Labour Market Areas Research Articles

Size and growth of urban centers in French labor market areas: consequences for rural population and employment

In this paper we use an extension of the Carlino and Mills and Boarnet models to test for city size and growth influences on rural population and employment changes. In a sample of communes in six selected French regions, we find that both the size of the urban center and the growth rates of urban employment and population affect rural population and employment change. Medium size urban places have the strongest positive impacts on rural commune change.

The Location and Concentration of Businesses in Britain: Business Clusters, Business Services, Market Coverage and Local Economic Development

An important debate has recently developed around the significance of business clusters for the development of the economy. This paper assesses the extent to which concentrated clusters of businesses exist in Britain, using the fine spatial mesh of postcode districts. It identifies the major clusters using a development of the methodology to define local labour market areas. The paper demonstrates the high degree of localization and uneven development of businesses in Britain. It also shows that business service firms are even more highly localized and clustered than other businesses. Moreover, the larger the business centre, the more localized and clustered the firms. The pattern suggests that there is a strong influence of increasing returns of scale, and that, as well as local clusters, much of the British economy is covered by one metacluster. Implications from these results are drawn for the likely future development of the economy, the location of business service suppliers in order to develop their market coverage, and local economic development policy.

Economic Geography and Contemporary Rural Dynamics: An Empirical Test on Some French Regions

SCHMITT B. (1999) Economic geography and contemporary rural dynamics: an empirical test on some French regions, Reg. Studies 33 , 697-711. This paper presents an economic geography framework used to account for rural population and employment changes. Besides agglomerative forces, these models introduce factors which induce household or firm dispersion that are identified as operative in rural areas. Population dispersion can be the outcome of increased urban land rents. Comparative advantages can affect the location of land-related activities. Technological externalities may lead to the dispersion of specific industrial sectors; and, job increases attract new residents, leading to the dispersion of some firms. We show that all these factors do not act at the same level, and a distinction can be made between forces acting within labour market areas and those acting between labour market areas. A simultaneous equation system is built to model the effect of these forces on population and job changes. It distinguishes different categories of population and jobs. Empirical estimation is based on data from six selected French regions and shows important differences between the forces at work at each level of analysis. SCHMITT B. (1999) Economie géographique et dynamique contemporaine des espaces ruraux: un essai de test empirique sur quelques régions françaises, Reg. Studies 33 , 697-711. L'article s'appuie sur les travaux récents de l'économie géographique, en vue d'expliquer les dynamiques rurales d'emploi et de population. A côté des forces entraînant l'agglomération des populations et des activités, ces modèles intègrent des facteurs qui, au contraire, induisent la dispersion. Certains sont considérés comme étant à l' m uvre dans les dynamiques rurales contemporaines, l'accroissement des prix fonciers urbains entraînant une dispersion de la population, des avantages comparatifs jouant sur la localisation d'activités liées au sol et des externalités technologiques entraînant la dispersion de certaines industries. En outre, la dispersion des emplois attirent la population dont la dispersion induit une certaine dispersion des firmes distributrices. L'analyse montre que ces facteurs ne jouent pas tous à la même échelle et qu'il y a lieu de distinguer les forces à l' m uvre au sein des bassins d'emplois et celles qui jouent entre bassins d'emploi. Un modèlè a équations simultanées reliant évolution de la population et évolution des emplois et distinguant plusieurs catégories de population et d'emploi, est construit et testé sur des données provenant de six régions françaises. Les estimations montrent d'importantes différences dans les forces à l' m uvre à chaque niveau d'analyse. SCHMITT B. (1999) Wirtschaftsgeographie und gegenwärtige Dynamik ländlicher Gebiete: eine empirische Prüfung ausgewählter französischer Regionen, Reg. Studies 33 , 697‐ 711. Dieser Aufsatz legt einen wirtschaftsgeographischen Rahmen vor, der dazu benutzt wird, Veränderungen in der ländlichen Bevölkerung und im Arbeitsmarkt zu erklären. Außer agglomerativen Kräften stellen diese Modelle Faktoren vor, die Haushalts- oder Firmenstreuung bewirken, die als entscheidend für ländliche Gebiete erkannt werden. Bevölkerungsstreuung kann das Ergebnis ansteigender städtischer Grundstückspreise sein. Verhältnismäßige Vorteile können sich auf die Standorte landbezogener Tätigkeiten auswirken. Technologische Außenfaktoren können zur Aufsplitterung spezifischer Industriesektoren führen. Darüberhinaus können Stellenangebote neue Einwohner anlocken, was wiederum zur Zersplitterung von Firmen führt. Es wird gezeigt, das all diese Faktoren nicht auf der gleichen Ebene wirken, und es ist möglich, einen Unterschied zwischen Kräften festzustellen, die in einem Arbeitsmarktgebiet, und jenen, die zwischen Arbeitsmarktgebieten auftreten. Es wird ein Simultangleichungssystem aufgestellt, um die Auswirkung dieser Kräfte auf Bevölkerung und Arbeitsplatzwechsel darzustellen. Es unterscheidet zwischen verschiedenen Bevölkerungs- und Beschäftigungskategorien. Empirische Schätzungen stützen sich auf Daten von sechs ausgewählten französischen Regionen, und zeigen bedeutende Unterschiede zwischen den Kräftenauf, die auf jeder Ebene der Analyse vorkommen.

Agglomeration Economies and Spatial Configurations in Rural Areas

The question to be addressed in this paper is that of the agglomeration and dispersion forces that are likely to account for the location of people and jobs in rural areas and the way these forces explain spatial patterns in rural areas depending on urban influence. Economic geography models may provide suitable tools with which to investigate the organization of rural areas. We first review these models, focusing on dispersion forces, which rest on land consumption and transport costs. We then suggest a set of hypotheses concerning the main forces at work in rural areas. Intensity of agglomeration economies is hypothesized to be related to urban size, which in turn induces increasing land rents and finally agglomeration diseconomies. Such diseconomies encourage population spread around the city and in a second stage a possible partial decentralization of population-serving firms, which seek proximity to households because of shopping transport costs. The consequences in terms of spatial patterns are that beyond a certain threshold of city size, decentralization of population-serving firms occurs, giving rise to secondary service centers, whereas services remain concentrated in the center for smaller cities. Empirical results concerning population densities, labor-force exchanges, and distribution of residentiary services in labor-market areas surrounding cities in six French regions are presented.

A Gendered Context of Opportunity: Determinants of Poverty Across Urban and Rural Labor Markets

Current research has failed to examine how women's opportunities in the labor market, in combination with their human capital attributes, differentially affect the likelihood that they will live in poverty. This study overcomes this limitation by placing specific emphasis on the role that labor market opportunities play in contributing to, or reducing, women's and men's risk of poverty. In addition, differences in poverty risk by urban and rural labor market areas are examined, as labor market dynamics vary substantially by rurality. Using the PUMS-L and STF3C for 1990, logistic regression techniques are employed to address these issues. Our results indicate that women across all labor market contexts have a significantly higher risk of poverty than men, and incorporation of labor market characteristics fails to explain this higher risk. However, the economic opportunities available in the labor market play an important role in determining how an individual's credentials, family background, and work experience translate into poverty risk. While individual attributes play a smaller role in explaining rural women's likelihood of living in poverty, women in both urban and rural labor markets face more limited economic opportunities than their male counterparts. This suggests that a “gendered” context of opportunity remains a barrier for women's movement out of poverty in both urban and rural labor markets.

Realizing the potential contribution of higher education institutions to their regions and communities

Introduction There is a clear trend towards a more regional approach in terms of many aspects of government policy in the UK. In particular, it is recognized that industrial policy may be more effective if delivered on a regional or local basis rather than centrally. The approach towards a Higher Education (HE) policy has also changed dramatically in the UK, as in many other countries. As well as expanding significantly in terms of size, HE is being considered carefully in terms of its economic contribution. Combining these two trends, the one in industrial policy and the other in HE, prorides a rationale for policy to focus upon the regional and economic contribution of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). The economic contribution of HE occurs in three main form*, First, universities make a direct contribution to the local economy in terms of their employment and expenditures. Second, they generate technological progress and technology transfer. Third, they supply high level skills and competencies. In this paper we focus upon HE as a supplier ofsldlls and competencies rather than technological progress or regional multiplier activity. There are good reasons to suppose that labour market conditions in the UK which concern, in particular, the demand for and supply of higher level skills and competencies from HEIs are far from efficient. It would be expected that structural problems obtain, since it is unlikely that adjustment processes in universities operate at the same speed as labour market requirements change. Although the predse nature of structural incompatibilities is difficult to observe or identiff], in practice, their implications are significant because they effectively prohibit any realistic attempt by universities to respond immediately to changing patterns of demand. Inefficiendes will also occur, however, if the information available on demand and supply conditions in this area of the labour market is inadequate. In this paper we focus upon the rapidly changing conditions in this area of the labour market and identify the need for a more systematic approach to information collecfion, interpretation and dissemination. This would enable an improved, though still imperfect, match between the supply of HE and the needs of the labour market. In pursuing this argument, we focus briefly on the existence of wide variations between and within regions before considering some of the major changes in the nature of HE. We then focus upon HE in the East Midlands to demonstrate the variety of institutions which obtain and, therefore, the potential to meet most requirements

Using a GIS for Real Estate Market Analysis: The Problem of Spatially Aggregated Data

Many databases used for real estate market analysis are not available at the address level. For example, information on employment and unemployment may be available only for labor market areas; and Census data is typically tabulated for blocks or higher levels of spatial aggregation. A Geographic Information System (GIS) associates these spatially aggregated data with the geographical center of the area. This poses special problems when we use a GIS to evaluate linkages between supply and demand. This article presents some solutions to this problem; methods that are relatively easy to implement on a GIS are emphasized. A GIS can be used to calculate a theoretical average travel distance to the population in the geographical area. We propose ways to determine when these theoretical distances are inadequate approximations; and we provide alternatives for these situations.

Black Population Concentration and Black-White Inequality: Expanding the Consideration of Place and Space Effects

For over 40 years, sociologists have investigated the relationship between the concentration of black population in a geographic area and the relative economic standing of blacks in that area. These tests of what has come to be called the “visibility-discrimination hypothesis” have established that concentration of black population in an area is positively related to black-white inequality in that area. In this article, we extend the consideration of the place effects and consider space effects by (1) tapping effects of normative structures in the spatial context of a local area on black-white inequality in the local area, (2) measuring the effects of the concentration of black population in adjacent areas on black-white inequality in the focal area, (3) controlling for spatial dependence in inequality when examining these processes, and (4) examining the effects of these place and space factors on both occupational and wage inequality, so that their effects can be compared between the two outcomes and effects on wage inequality can be assessed net of occupation effects. After testing our model with data on local labor market areas, we conclude by examining the implications of our analysis for future studies of the visibility-discrimination hypothesis and for the general use of models that examine the effects of local place.

Black Population Concentration and Black-White Inequality: Expanding the Consideration of Place and Space Effects

For over 40 years, sociologists have investigated the relationship between the concentration of black population in a geographic area and the relative economic standing of blacks in that area. These tests of what has come to be called the have established that concentration of black population in an area is positively related to black-white inequality in that area. In this article, we extend the consideration of the place effects and consider space effects by (1) tapping effects of normative structures in the spatial context of a local area on black-white inequality in the local area, (2) measuring the effects of the concentration of black population in adjacent areas on black-white inequality in the focal area, (3) controllingfor spatial dependence in inequality when examining these processes, and (4) examining the effects of these place and space factors on both occupational and wage inequality, so that their effects can be compared between the two outcomes and effects on wage inequality can be assessed net of occupation effects. After testing our model with data on local labor market areas, we conclude by examining the implications of our analysis for future studies of the visibilitydiscrimination hypothesis and for the general use of models that examine the effects of local place. For over 40 years, sociologists have investigated the relationship between the concentration of black population in a geographic area and the relative economic standing of blacks in that area. The roots of this tradition lie in Blalockls (1956) formulation of the visibility-discrimination hypothesis: the contention that where

An Index of Segmentation in Local Labour Markets

This study tests for the existence of labour market segmentation by exploiting the variation in industrial structure across 59 labour market areas, as defined by MSAs. By creating an index of the relative explanatory power of standard and segmented earnings function models for each area, empirical evidence supports the hypothesis that segmentation exists and that the index reflects the degree of segmentation in local labour market areas.

Spatial Labor Markets and the Rural Labor Force

ABSTRACTFunctional economic areas have long been recognized as the appropriate unit of analysis for examining the spatial organization of regional economic activity. While easily defined conceptually, few fine‐tuned empirical delineations based on either trading or commuting patterns have been produced. In this paper, labor market areas (LMAs) based on commuting patterns of Saskatchewan residents are constructed for two points in time, 1981 and 1991. Detailed Statistics Canada data on place of work and place of residence for the experienced labor force were used 38 distinct LMAs were identified for 1991, and 37 for 1981. The 15 largest LMAs, which included just under one‐half of all rural municipalities (RMs) in southern Saskatchewan, grew in absolute terms and gained in relative importance during the decade. Another 23 (22) smaller LMAs in 1991 (1981), provided jobs for modest but declining numbers of both commuters and noncommuters. The remaining 30 percent of all RMs had such low or diffused levels of commuting that they were not included in any LMA in either year. A pattern apparent for all LMAs was an intensification of commuting within the labor market area. Although there was a reduction in the number of commuters from centers of employment to surrounding areas between 1981 and 1991, there was an even larger increase in commuters to centers of employment. While commuting to a job in an urban center is still a distinct possibility for the rural labor force living within the 15 largest LMAs, it is increasingly less likely for those residing elsewhere in rural Saskatchewan. In these remote areas, alternatives to urban‐based employment are required.

Effects of family characteristics on the labor force status of older married women in Finland

Using individual-level characteristics derived from the census of 1985 or earlier, the article examines labor force status (employment, unemployment, household work, retirement) of married Finnish women aged 45-64 on the basis of multinomial logit analysis. Controlling for background characteristics, i.e., age, education, health, industry and unemployment in the local labor market area, the effects of family characteristics were analyzed. Both higher family net income (excluding the income of the women concerned) and higher family liabilities were related to lower likelihoods of unemployment and retirement instead of employment. Household work was more likely with higher family income, but less likely with higher liabilities. A larger number of children living at home was related to the lower likelihood of women occupying non-employment statuses instead of employment. The spouses’ increasing age difference was related to the lower likelihood of unemployment and retirement instead of employment. The husband's labor force status was consistent with the wife’s labor force status.

Evolution of the motorway network and changing levels of accessibility in Great Britain

The long-term role of road transport infrastructure in promoting, maintaining and developing the economic system is an important one which has received relatively little research attention. The road network supports a variety of dependent economic activity and serves to integrate the economic system over space. More specifically the enhancement of the motorway network over the years in Britain will have affected the accessibility surface of the nation. This paper considers accessibility changes between the components of the urban system which are the result of postwar motorway construction. Three accessibility surfaces are considered based on various stages in the motorway building programme. A standard market potential accessibility measure is used to capture those accessibility changes which are due to the motorway effect over various periods of time and those which are due to the employment effect. The calculations are founded on the travel modes of cars and heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) based on a generalized measure of cost impedance. The results are presented for the familiar set of 19 local labour market area types based on some 280 functional urban regions and for the 11 Standard Regions based on some 852 amalgamated jobcentre office areas.

Autonomous Firm Dynamics and Economic Growth in the United States, 1986–1990

REYNOLDS P. (1994) Autonomous firm dynamics and economic growth in the United States, 1986–1990, Reg. Studies 28, 429–442. The impact of various characteristics of 382 United States labour market areas on subsequent new firm birth rates for 1986–88 was explored using linear regression modeling techniques. Growth in local demand had a major impact in all situations. Statistically significant evidence of an impact of urbanization/agglomeration, unemployment, personal/household wealth, and small firm presence/economic specialization was present, but tended to vary for different types of labour market areas and different economic sectors. There was little evidence of an impact related to local government spending. Correlations between birth rates and subsequent economic growth, measured by net job growth, were almost universally positive. Regression based linear models indicated that a small independent, positive impact of manufacturing firm birth rates on subsequent economic growth. This suggested that new f...

Inequalities in Labor Market Areas.

Inequalities in Labor Market Areas.

The Changing Geography of Recession: Analyses of Local Unemployment Time Series

Unemployment in Great Britain rose again in the early 1990s. By contrast with previous experience, parts of southern England appeared to suffer earlier and more severely than some other parts of Britain. This reversal of traditional norms fuelled renewed interest in the impact of recession at the local and regional scale. Unemployment dynamics are examined over the period from June 1978 to December 1991 at the local labour market area scale. An analysis of turning points in local unemployment series confirms key differences in the timing of entry into the two recessions experienced during this period. Cluster analysis classification techniques are used to identify the shapes of typical local unemployment cycles and these typical unemployment cycles are shown to display distinctive spatial expressions.

Change in the French countryside: Some analytical propositions

An economic analysis of the French renaissance is proposed, illustrated by some INRA (Dijon) ongoing research. Agriculture is being cut back while rural industry remains stable. Demand for rural residential, recreational and environmental goods is growing. The analysis is conducted by developing the comparative advantage concept (local resources, transport costs, spatialised production and consumption functions). Residential and occupational mobility and commuting systems are examined within a micro-economic framework. A Keynesian mechanism of employment inducement within market areas is then called upon to explain the new distribution of activities. These changes suggest new definitions of farming as an occupation and new structures for local labour market areas that are spatially and hierarchically polarised. They should transform land use and development policies in order to integrate rural and urban areas and enhance the value of rural resources. Coauthors are Cecile Dessendre, Florence Goffettee-Nagoa, and Bertrand Schmitt. Copyright 1994 by Oxford University Press.

LOCAL WAGES AND THE ROLE OF UNEMPLOYMENT

This paper sets out a model of pay setting in a spatial context. Employers in an area face upward sloping labor supply curves due to search behavior on the part of workers. They set wages with the aim of meeting recruitment targets, drawing workers from the immediate area as well as the surrounding migration hinterland. The impact of unemployment on local wages is examined in this context and it is argued that the common presumption that local employment should reduce wages does not always hold. Some empirical work at a disaggregated level of local labour market areas supported this argument. Copyright 1993 by Scottish Economic Society.

Agricultural Restructuring and the Spatial Dynamics of U.S. Women's Employment in the 1970s1

Abstract The spatial rearrangement of women agricultural workers' employment across 380 labor market areas is examined during the period of agricultural transformation in the 1970s. Labor market maps of women's employment changes show regional declines and increases in accord with the dynamics of agricultural industrialization. Case studies selected from the maps demonstrate the gender‐specific and locality‐specific ramifications of these transformations.

Underemployment and Racial Competition in Local Labor Markets

The primary concern in this paper is to analyze the effects of black population concentration on black and white men's relative and absolute underemployment levels in labor market areas while controlling for the degree of occupational segregation by race. We draw hypotheses from two primary bodies of research; one literature focuses on general racial competition and the other considers competition to be more limited. Our findings that racial inequality in underemployment levels increases with blacks' population share are most consistent with the general competition model. However, we also find some support for the limited competition model which holds that not all whites benefit from increased competition with blacks. Finally, we find that occupational segregation helps to determine the form that racial discrimination in employment adequacy takes. Where occupational segregation is high, black men hold relatively more low-wage jobs, but where occupational segregation is low, they experience higher levels of unemployment and more disadvantage relative to whites.