensation program parallel features of proposed mandated employer-paid health insurance plans This paper empirically examines the incidence of the workers' compensation program to infer the likely consequences of mandated health insurance proposals In certain industries, such as trucking and carpentry, workers' compensation insurance costs are quite large, and vary tremendously within states over time, and across states at a moment in time This variation is used to identify the incidence of the program Empirical analysis of two data sets suggest that changes in employers' costs of workers' compensation insurance are largely shifted to employees in the form of lower wages In addition, higher insurance costs are found to have a negative but statistically insignificant effect on employment The implied elasticity of labor demand from our results is about -50

Internet Job Search and Unemployment Durations

Abstract: After decades of stability, the technologies used by workers to locate new jobs began to change rapidly with the diffusion of internet access in the late 1990's. Which types of persons incorporated the internet into their job search strategy, and did searching for work on line help these workers find new jobs faster? We address these questions using measures of internet job search derived from the December 1998 and August 2000 CPS Computer and Internet Supplements, matched with job search outcomes from subsequent CPS files. We find that internet searchers are positively selected on observables, but negatively selected on unobservables. A beneficial (unemployment-duration reducing) causal effect of internet job search is consistent with our estimates only if negative selection on unobservables is especially strong, in other words only if the population of on-line resumes is strongly adversely selected.

Motivation and markets

Abstract: Many workers receive pay based on subjectively assessed performance, yet the shirking model of efficiency wages excludes it. This paper incorporates such pay, with the following results. Performance pay is more efficient than efficiency wages when the costs of having a job vacant are low and qualified workers in short supply. More capitl-intensive industries pay more than less capital-intensive industries, as observed in studies of interindustry wages differentials. Sustaining an efficient outcome requires a social convention similar to the notion of a fair wage. The model also makes predictions about the relationship between turnover, wages, growth and unemployment.

Match Bias in Wage Gap Estimates Due to Earnings Imputation

Abstract: About 30% of workers in the CPS have earnings imputed. Wage gap estimates are biased toward zero when the attribute being studied (e.g., union status) is not a criterion used to match donors to nonrespondents. An expression for "match bias" is derived in which attenuation equals the sum of match error rates. In practice, attenuation can be approximated by the proportion with imputed earnings. Union wage gap estimates with match bias removed are presented for 1973-2001. Estimates in recent years are biased downward 5 percentage points. Bias in gap estimates accompanying other non-match criteria (public sector, industry, etc.) is examined.

CEO Turnover, Firm Performance and Enterprise Reform in China: Evidence from New Micro Data

Abstract: Using comprehensive financial and accounting data on China's listed firms from 1998 to 2002, augmented by unique data on CEO turnover, ownership structure and board characteristics, we estimate Logit models of CEO turnover. We find consistently for all performance measures including both stock return and various accounting measures that: (i) overall, CEO turnover is significantly and inversely related to firm performance though the magnitude of the relationship is modest; (ii) CEO turnover-performance link is stronger when the percentage of company shares owned by the largest shareholder is larger. Furthermore, insofar as stock performance is concerned, (iii) turnover-performance link is found to be weaker for listed firms still controlled by the state; (iv) the appointment of independent directors enhances turnover-performance link; (v) the listing suspension mechanism, i.e., the ST designation, adopted by China's securities regulatory agency appears to be effective in improving turnover-performance tie; and (vi) listed firms with CEOs holding additional positions in the controlling shareholders have weaker turnover-performance link. Consistent with the "law and finance" approach to corporate governance and the literature on economic transition, our findings suggest that any fundamental improvement in China's corporate governance will require a broad program that encompasses not only privatization but also laws and their effective implementation to provide better protection for investors.