Showing papers in "Labour in 2009"

Training, Job Satisfaction, and Workplace Performance in Britain: Evidence from WERS 2004

Abstract: This paper analyses the relationship between training, job satisfaction, and workplace performance using the British 2004 Workplace Employee Relations Survey (WERS). Several measures of performance are analysed including absence, quits, financial performance, labour productivity, and product quality. Although there is clear evidence that training is positively associated with job satisfaction, and job satisfaction in turn is positively associated with most measures of performance, the relationship between training and performance is complex, depending on both the particular measures of training and of performance used in the analysis.

Field of Study and University Graduates' Early Employment Outcomes in Italy during 1995–2004

Abstract: . In a period of expanding higher education, the field of study becomes a key determinant of university graduates' labour market success. In this paper, by means of multivariate analyses of the quality of graduates' early employment outcomes, we first describe how the effect of different fields of study on the university-to-work transition changed between 1995 and 2004 in Italy. Second, we put forward some alternative hypotheses to interpret the changes observed over time and assess which ones seem to be more consistent with the data.

The Effect of Early Retirement Incentives on the Training Participation of Older Workers

Abstract: Human capital theory predicts that older workers are less likely to participate in on-the-job training than younger workers, due to lower net returns on such investments. Early retirement institutions are likely to affect these returns. Using the European Community Household Panel we show that older workers participate less in training, and that early retirement institutions do indeed matter. Generous early retirement schemes discourage older workers from taking part in training, whereas flexible early retirement schemes encourage this. Finally, the results suggest that in most European countries training can keep older workers longer in the labour market.

PISA and the Transition into the Labour Market

Abstract: Dieser Beitrag untersucht den Einfluss der PISA-Lesekompetenzen am Ende der obligatorischen Schulzeit auf einen erfolgreichen Arbeitsmarkteintritt. Die deskriptiven Ergebnisse zeigen, dass Jugendliche mit tiefen PISA-Messwerten ein signifikant erhohtes Risiko aufweisen, zwei Jahre nach Berufsbildungsabschluss inadaquat beschaftigt zu sein. Weiter gehende Analysen verdeutlichen hingegen, dass es der Typ beruflicher Grundbildung ist, welcher for eine erfolgreiche Arbeitsmarkttransition entscheidend ist. Nichtsdestotrotz haben PISA-Scores einen indirekten Einfluss auf den Ubergang ins Erwerbsleben, da sie ein wichtiger Erklarungsfaktor dafur sind, wer Zugang zu Berufsbildungsgangen mit hohen Anforderungen bekommt.

Changing returns to education during a boom? The case of Ireland

Abstract: Ireland experienced dramatic growth in the economy and employment in the second half of the 1990s. This paper examines the consequences of that boom for returns to education and wage inequality using data from the Living in Ireland Survey for the years 1994, 1997, and 2001. Rapid economic growth is often expected to lead to increased returns to education and thus to rising wage inequality. We find fairly stable returns to education and falling wage inequality for men throughout the period, partly due to strong demand for unskilled labour, which helped maintain low-skilled wages. For women the wage premium for a university degree fell between 1997 and 2001, as did wage inequality. We argue that for women, low-skilled wages may have been kept up by the introduction of the minimum wage in 2000, and high-skilled wages fell due to a rapid rise in the supply of highly qualified women.

Early Labour Market Returns to College Subject

Abstract: . We estimate early labour market outcomes of Italian university graduates across college subjects. We devote great attention to endogenous selection issues using alternative methods to control for potential self-selection associated with the choice of the degree subject in order to unravel the causal link between college major and subsequent outcomes in the labour market. Our results suggest that ‘quantitative’ fields (i.e. Sciences, Engineering, and Economics) increase not only the speed of transition into the first job and employment probability but also early earnings, conditional on employment.

Long‐term Effects of Cash for Childcare on Mothers' Labour Supply

Abstract: In 1998–99 a cash benefit for 1- to 2-year-olds who do not use subsidized childcare on full-time basis was introduced in Norway A large-scale appraisal shortly after introduction concluded that the effects on mothers' labour supply were surprisingly small The more long-term effects reported in this paper suggest that this conclusion may need modification Almost 4 years after the reform the employment probability had declined significantly, and employed mothers were much more likely to be on leave All in all the reduction in labour supply is estimated to be 3¾ hours per week or almost 20 per cent

Tax Structure and Female Labour Supply: Evidence from Ireland

Abstract: How great an effect does the structure of income taxes have on female labour supply? This issue is investigated using a discrete-choice static labour supply model for married couples in Ireland. The model incorporates fixed costs of working and simultaneously explains participation decisions and preferred hours of work. The model is estimated using data from the 1994 wave of the Living in Ireland Survey. Simulations examine the labour supply effects of introducing greater independence in the tax treatment of married couples, compared with an income-splitting system, and alternative forms of tax cuts.

The Transition to Work for Italian University Graduates

Abstract: This study investigates the hazard of rst job for Italian graduates. The analysis is in particular focused on the transition from university to work, taking into account the graduates’ characteristics and the eects relating to degree subject. It is used a large data set from a survey on job opportunities for the 1998 Italian graduates. The paper employs a non parametric discrete-time single risk models to study employment hazard. Alternative mixing distributions have also been used to account for unobserved heterogeneity. The results obtained indicate that there is evidence of positive duration dependence after a short initial period of negative duration dependence. In addition, competing risk model with unobserved heterogeneity and non parametric baseline hazard have been estimated to characterize transitions out of unemployment.

Matching Inefficiencies, Regional Disparities, and Unemployment

Abstract: . In this paper we apply a stochastic frontier approach to examine how matching inefficiencies and regional disparities in structural factors contribute to regional and aggregate unemployment. Our results suggest that there would be a substantial decline in aggregate unemployment if (i) all local labour offices operated with full efficiency or (ii) they shared the same structure of job seekers and vacant jobs as the most favourable office. In the former case an increase in hirings would lower the average unemployment rate by 2.4 percentage points. In the latter case the decrease would be 1.4 percentage points. Further, we find that fixed effects are positively correlated with both a more favourable structure and higher efficiency. This suggests that the fixed effects may capture some part of time-invariant features in the structure and inefficiency. Thus, the role of structural factors and inefficiency in regional unemployment disparities may be higher than estimated.

Workers' Perceptions of Job Insecurity: Do Job Security Guarantees Work?

Abstract: We investigate the effect of employer job security guarantees on employee perceptions of job insecurity. Using linked employer–employee data from the 1998 British Workplace Employee Relations Survey, we find job security guarantees reduce employee perceptions of job insecurity. This finding is robust to endogenous selection of job security guarantees by employers engaging in organizational change and workforce reductions. Furthermore, there is no evidence that increased job security through job guarantees results in greater work intensification, stress, or lower job satisfaction.

Low‐wage Employment and the Role of Education and On‐the‐job Training

Abstract: General education and on-the-job training are major forces determining earnings. This contribution analyses the effects of general education and on-the-job training, relative to each other, on workers' relative earnings and on the probability of making an upwards transition in the earnings distribution. The analysis is done for Denmark, the Netherlands, Italy, and Spain, using the European Community Household Panel (1995–2001). Our results reveal that in all countries on-the-job training and high levels of general education reduce the risk of being in a low-pay situation, whereas they increase the probability of escaping from low-paid jobs to better-paid jobs. However, the relative contributions differ significantly, on-the-job training being relatively more important for upward mobility in Italy and Spain and tertiary education more important for reducing the risk of being in low pay in Denmark and the Netherlands.

The Employment Effect of the Disability Discrimination Act: Evidence from the Health Survey for England

Abstract: This paper uses data from the Health Survey for England between 1991 and 2004 to examine the labour market impact of the Disability Discrimina- tion Act 1995 (DDA). Consistent with previous evidence in the UK and the USA, this study finds no evidence of a positive employment effect of the introduction of the DDA. Sensitivity analysis, using the small firm exemption of the DDA, and controlling for changes in the composition of the disabled, is used to test the robustness of the main results.

Sibling sex composition and educational outcomes: A review of theory and evidence for the UK

Abstract: Studies from US data have found mixed results regarding sibling sex composition effects and educational outcomes. Some researchers have found that sisters hurt women's education, others have found the opposite, and some have found no effects. This paper reviews the theoretical foundations for sibling sex composition effects and tests the theories using British data, on a sample of children born between 3 and 9 March 1958, from the National Child Development Survey. Methods from previous studies are replicated and extensions considered for ability, credit constraints, and family size. No sibling sex composition effects are found, but estimation results support the quantity–quality model.

The effect of a longer eligibility to a labour market programme for dismissed workers

Abstract: Liste di Mobilita is an Italian programme targeted to dismissed workers It combines a ‘passive’ and an ‘active’ component Eligibility duration varies with the worker's age at dismissal Using a new panel data set, we identify the impact of extending the duration of eligibility on re-employment probabilities and wages, via Regression Discontinuity Design We validate the design by a set of overidentification tests For most subgroups we find no significant impact, with a peculiar pattern for women entitled to monetary benefits A major negative impact emerges for workers aged 50 or more granted monetary benefits, likely due to the fact that they can use the programme as a bridge to retirement

Are more competent workers more satisfied

Abstract: . In this paper, we analyse the relationship between workers' competencies and their job satisfaction in the context of dual (i.e. vocational versus communicative) skill demands. We analyse the effects of workers' competencies on their overall, intrinsic, and extrinsic job satisfaction. We focus on pharmacy assistants who need both pharmaceutical and communicative competencies in their work. Results from a linked employer–employee survey show that assistants with more communicative competencies are more satisfied with their job, whereas assistants with more pharmaceutical competencies are not more satisfied than the less competent assistants. In addition, workers who perform tasks below their level of competence are more dissatisfied with both their remuneration and career prospects and the content of their job as such, than were other workers. Our results indicate that the demand shift from vocational towards communication skills, which occurs in many professions, can affect the job satisfaction of the most competent workers.

Do Parental Transfers Reduce Youths' Incentives to Work?

Abstract: . This paper uses data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997 to examine the effects that parental transfers from a family have on a youth's labor supply. The results from a fixed-effects two-stage least squares estimator suggest that: (i) parental pocket money reduces youths' incentives to work; (ii) parental allowances have a non-linear effect on hours worked; (iii) the subsample of siblings shows similar patterns that parental transfers have a negative impact on hours worked, although the magnitudes are slightly weaker than the full sample; and (iv) the response to parental transfers varies by age.

Immigration Policy, Equilibrium Unemployment, and Underinvestment in Human Capital

Abstract: We analyse the impact of different immigration policies on human capital investment in a search-theoretic model. This class of models features unem- ployment and underinvestment in human capital. The underinvestment in human capital can be solved by combining immigration policy with appropriate education subsidies. Extending the model with respect to different skill groups allows to analyse the observed bimodal skilled immigration of the USA.

Time Preferences and Job Search: Evidence from France

Abstract: . Increasing impatience reduces search efforts of unemployed job seekers and therefore decreases the exit rate from unemployment. Also, impatience reduces reservation wage and increases the exit rate. To determine the overall effect of impatience on the exit rate from unemployment, we distinguish between exponential and hyperbolic time preferences. Search effort dominates the reservation wage and decreases the exit rate from unemployment if individuals have hyperbolic, rather than exponential, preferences. Using the French sample of the European Household Panel Survey, we found that search effort has a strong effect on the duration of unemployment, whereas the reservation wage is not significant. This result shows that the job seekers have hyperbolic preferences. Hyperbolic preferences affect problems associated with job search and policies aimed at reducing unemployment.

Analysing the Gender Wage Gap (GWG) Using Personnel Records

Abstract: We use monthly personnel records of a large German company for the years 1999–2005 to analyse the gender wage gap (GWG). The unconditional GWG is 15 per cent for blue-collar and 26 per cent for white-collar workers. Different returns to entry age explain a substantial part of the GWG as well as segregation of men and women in different hierarchical levels. The relative GWG increases with increasing tenure for blue-collar but declines for white-collar workers. Taking into account the different impact of general and firm-specific human capital on white-collar and blue-collar occupation, this is consistent with theories of statistical discrimination.

The Structure of Wages by Firm Size: A Comparison of Canada and the USA

Abstract: Cross-country comparisons of the skill premium between USA and Canada show differences in the returns to higher education between the two countries since the 1980s. This paper analyses whether such differences could be related to differences in skill distribution and worker sorting across firm size between the two countries. Estimation of the wage structure by size for male non-unionized workers in the private sector reveals that selectivity effects on wages are present and similar in both countries. There are significant and substantial cross-country differences in the returns to education among large firms, especially for younger workers.

Technology Import and Industrial Employment: Evidence from Developing Countries

Abstract: This paper based on panel data across countries examines the possible effect of the imported technology on labour absorption in the industrial sector, after controlling for real wage rate and GDP per capita. Findings tend to suggest a negative relationship between the two. Technical efficiency index derived on the basis of the stochastic frontier function framework is also negatively affected by the import of technology. Without enhancing the knowledge relating to the mecha- nisms of exploiting the new technology acquired from abroad, a mere increase in import of technology would mean rising unutilized capacity. And this could be due to the poor skill base of the available human capital. Investment in human capital in terms of skill formation, up-gradation, and training on the one hand and technological advancement to suit the internal labour market conditions are the two important policy conclusions for reviving the role of industry as the engine of pro-poor growth.

Work Absence - A Signalling Factor for Temporary Workers?

Abstract: This paper investigates whether low levels of absence increase the probability of permanent employment and reduce that of unemployment for Swedish temporary workers. We investigate two reasons for absence: worker sickness and sickness of a dependent child. Using a competing risk estimation model, we find that sick leave reduces the probability of permanent employment for women and increases the probability of unemployment for men. Absence due to child sickness increases the risk of unemployment for women. Although the influence of sick leave varies substantially among different temporary jobs, replacement and probation workers are generally the most affected.