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on Labour Economics |
| By: | Frimmel, Wolfgang (University of Linz); Halla, Martin (University of Linz); Schmidpeter, Bernhard (University of Essex); Winter-Ebmer, Rudolf (University of Linz) |
| Abstract: | The labor supply effects of becoming a grandmother are not well established in the empirical literature. We estimate the effect of becoming a grandmother on the labor supply decision of older workers. Under the assumption that grandmothers cannot predict the exact date of conception of their grandchild, we identify the effect of the first grandchild on employment (extensive margin). Our Timing-of-Events approach shows that having a first grandchild increases the probability of leaving prematurely the labor market. This effect is stronger when informal childcare is more valuable to the mother. To estimate the effect of an additional grandchild (intensive margin), we assume that the incidence of a twin birth among the third generation is not correlated with unobserved determinants of the grandmother's labor supply (first generation). Our respective 2SLS estimation shows a significant effect of further grandchildren. Our results highlight the important influence of the extended family on the decisions of older workers and point to mediating effects of different institutional settings. |
| Keywords: | grandchildren, female labor supply, timing of events, instrumental variables |
| JEL: | J13 J14 J22 |
| Date: | 2017–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp11199&r=lab |
| By: | Tansel, Aysit (Middle East Technical University); Keskin, Halil Ibrahim (Cukurova University) |
| Abstract: | The strong relationship between various health indicators and education is widely documented. However, the studies that investigate the nature of causality between these variables became available only recently and provide evidence mostly from developed countries. We add to this literature by studying the causal effect of education on days hospitalized and days out of work for health reasons. We consider two educational reforms. One is the educational expansion of the early 1960s and the other is the 1997 increase in compulsory level of schooling from five to eight years. However, due to the possibility of weak instruments we do not further pursue this avenue. We focus on individuals in two cohorts namely, 1945–1965 which is an older cohort and 1980–1980 which is a younger cohort. We estimate Tobit models as well as Double Hurdle models. The results suggest that an increase in years of education causes to reduce the number of days hospitalized for both men and women unambiguously and the number of days out of work only for men while an increase in education increases the number of days out of work for a randomly selected women. |
| Keywords: | education, days hospitalized, days out of work, education reform, Tobit model, double hurdle model, gender, Turkey |
| JEL: | I15 J16 J18 C34 C36 |
| Date: | 2017–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp11210&r=lab |
| By: | Kanjilal-Bhaduri, Sanghamitra (University of Calcutta); Pastore, Francesco (Università della Campania Luigi Vanvitelli) |
| Abstract: | In this paper, we make an attempt to understand whether low labour market returns to education in India are responsible for low female work participation. The National Sample Survey Office (NSSO) Employment Unemployment Survey (EUS) unit level data of India for the year 2011–12 is used to examine the relationship between educational attainment and labour market participation through gender lens. Results show that women's education has a U-shaped relationship with paid work participation. The probability to participate in the paid labour market shows an increasing trend with education levels higher than compulsory secondary schooling. The labour market returns to education are insignificant and low for lower levels of education. The returns increase significantly along with the increase in educational levels. However, females have a significant lower rate of return for each year of education as compared to men in rural and urban labour markets as well. Though it has been said that increase in female enrolment in schooling is one of the reasons of the recent declining phenomenon of female participation, but our study shows that the low returns to education is another reason for their less participation. The findings therefore suggest that, women need to be educated above secondary level to become visible in the labour market. |
| Keywords: | female labour force participation, market returns to education, development, India |
| JEL: | J16 J21 J82 O12 O15 |
| Date: | 2017–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp11209&r=lab |
| By: | Bryson, Alex (University College London); Freeman, Richard B. (Harvard University); Gomez, Rafael (University of Toronto); Willman, Paul (London School of Economics) |
| Abstract: | We present a simple framework for analyzing decline in union voice in the Anglo-American world and its replacement by non-union, often direct, forms of worker voice. We argue that it is a decline in the in-flow to unionisation among employers and workers, rather than an increase in the outflow rate, that accounts for this decline. We show how union decline is predicted by experience good and cost-disease models of trade unionism and is linked to specific institutional and policy constraints on union organizing in the Anglo-American world. We show how the coexistence of union and non-union forms of worker voice is predicted by transaction cost economics, while the growth in non-union forms of worker voice is aided by declining costs of employers "making" voice mechanisms. We draw on "spurt" theories of unionisation to help understand factors underpinning union decline, including falling costs of employer opposition to unionisation as density falls, as discuss possibilities for "bottom-up" growth in union-like forms of worker voice implied by "spurt" theories. |
| Keywords: | worker voice, unionisation, collective bargaining, experience good, cost-disease, transaction costs |
| JEL: | J51 J52 J53 M54 |
| Date: | 2017–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp11223&r=lab |
| By: | Ayse Abbasoglu Ozgoren (Department of Demography, Hacettepe University Institute of Population Studies); Banu Ergocmen (Department of Demography, Hacettepe University Institute of Population Studies); Aysit Tansel (Department of Economics, Middle East Technical University, IZA (Germany) and ERF (Egypt)) |
| Abstract: | The relationship between fertility and employment among women is a challenging topic that requires further exploration, especially for developing countries where the micro and macro evidence fails to paint a clear picture. This study analyzes the two-way relationship between women’s employment and fertility in Turkey using a hazard approach with piece-wise constant exponential modelling, using data from the 2008 Turkey Demographic and Health Survey. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the first study that makes use of an event history analysis to analyze this relationship within a developing country context. Specifically, a separate analysis is made of the association between the employment statuses of women in their first, second, third, and fourth and higher order conceptions, and the association of fertility and its various dimensions with entry and exit from employment. The findings suggest that a two-way negative association exists between fertility and employment among women in Turkey, with increasing intensities identified among some groups of women. Our findings also cast light on how contextual changes related to the incompatibility of the roles of worker and mother have transformed the fertility-employment relationship in Turkey, in line with propositions of the role incompatibility hypothesis. |
| Keywords: | Fertility, Employment, Women, Event History Analysis, Turkey. |
| JEL: | C41 J13 J16 |
| Date: | 2018–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:koc:wpaper:1801&r=lab |
| By: | Matthias Doepke (Northwestern University); Michèle Tertilt (Universität Mannheim) |
| Abstract: | We document evidence on preferences for childbearing in developing countries. Across countries, men usually desire larger families than women do. Within countries, we find wide dispersion in spouses’ desired fertility: there are many couples whose ideal family size differs by five children or more. This disagreement between spouses suggests that the extent to which women are empowered should matter for fertility choices. We point to evidence at both the macro and micro levels that this is indeed the case. We conclude that taking account of household bargaining and women’s empowerment in analyses of fertility is an important challenge for research. |
| Keywords: | women's empowerment, desired fertility, marital bargaining |
| JEL: | J12 J13 J16 O10 |
| Date: | 2018–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hka:wpaper:2018-001&r=lab |
| By: | Knörr, Marlene (Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany]); Weber, Enzo (Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany]) |
| Abstract: | "This paper examines the cross-border labor market in the French-German Upper Rhine Region. Based on shortage analyses conducted for both sides of the border, a fixed effects panel regression estimates the impact of changing labor market situations on the number of French frontier workers. Although some of the anticipated effects are detected, their size is rather modest and insufficient to balance regional disparities in a way that would be expected in a fully integrated cross-border labor market. By the same token, the quantitative analysis identifies standardized certificates as a barrier to cross-border mobility and confirms a preference of frontier workers for routine tasks. In addition, insufficient public transportation and language skills, missing information about the neighboring country as well as problems with the recognition of degrees are also found among the obstacles to an integrated labor market." (Author's abstract, IAB-Doku) ((en)) |
| Keywords: | Grenzpendler, Grenzgebiet, regionaler Arbeitsmarkt, regionale Disparität, regionale Mobilität, Mobilitätsbarriere, Bundesrepublik Deutschland, Frankreich, Hochrhein, Bundesrepublik Deutschland |
| JEL: | F22 J2 J61 |
| Date: | 2018–01–08 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iab:iabdpa:201802&r=lab |
| By: | Ivlevs, Artjoms (University of the West of England, Bristol); Veliziotis, Michail (University of Southampton) |
| Abstract: | The break-ups of the former Soviet Union and Yugoslavia were accompanied by some of the worst military conflicts in modern history, claiming lives of thousands of people and forcibly displacing millions. We study how people displaced by war and conflict within these countries fare on the labour market in the long term – 10 to 15 years after their displacement. Our conceptual framework draws on the theory of cumulative disadvantage and the notion of unemployment 'scarring'. Data come from the Life in Transition II survey, conducted in post-conflict, post-socialist countries in 2010 (n=10,328). Multiple regression analysis reveals a significant long-term labour market disadvantage of forced displacement: people who fled conflict 10-15 years ago are more likely to be long-term unemployed, experience a recent job loss and work informally. We also find that people affected by conflict (both displaced and non-displaced) are more willing to acquire further education and training. These results are not uniform across demographic groups: displaced women consistently experience a greater labour market disadvantage than displaced men, and people affected by conflict in the younger age group (18-34) are particularly keen to acquire extra education and training. Overall, our results highlight a long-lasting vulnerability of the forcibly displaced in developing and transition economies, and advance the emerging literature on the effects of internal displacement on labour market outcomes and human capital accumulation. We also discuss how forced internal displacement extends the theory of cumulative disadvantage. |
| Keywords: | internally displaced persons, post-socialist countries, conflict, labour market outcomes, education, cumulative disadvantage |
| JEL: | D74 J64 M53 |
| Date: | 2017–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp11215&r=lab |
| By: | Dobbelaere, Sabien (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam); Kiyota, Kozo (Keio University) |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the links between the internationalization mode of firms and market imperfections in product and labor markets. We develop a framework for modelling heterogeneity across firms in terms of (i) product market power (price-cost markups), (ii) labor market imperfections (workers' bargaining power during worker-firm negotiations or firm's degree of wage-setting power) and (iii) revenue productivity. We apply this framework to analyze whether the pricing behavior of firms in product and labor markets differs across firms that engage in different forms of internationalization. Engagement in international activities is found to matter for determining not only the type of imperfections in product and labor markets but also the degree of imperfections. Clear differences in behavior between firms that serve the foreign market either through exporting or through FDI are observed. Being an exporter introduces allocative inefficiencies in product as well as labor markets as we find export status to be positively correlated with both product market power (markups) and market power consolidated on the labor supply side (workers' bargaining power). But exporting firms where search frictions are inducing wages to vary with revenue are less able to exploit wage-setting power. Firms with foreign subsidiaries, on the other hand, seem to reduce price distortions in product and labor markets. In addition, we observe heterogeneous returns to being an exporter/MNE within an industry and also discern cross-industry differences. |
| Keywords: | rent sharing, monopsony, price-cost mark-ups, productivity, exporting, multinational firms, panel data |
| JEL: | C23 D24 F14 F16 J50 L13 |
| Date: | 2017–12 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp11225&r=lab |
| By: | Uschi Backes-Gellner (University of Zurich); Holger Herz (University of Fribourg); Michael Kosfeld (Goethe University Frankfurt); Yvonne Oswald (University of Zurich) |
| Abstract: | Evidence suggests that acquiring human capital is related to better life outcomes, yet young peoples' decisions to invest in or stop acquiring human capital are still poorly understood. We investigate the role of time and reference-dependent preferences in such decisions. Using a data set that is unique in its combination of real-world observations on student outcomes and experimental data on economic preferences, we find that a low degree of long-run patience is a key determinant of dropping out of upper-secondary education. Further, for students who finish education we show that one month before termination of their program, present-biased students are less likely to have concrete continuation plans while loss averse students are more likely to have a definite job offer already. Our findings provide fresh evidence on students' decision-making about human capital acquisition and labor market transition with important implications for education and labor market policy. |
| Keywords: | Economic preferences, education, dropout, human capital, job search |
| JEL: | D01 D03 D91 I21 J64 |
| Date: | 2018–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iso:educat:0144&r=lab |
| By: | Sposi, Michael J. (Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas) |
| Abstract: | The working age share of the population has evolved, and will continue to evolve, asymmetrically across countries. I develop a dynamic, multicountry, Ricardian trade model with endogenous labor supply to quantify how these asymmetries systematically affect the pattern of trade imbalances across 28 countries from 1970-2014. Changes in both domestic and foreign working age shares impact a country's net exports directly through the demand for net saving and indirectly through relative labor supply and population growth. Counterfactually removing demographic-induced changes to saving unveils a strong negative contemporaneous relationship between net exports and productivity growth. Demographics, thus, alleviate the allocation puzzle, and do so to a greater degree than investment distortions. Neither labor market distortions nor trade distortions systematically reconcile the puzzle. |
| JEL: | F11 F21 J11 |
| Date: | 2017–12–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:fip:feddgw:332&r=lab |
| By: | Francesco Macheda |
| Abstract: | This paper takes issue with the popular idea that the involvement of labor unions within occupational pension funds would hinder short-term profit-maximizing strategies that instead characterizes private pension schemes in Anglo-Saxon countries. The aim is to contribute to demystifying this myth by looking at private pension institutions under the assumption that deregulated financial markets are not neutral and engender a network of power relationships which goes beyond direct market participants. The thesis of this paper is that the high profitability generated by speculative investments leads to a new political compromise between firms and organized labor, insofar as the buying and selling of easily liquidated assets by occupational pension funds guarantees high net-salary levels and generous pensions, without undermining the competitiveness of the firm – at least in the short run. On the other hand, however, it dramatically increases the intrinsic risk of a pension system that, in fact, depends on the state of health of global finance. Finally, we test our hypothesis by examining the investment strategies in the Netherlands, where occupational pension funds have been historically embedded within the structure of neo-corporative interest mediation. |
| Keywords: | Private Pensions, Labor unions, Power, Investment Decisions |
| JEL: | J32 J51 G11 |
| Date: | 2018–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ast:wpaper:0029&r=lab |
| By: | Bin Ni (Faculty of Business Administration, Toyo University); Kyosuke Kurita (School of Economics, Kwansei Gakuin University) |
| Abstract: | This paper examines the interrelationship between changes in the provincial minimum wage, firms' export behavior, and firms' performance in Indonesia. In this regard, we apply two-stage least squares regression analysis to detailed firm-level data of manufacturing enterprises between 2002 and 2014. We find that an increase in the minimum wage is associated with decreases in a firm's employment rate, its probability of exporting, and its overall performance in terms of productivity and markup. We also use the 2012 minimum wage reform in Indonesia to conduct a combined propensity score matching and difference-in-difference analysis to mitigate the potential endogeneity of minimum wage regulation. Our findings are generally robust to alternative estimation methods. Moreover, the findings suggest that Indonesian exports and the country's comparative advantage in international markets are not negligibly affected by higher labor costs through minimum wage growth. |
| Keywords: | minimum wage, firm performance, Indonesia, difference-in-difference |
| JEL: | F14 F16 L25 J88 |
| Date: | 2018–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:kgu:wpaper:171&r=lab |
| By: | Philipp Hergovich; Monika Merz |
| Abstract: | Technical progress has contributed to a steady decline in the relative price of new capital goods and at the same time facilitated the substitutability between phys- ical capital and labor in output production. This paper studies the quantitative implications that these two changes have for the level and the variability of firms' prots, the capital-to-labor ratio, and also for labor market outcomes when profits arise from rents paid to quasi-fixed factors of production. We embed a CES pro- duction function into a model of capital accumulation and competitive search in the labor market, allowing firms to increase their size by hiring multiple workers. We use our model to disentangle the effects of the decline in the relative price of capital and increased factor substitutability. Our analysis identies each of these two changes as important drivers of the empirically observed rise in the capital- to-labor ratio and in the level and variability of firms' prots. Their overall effect on wages, employment, and the labor share of income is inconclusive, since their respective impact on each of these variables goes in the opposite direction. |
| JEL: | E24 G32 J64 |
| Date: | 2018–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:vie:viennp:1801&r=lab |