Marshallian labour market pooling: Evidence from Italy

This paper employs a unique Italian data source to take a comprehensive approach to labour market pooling. It jointly considers many different aspects of the agglomeration — labour market relationship, including turnover, learning, matching, and hold up. It also considers labour market pooling from the perspective of both workers and firms and across a range of industries. Overall, the paper finds some support for theories of labour market pooling, but the support is weak. Specifically, there is a general positive relationship of turnover to local population density, which is consistent with theories of agglomeration and uncertainty. There is also evidence of on-the-job learning that is consistent with theories of labour pooling, labour poaching, and hold up. In addition, the paper provides evidence consistent with agglomeration improving job matches. However, the labour market pooling gains that we measure are small in magnitude and seem unlikely to account for a substantial share of the agglomeration benefits accruing to Italian workers and firms.     

Pricing Sydney water*

The paper estimates an aggregate daily water demand for Sydney using rainfall, temperature, and price data from 2001 to 2005, and a dummy variable to account for reductions in demand following the introduction of water restrictions in October 2003. Analyses based on the estimated price elasticity, and also values one and two standard errors above and below this estimate, are used to model the effects of different pricing and water supply scenarios. The simulations indicate that without a fundamental change in water policy (pricing and supply) Sydney faces the possibility of critical water shortages in the short- to medium-term should there be a continuation of low rainfall events.     

Effectiveness of Capital Regulation at U.S. Commercial Banks, 1985 to 1994

Unless priced and administered appropriately, a governmental safety net enhances risk-shifting opportunities for banks. This paper quantifies regulatory efforts to use capital requirements to control risk-shifting by U.S. banks during 1985 to 1994 and investigates how much risk-based capital requirements and other deposit-insurance reforms improved this control. We find that capital discipline did not prevent large banks from shifting risk onto the safety net. Banks with low capital and debt-to-deposits ratios overcame outside discipline better than other banks. Mandates introduced by 1991 legislation have improved but did not establish full regulatory control over bank risk-shifting incentives.     

Employee Relations and the Likelihood of Occurrence of Corporate Financial Distress

Abstract:   In this paper, we investigate the association of employee relations with the occurrence of onset of financial distress. We argue that if adverse economic conditions arise, firms that have maintained good employee relations will be more effective in obtaining temporary labor concessions. As a result, firms with good employee relations, to the extent they are dependent on labor in the conduct of business operations, should be more likely to avoid the onset of future financial distress. The empirical findings we document support this prior.     

Is the division of labour limited by the extent of the market? Evidence from French cities

This paper provides supportive evidence to the notion that the division of labour is limited by the extent of the (local) market. We first propose a theoretical model. Its main prediction is that scarce specialists occupations are over-represented in large cities. Using census data for French cities, we find strong empirical support for this prediction.     

Ein Objekt, das sich verweigert: Der Journalismus in der Soziologie Pierre Bourdieus

Gilles Bastin develops a critique of the concept of the »field of journalism» (»champ journalistique«) in the sociology of Pierre Bourdieu. At first, the genesis of the object under scrutiny, journalism, within Bourdieu’s sociology is introduced. Thus the continuity is made clear with which Bourdieu — from the sixties onwards — conceives of journalists as increasingly powerful agents (»opérateurs«) of »social magic« (»magie sociale«) and of processes primarily in the field of intellectuals. Bastin then analyzes the various suggestions made by different authors for describing the »field of journalism«, and he looks at the variance in using this notion, which makes the concept of the field as such very heterogeneous. In light of other conceptions borrowed from the sociology of professions, such as Everett C. Hughes’, he suggests three critical perspectives: First, Bourdieu’s concept of the field makes work »vanish«; it neglects the conditions of working and the substantial activities of journalists. Second, it leads to a disparate view of journalists’ activities as a subject for research. And thirdly, it decidedly individualizes journalists’ activities.     

Emergence d'un nouveau systeme productif en agriculture

Les changements qui affectent le modèle de production agricole, dans le nouveau contexte économique, peuvent être caractéhsés par un renversement de quatre principes fondamentaux d'organisation. La séparation de la conception et de la production qui était le principe moteur du productivisme est relayé par l'adaptation de la production au marché avec une différenciation des produits (ce que nous désignons comme une logique de qualité). Mais la standardisation exige néanmoins une adaptation des techniques de la production de masse aux contextes locaux, notamment assurée par l'organisation professionnelle des producteurs. La transformation du métier exige de nouvelles formes d'organisation professionnelle. De nouvelles activitès ayant pour base les exploitations agricoles peuvent, dans certains cas, s'inscrirent dans une nouvelle vitalité des zones rurales. Issues of innovation in the agricultural sector arise from the reform of the Common Agricultural Policy of the European Union, the accompanying reform of socio-structural policies, the establishment of an agri-environmental policy and the adoption of quality indicators based on the geographic origin of production. This paper deals with the shift in management principles and the transformation of systems of innovation. This transformation is described as a shift from a productivist logic (Fordism in agriculture) to a logic of quality that takes into account the diversity of demand and the opportunities linked to the rural location of production. The evolution towards precision agriculture is contributing to this shift. This new logic of production harms, to some extent, the professional organisation of farmers. The paper uses a schematic analysis of the old and emergent production models to show the relationships between the old and new logic of organisation. Fordist principles, especially the separation of design and production, are generally standard in agri-food production systems. But agriculture is characterised by land-based production and a family workforce that leads to a specific role for the professional organisation of farmers. After an analysis of this professional and productivist model, we show how the analysis leads to a structural crisis. We focus mainly on the endogenous mechanisms of a quality crisis and its contribution to a professional crisis. However, the professional crisis is a different type compared to the tensions that appear in Fordist labour management. At this level, the analogy with Fordism is not much help. We use four principles that are generally used in the literature, to describe an alternative productive system. The main features of organisational change in agriculture can be integrated into this model. Nevertheless, in agriculture, the new principles seem to correspond to a rather wide variety of organisations. It is not easy to predict the consequences for rural employment from this agricultural model of production change.     

Fiscal Policy and Economic Growth: the Role of Financial Intermediation

This paper analyzes the impact of public debt on financial efficiency in an overlapping‐generations model. We argue that public debt may reduce intermediation costs by increasing the collateral of entrepreneurs. This effect is stronger, the stronger the non‐Ricardian component of public debt, i.e. the more it is associated with intergenerational redistribution. This effect can be interpreted as future generations acting as a guarantee for the loans provided to the entrepreneurs of the current generation. Furthermore, multiple growth paths may arise as low taxes increase private collateral, which in turn boosts growth via financial efficiency, while higher growth allows to maintain the same debt/GDP ratio with reduced taxes.