OUTPUT,PRODUCTIVITY AND WAGES IN THE BRITISH COAL INDUSTRY BEFORE 1914: A MODEL WITH EVIDENCE FROM THE DURHAM REGION* |
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Authors: | Norman Gernrnell Peter Wardley |
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Abstract: | This paper proposes a model of productivity and wages in the Durham coal industry during 1882–1914. The model predicts a negative relationship between wages and productivity which derives from the industrys production function and wage-setting arrange- ments and does not require or imply a ‘leisure preference’ by miners. It is also suggested that predicted effects of some variables on productivity are different from those proposed by previous investigators. Using modern time-series methods on data for output per worker and per shift, it is shown that the two measures essentially reflect predicted effects on output and productivity respectively. |
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