Wage inequality and the labor market impact of economic transformation: Croatia, 1970–2008

In this paper, we examine wage inequality and wage differentials in Croatia from 1970 to 2008 using two long aggregate time series on the distribution of income. We focus especially on changing income inequality related to educational and vocational attainment, changing income inequality within those groups, and how these two components of inequality were affected by the economic transformation from socialism to capitalism. We find that income inequality between groups rose moderately post-transformation, while overall inequality increased more sharply. This finding is consistent with a growing importance of individual rather than group productivity in labor market compensation, a change broadly consistent with the economic transformation of the Croatian labor market.     

Traders, cops and robbers

We propose a simple model of trade outside the law preyed on by robbers and possibly protected by private cops. We establish the conditions for trade collapse, secure trade and insecure trade. Endogenous predation and enforcement can explain both puzzling failures of commonly observed state policies against illegal trade and puzzlingly large trade responses to liberalization in licit goods.     

Cooperation in collective action*

The ability to cooperate in collective action problems – such as those relating to the use of common property resources or the provision of local public goods – is a key determinant of economic performance. In this paper we discuss two aspects of collective action problems in developing countries. First, which institutions discourage opportunistic behaviour and promote cooperation? Second, what are the characteristics of the individuals involved that determine the degree to which they cooperate? We first review the evidence from field studies, laboratory experiments, and cross community studies. We then present new results from an individual level panel dataset of rural workers.     

Land Tenure, Investment Incentives, and the Choice of Techniques: Evidence from Nicaragua

The choice of cultivation techniques is a key determinant ofagricultural productivity and has important consequences forincome growth and poverty reduction in developing countries.Household data from Nicaragua are used to show that the choiceof cultivation technique depends on farmers' tenure status evenwhen techniques are observable and contractible. In particular,tree crops are less likely to be grown on rented than on owner-cultivatedplots. Further evidence indicates that the result follows fromlandlords' inability or unwillingness to commit to long-termtenancy contracts rather than from agency costs due to riskaversion or limited liability.     

Big data for corporate social responsibility: blockchain use in Gioia del Colle DOP

The traceability of the supply chain with strict compliance with the specification to demonstrate in "transparency" the production processes in compliance with legislation and from a corporate social responsibility perspective, represents a fundamental requirement at the basis of competitive advantage in the food industries (Patelli and Mandrioli, J Food Sci 85: 3670–3678, 2020). The purpose of this work is to illustrate the innovative method for the certification and protection of the production phases of the DOP food chain and specifically the Mozzarella DOP of Gioia del Colle produced by the company Capurso Azienda Casearia Srl. This innovative approach consists of several phases that will be described in detail in the following paper. Besides, the idea of the introduction of Blockchain technology in an industry like this is an important step. This technology, associated with more accurate and intelligent management of the data acquisition process (Big data approach), optimizes the productivity of small businesses such as the dairy company. Blockchain technology guarantees security in the management of large amounts of data as never before possible, an innovative and experimental approach that makes the entire path of the production chain more controlled and optimized (Giacalone et al. International workshop on fuzzy logic and applications. Springer, Cham, pp. 218–225, 2016).

     

The transaction avoidance regime in the recast European insolvency regulation: Limits and prospects

In the last decade, transaction avoidance in insolvency law has been in the limelight of the academic discussions. In particular, the scholarship has highlighted how the European Insolvency Regulation gives rise to several private international law issues. Moreover, the scholarship has explored solutions to these issues and proposed to harmonise the regime of transaction avoidance at European Union level. However, the recent legislative developments on the cross‐border insolvency law seem resistant to the proposed harmonisation. This article focuses on the transaction avoidance regime in the Recast European Insolvency Regulation. In particular, it seeks to evaluate whether the Recast has solved the issues arising within the original European Insolvency Regulation in relation to transaction avoidance. Secondly, it questions the suitability of the private international law approach to transaction avoidance in cross‐border insolvency within the European Union framework. The research suggests that the efforts required to the private international law framework to deal efficiently with transaction avoidance make the harmonisation of the regime of transaction avoidance at the European Union level a more appealing option.     

Social capital in the workplace: Evidence on its formation and consequences

The existence of social ties between co-workers affect many aspects of firm and worker behavior, such as how workers respond to a given set of incentives, the optimal compensation structures for workers at different tiers of the firm hierarchy, and the optimal organizational design for the firm. This paper presents evidence on the social capital in one particular firm, as embodied in the friendship ties among its workers. We describe the structure of the friendship network as a whole and present evidence on the determinants of social ties. Finally, we review evidence from a field experiment we conducted in the firm to highlight one particular mechanism through which social capital significantly affects worker performance.