“Managing” Corporate Community Involvement

In academic research, many attempts have been undertaken to legitimize corporate community involvement by showing a business case for it. However, much less attention has been devoted to building understanding about the actual dynamics and challenges of managing CCI in the business context. As an alternative to existing predominantly static and top-down approaches, this paper introduces a social movement framework for analyzing CCI management. Based on the analysis of qualitative case study data, we argue that the active role of employees pressuring for CCI policies and practices, as well as the organization audience responses to their efforts, are at the core of the challenges involved in managing CCI. These challenges also pose limits to how far CCI can be extended to a “business as usual” activity.     

Universities and global competition for graduate students: scenarios for Latin America

The purpose of this paper is to lay out future scenarios related to the impact of the intensification of competition between universities and research centres of OECD countries on the stocks and flows of university graduates in Latin America. In conditions of intensified competence, it is possible that the ways in which Latin American countries, universities and university professionals participate in the processes of international mobility will change significantly. This paper proposes different scenarios, combining hypotheses about the global dynamics of skilled mobility and migration of graduate students (conditioned by the behaviour of the demand in developed countries), about their main impacts on Latin America, and about the responses that Latin American governments and universities could make to face this process.     

Is low unionisation in the British hospitality industry due to industry characteristics?

Low recognition and concomitant characteristics of a union presence are key factors associated with very low union membership in the British hospitality industry (HI) but there may be exceptional factors in the HI that render it more amenable to union membership after standard explanations are accounted for. Although the lessons for unions are to seek greater employer legitimacy at the same time as securing membership, recognition rates would have to increase by six times to double the rate of union density in the HI and satisfy ‘frustrated’ demand for unionisation. Questions are also raised about the utility of the statutory recognition procedures and current union organising and retention strategies.     

From public to private: Has employment practice changed in Bulgarian hotels?

This study finds a clear shift towards the importance of HRM strategy and the need for change towards service quality [Vachkova, E., Gaidarov, M. (2001). Management of Human Resources in the Global Society, Banki Investicii Pari, 1. Sofia, Bulgaria, pp. 29–35] in Bulgarian hotels 15 years into the post-socialist era. This is not matched by a significant change in improved employment flexibility, more effective career development, improved communications and management style and, most problematic of all, improved training and development. Although managerial statements about the importance of HRM may be rhetorical, the balance of evidence suggests that the legacy of cultural and institutional effects in Bulgaria remains strong and may have created a vacuum that prevents managers from developing the ability and know-how to initiate change, and by implication, improve firms’ performance.     

The multi-state latent factor intensity model for credit rating transitions

A new empirical reduced-form model for credit rating transitions is introduced. It is a parametric intensity-based duration model with multiple states and driven by exogenous covariates and latent dynamic factors. The model has a generalized semi-Markov structure designed to accommodate many of the stylized facts of credit rating migrations. Parameter estimation is based on Monte Carlo maximum likelihood methods for which the details are discussed in this paper. A simulation experiment is carried out to show the effectiveness of the estimation procedure. An empirical application is presented for transitions in a 7 grade rating system. The model includes a common dynamic component that can be interpreted as the credit cycle. Asymmetric effects of this cycle across rating grades and additional semi-Markov dynamics are found to be statistically significant. Finally, we investigate whether the common factor model suffices to capture systematic risk in rating transition data by introducing multiple factors in the model.     

The capital tax paradox in a greening economy

We adopt a simple model of endogenous growth with polluting capital and a fixed budget for aggregate emissions. Pollution abatement efficiency is growing over time due to technical progress. We find that long-run capital and consumption are inversely related to the initial capital stock. Capital taxation does not harm the economy but actually raises long-run consumption and production, which we call the “capital tax paradox.” The reason for this surprising result is that in an economy with a binding carbon policy, early abundance of polluting capital is not a blessing but a curse. It is preferable to have a large capital stock when abatement efficiency has grown sufficiently large. The paper also provides novel results on the impact of pollution intensity and the rate of technical progress on the greening of the economy and the pollution permit prices. In the quantitative part, we calibrate model and study economic growth under different assumptions on the basic model parameters.

     

Domestic Climate Policies and the WTO

The Kyoto Protocol gives Annex 1 countries considerable flexibility in the choice of domestic policies to meet their emissions commitments. Possible climate policies include carbon/energy taxes, subsidies, energy efficiency standards, eco‐labels, and government procurement policies. In order to meet their targets with minimum adverse effects on their economies, Annex 1 governments with differentiated legal and political systems are highly likely to pursue these policies that may have the potential to bring them into conflict with their WTO obligations. This paper explores the potential interaction between these domestic climate policies and WTO rules. It argues that their potential conflicts can be avoided or at least minimised if WTO rules are carefully scrutinised, and efforts are made early on to ensure that the proposed climate policies comply with them. It suggests an early process of pursuing consultations between WTO members and the Parties to the Climate Change Convention and points to the need of further exploring ways to enhance synergies between the trade and climate regimes.     

Probing the basis for differential pay practices of younger workers in low paying hospitality firms

Understanding the basis for differential pay practices by age is an important policy issue now that claims for pay discrimination on grounds of age may be mounted. Difficulties in determining the relative job worth and personal worth of workers in particular age groups are highlighted. We identify a need to develop a practical mechanism for assessing the validity of age‐related pay differences in keeping with contemporary notions of jobs and skills that will provide a basis for employers to demonstrate objective justification that their employment practices are not discriminatory. More comprehensive and wide‐ranging research is necessary to differentiate age‐related pay practices and develop further theoretical insights.     

Optimal demand policies against stagflation

Zusammenfassung Optimale Nachfragepolitik zur Bek?mpfung der Stagflation. — Der Aufsatz besch?ftigt sich mit der Wahl einer optimalen Gesamtnachfrage-Politik als Antwort auf einen inflation?ren Schock — optimal in dem Sinne, da\ die Volkswirtschaft zur Vollbesch?ftigung und Preisstabilit?t auf einen Pfad zurückgeführt wird, der die sozialen Kosten minimiert. Es wird die Ansicht vertreten, da\ die Kosten eines gegebenen Stabilisierungspfades proportional sind zu den über die Zeit aufsummierten Abweichungen der Inflationsrate und der Arbeitslosenquote von den langfristigen Zielwerten. Auf der Grundlage einer sehr allgemeinen Formulierung der Phillips-Kurve wird die optimale wirtschaftspolitische Antwort auf einen Inflationsschock analysiert und gezeigt, da\ sie gew?hnliche ?Turnpike?-Eigenschaften besitzt. Dieser Ansatz wird veranschaulicht, indem er auf die USA für den Zeitraum 1971–1975 angewandt wird, wobei die Sensitivit?t des optimalen Pfades in bezug auf alternative Wohlfahrts-Bewertungen und Ansichten hinsichtlich der Natur des Trade-off untersucht wird.

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Résumé Les politiques de demande optimum contre la stagflation. — Cet article a pour sujet la selection d’une politique de demande agrégée optimum en réponse à un choc — optimum de manière qu’elle reconduit l’économie au plein emploi et à la stabilité de prix le long d’un sentier d’inflation-ch?mage minimisant des frais sociaux de ?welfare?. Nous arguons que les frais du chaque sentier donné de stabilisation peuvent être pris comme proportioneis à l’excès d’inflation et de ch?mage au-dessus du but à long terme, cumulé sur le sentier. En se fiant à une expression très générale de la ?courbe de Phillips? l’article analyse et démontre la réponse de politique optimum à un choc inflationniste pour exhiber des simples ?barrières? propriétés. L’approche est illustrée par l’application sur les E. U. pour la période de 1971 à 1975. Elle explore la sensibilité du sentier optimum aux évaluations alternatives de ?welfare? et aux vues de la nature du ?trade-off?.

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Resumen Políticas óptimas de demanda contra la estagflación. — Este artículo se ocupa de la selección de una política de demanda agregada óptima en respuesta a un ?shock? óptimo inflacionario en el sentido que devuelve el pleno empleo y la estabilidad de precios a la economía a través de una trayectoria de inflación-desempleo minimizando los costos sociales de bienestar. Se argumenta que el costo de cualquier trayectoria de estabilización dada puede tomarse como proporcional al exceso de inflación y desempleo por sobre la meta de largo plazo, acumulado a través de la trayectoria. Basándose sobre una formulación muy general de la ?curva de Phillips? se analiza la respuesta de política óptima a un ?shock? inflacionario y se muestra que exhibe propiedades simples de Camino de portazgo. El enfoque se ilustra aplicándolo a los EEUU para el período 1971–75, investigando la sensibilidad de la trayectoria óptima con respecto a evaluaciones de bienestar alternativas y apreciaciones sobre la naturaleza del ?trade-off?.