Worker Ownership and Participation in the Context of Social Change

A bstract . A massive volume of literature has been generated over recent years concerning the nature of work organizations and resultant effects upon worker satisfaction and enterprise efficiency. Between extreme radical and conservative views, a good deal of attention has focused on worker ownership and the locus of power in the organization. Worker ownership can lead to beneficial results, but only if carefully structured. Worker participation in decision making is the key, but the transfer from authoritarianism is difficult. Any substantial transfer of enterprise ownership is remote. Even transformation to greater power sharing, short of ownership change, will be slow and fragile.     

Zins und Unternehmergewinn im Gleichungssystem der stationären Wirtschaft

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

On the Accuracy of Economic Observations: Do Sub-Saharan Trade Statistics Mean Anything?

African governments are being urged to promote commodity exports,yet without reliable trade statistics it is difficult to formulateappropriate policies to achieve this goal. This article assessesthe accuracy of U.N. trade statistics by comparing the declaredvalue of African exports, plus a transport and insurance costfactor, with partner countries' reported import values. Theresults show that major discrepancies often exist between thetwo, with false invoicing and smuggling apparently responsiblefor much of the difference. Although major disparities existin data on trade with developed countries, the average differencesin intra-African trade statistics are substantially larger.Statistical tests show that these data cannot be relied on toindicate the level, composition, or even direction and trendsin African trade.     

Das Zeitmoment in der Theorie des Produktivzinses

Ohne Zusammenfassung     

Underwork,Work‐Hour Insecurity,and A New Approach to Wage and Hour Regulation

When it was passed in 1938, the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) sought to address the “evils” of underpay and overwork by establishing an hourly minimum wage and requiring premium overtime pay. However, today's low‐wage, hourly workers more often face underwork than overwork, as well as fluctuating, unstable schedules, neither of which is addressed by the FLSA. This paper presents and assesses the effectiveness of an alternative approach to wage and hour regulation, the “reporting pay” guarantee. We begin by examining the problem of work‐hour insecurity, particularly employers’ practice of sending workers home early from scheduled shifts. We then move to a detailed assessment of state laws that require reporting pay, as well as reporting pay guarantees in union contracts and private‐employer practices that attempt to address the problem of work‐hour insecurity. We conclude by considering paths for strengthening such protections in law.