Labor Participation Research Articles

The added worker effect: evidence from a disability insurance reform

AbstractThe Netherlands reformed its disability insurance (DI) scheme in 2006. Reintegration incentives for employers became stronger, access to DI benefits became more difficult, and benefits became less generous. Using administrative data on all individuals who fell sick shortly before and after the reform, we study the impact of the reform on labor participation of individuals who fell sick and their spouses. Difference-in-differences estimates show, among other things, that the reform led to an increase of labor participation of the individuals who fell sick only if these individuals had a permanent job, whereas spouses responded to the DI reform in other cases, where the individuals reporting sick had a temporary job or were unemployed. More generally, the spouses respond when the sick individual’s labor market position is weak and the individual him- or herself has trouble finding or retaining employment. The effects are persistent during the 10 years after the reform. The effect on the spouse can be seen as an “added worker effect,” where additional earnings of the spouse compensate for the sick individual’s income loss so that both partners share the burden of a more stringent DI scheme. Comparing individuals reporting sick with and without partner provides further support for the notion that the responses of couples to the reform are joint decisions of the two partners.

Breaking the Vicious Circle: Macroeconomic Perspectives on Policy Interventions for Female Labor Supply and the Gender Wage Gap

ABSTRACT This paper examines the interplay between the female labour supply and wages through human capital accumulation in South Korea, highlighting the significant gender wage gap and low female labor participation. Our findings suggest that wage subsidies alone are insufficient for narrowing the gender wage gap. Targeted wage subsidies for households with infants and toddlers can mitigate career interruptions and enhance human capital for women. However, it also attracts lower-productivity women into the labor market, further exacerbating the gender wage gap. Therefore, direct labour market structural reforms, such as the Anti-Gender Discrimination Act, are essential.

The Impact of Trade Openness on Gender Pay Gap

Objective: The objective of this study is to assess the impact of trade openness (among other variables) on gender pay gap in twenty selected Arab and non-Arab countries. A panel data covering the period 2010-2019 is utilized.. Method: A two panel regression models are employed. One model examines the impact of trade percentage of GDP, foreign direct investment (FDI) percentage of GDP, women's labor participation, and women's participation in parliament on the gender pay gap. The same model is applied first to all countries in the sample, and second to the sample dividing countries according to size as large and small countries.. Results: The findings indicate that, in the overall sample, trade percentage of GDP positively and significantly influences the gender pay gap percentage, while FDI percentage of GDP has a negative and significant impact. Additionally, women's participation in parliament is found to have a negative and significant effect on the gender pay gap, whereas women's labor participation shows no significant correlation. In the context of large countries, trade percentage of GDP has a positive and significant impact on the gender pay gap, and women's labor participation is negatively associated with the gap. However, FDI percentage of GDP and women's parliamentary participation are not statistically significant in these countries. For small countries, only women's participation in parliament exhibits a negative and significant relationship with the gender pay gap. Conclusion: The study's results highlight the complex dynamics between trade openness and gender wage inequality, emphasizing the varying effects based on country size. Policymakers should consider these findings to develop targeted strategies addressing gender pay disparities within the context of trade openness

A comparative analysis of gender diversity in labour participation and growth in Sub-Saharan African countries

In recent years, official statistics on female labour supply in several emerging nations have shown that female labour force participation rates are dropping. Although development organisations have created and implemented non-contextual empowerment initiatives, some of which have improved women's lives, a desirable outcome has not been achieved. A comparative analysis of gender diversity in labour economic participation and growth in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) was conducted. The study uses pooled least squares, fixed effects, random effects, difference generalised method of moments, and system-generalised method of moments models. Likewise, three models are estimated in the study for disaggregated male and female economic participation factors, respectively, while the third is for aggregate economic participation. In addition, causality was investigated using the panel vector correction model. The findings show that the indicators of human capital and labour economic participation are positive and significant in all three models. However, male human capital and labour economic participation contribute to productivity growth more than aggregate indicators. Also, the female indicators are the lowest contributing factor to growth. Also, the institutional quality is significant in aggregate and male labour economic participation but insignificant in female labour economic participation. The causality result shows one-way causality from female human capital to productivity growth. The study suggests, among others, the need to develop a financing mechanism to expand women-focused human capital interventions in SSA.

Effects of Social Capital on Forest Management Practices among Food Crop Farmers in Oyo State Forest Reserves, Nigeria

Forest management is essential to Nigeria’s economic and ecological development. Decline and desertification are results of the difficulties farmers faced. Social capital fortifies the cooperative approach to mitigating these associated problems. This study looked into how Oyo State food crop producers’ social capital affected their ability to manage their forests. In order to gather data, standardised questionnaires were used to choose 223 respondents using multistage random selection techniques. The objectives were examined using both descriptive and inferential statistics. Farm size, agricultural experience, distance from the farm, number of years spent in school, and use of extension services all affected the adoption of forest management practises (FMP). Gender, the heterogeneity index, the collective labour participation index, meeting attendance, and membership index density are all instruments that have a combined positive and substantial effect on FMP. FMP is favourably and strongly correlated with each of these variables. According to this study, an average respondent’s influence on farm management increases with the size of the association to which he belongs. In the meanwhile, it was discovered that the Decision Making Index and the Meeting Attendance Index, which have positive and negative relationships with farm management, respectively, were not statistically significant in explaining this influence on farm management.

Gender Economics: The Underrepresentation of Females in the Labor Force

In this paper, I study female labor force participation and consider potential threats and obstacles women face that may inhibit their participation in the labor force. This ultimately serves as the culprit and driving force for the underrepresentation of females in the labor force. My project presents the numerous factors that cause lower female labor participation, the possible benefits of increasing it, and potential solutions to overcome this economic disparity. I will analyze statistics from the World Bank by creating infographics such as scatterplots. In addition, I conduct literature reviews which serve as my main source of information.

Do Drivers of Labor Force Participation Differ for Male and Female in the Rural and Urban Labor Markets in India?

The labor force participation rate of women in India has decreased despite economic growth, which has limited the advancement of their rights unlike in most other countries. This paper examines the determinants of labor force participation by gender in rural and urban areas using a probit model with data from the India Human Development Survey (IHDS) for 2011–2012 to analyze the factors that restrict workforce participation. The estimation results are presented below. First, the marital status of males, both rural and urban, has a significant impact on their participation in the workforce due to family support. In contrast, females face multiple restrictions based on marital, caste and religion, demonstrating that sociocultural factors have limited their participation regardless of regional factors. Second, in rural areas, the educational years of female workers negatively affect labor participation, but the constraints of marriage are weaker than in urban areas. Women in lower castes participate more in the rural labor force, which is interpreted as a result of their livelihood in the industrial structure consisting of agriculture. On the other hand, the caste system negatively affects female participation in urban areas. Finally, these results indicate that the low-labor participation of females is the result of a complicated process influenced by various factors, including regional effects and patriarchal cultural values in India. Therefore, it is necessary to provide employment opportunities and encourage economic incentives for more women to enter the labor market spontaneously, considering regional effects in policies, in order for women to emerge as one group of social leaders.

What Predicts Long-Term Absenteeism, and Who Disappears from the Workforce When Enterprises Downsize?

This paper primarily studies how wages predict long-term absenteeism in enterprises. In addition, it studies who disappears from the workforce when downsizing. Analyzing Norwegian enterprise data using dynamic unconditional quasi-maximum likelihood fixed-effects panel regression and general methods of moments panel regression with instrumental variables, we find that increasing average wages decreases average long-term absenteeism. As the effect barely abates the following year, it likely reflects highly skilled and motivated employees in good health receiving a wage premium and not a stimulus boosting overall work attitudes, which is likely short-lived. Wage inequality increases absenteeism, indicating that increasing low earners’ wages relative to those earning high ones decreases absenteeism, but the effect is short-lived and disappears the following year. In addition, average age and education tend to decrease absenteeism, but female labor participation increases it, likely due to maternity leave. Also, increasing the workforce increases absenteeism, indicating that handling many new employees is challenging. When enterprises downsize, young and low earners initially disappear from the workforce, but the following year, older and high earners share the same fate.

Хозяйственно-управленческая этика советских руководителей предприятий 1930–1940-х гг. По источникам личного происхождения

This article, for the first time in domestic historiography, scrutinizes the ethical principles guiding the managerial activities of directors in Russian enterprises during the 1930s and 1940s. To address this issue, a selection was made from sources of personal origin, consisting of expressions concerning the principles of managerial ethics, followed by a structured description of these principles. The study employs historical-comparative and historical-genetic methods. The significance of the economic-ethical aspect of the soviet leaders mentality allows for a fresh understanding of the genesis of the soviet elite and its role in the transformation of the socio-economic structure of the country. Furthermore, the examination of the labor ethics of soviet leaders based on personal origin sources is undertaken by the author for the first time in historiography. Additionally, the article introduces a novel approach by applying a systematic structuring method to the managerial-ethical principles of enterprise leadership. The study of managerial ethics is conducted based on personal origin sources, such as memoirs and diaries of enterprise directors. The primary portion of the source complex is extracted from the archives of the Russian State Archive of Economics (memoirs of A. L. Kozlov, A. M. Kontorshchikov, Yu. N. Kozhevnikov, and the diary of M. V. Yasvoin), the majority of which remain unpublished and minimally incorporated into scholarly discourse. The methodological foundation for studying these sources is rooted in A. Rikh's works on the understanding of economic ethics, as well as contemporary Russian historians works on new property relations in the soviet economy of the 1930s to the early 1950s. The author concludes that the fundamental ethical principles adhered to by enterprise leaders in their managerial activities consisted of an «oath» to the fundamental postulates of soviet authority and the requirements formulated by the state. The leaders deemed the principles of centralized command and personal labor participation in enterprise affairs as correct. Regarding moral norms of management, the leaders considered personal gain, nepotism, and favoritism, among other practices, as unacceptable. However, the principles of economic-labor ethics identified through published sources do not encompass the latent stratum of the soviet economic model, where deviations from certain economic-ideological norms, disregard for subordinates, «everyday» norms of managerial material support, etc., were deemed acceptable. The article concludes that a significant portion of soviet enterprise leaders in the 1930s and 1940s adhered to the proposed soviet ideological system of ethical values, striving to uphold and cultivate «socialist» ethical parameters.

A Generic Neoclassical Growth Model with Endogenous Technical Change and Endogenous Labor Participation

A Generic Neoclassical Growth Model with Endogenous Technical Change and Endogenous Labor Participation

The Relationship of Women’s Labor Participation and Urbanization in the 1990–2021 Period in Türkiye: Granger Causes Analysis

Bu çalışmanın temel amacı, Türkiye’de 1990-2021 yılları arası dönemde kadının işgücüne katılımı ile kentleşme olgusu arasındaki nedensellik ilişkinin zaman serisi yöntemi ile ampirik olarak sınanmasıdır. Modelde, kadının işgücüne katılımı, kentleşme ve doğurganlık değişkenleri yer almıştır. Çalışma kapsamında Dünya Bankası veri tabanından elde edilen veriler kullanılarak öncelikle serilerin durağanlıkları sınanmıştır. Durağan olmayan seriler durağan hale getirildikten sonra, Granger nedensellik testi yardımıyla değişkenler arası nedensellik ilişkisi belirlenmeye çalışılmıştır. Çalışmadan elde edilen ampirik bulgulara göre, kentleşmenin kadının işgücüne katılımının ve doğurganlık oranının Granger nedeni olduğu, dolayısıyla kentleşme değişkeninin geçmiş değerlerinin hem kadının işgücüne katılımının hem de doğurganlık oranının cari değeri üzerinde anlamlı etkili olduğu sonucuna varılmıştır.

Women and Development: Women's Struggle for Labour Participation in Banten

This research tries to elaborate on the dynamics that are happening to women and development in Banten province. With very basic issues for women including gender-biased social construction, social welfare and the gender movement in an effort to encourage the role of women in work participation in Banten. Women in Banten are still trapped in poverty due to the low gender gap index which affects the level of participation of the female labor force (TPAK), this is exacerbated by the lack of women's participation in women's organizations formed to empower women and encourage policies that can encourage women in work participation. The women's movement in promoting gender justice is divided into two aspects, namely empowering women through organizations and involving women in policy formulation, especially those related to gender equality in the field of work.

The Reduction of the Gender Gap Through Global Value Chains: Political Commitment or Perpetuation of Gender Roles?

The relationship between international trade and the gender gap is complex. On one hand, foreign insertion can generate economic opportunities for women in the export sector. On the other hand, it can also result in heightened competition and the relocation of jobs, especially in the context of global value chains (GVCs). The study on the gender gap through GVCs examines the mechanisms within production networks that contribute to enhance women's economic empowerment and gender equality. The paper analyzes the relationship between the gender gap, GVCs, technological intensity of exports, and female empowerment in the EU-27, investigating whether GVCs could reduce or worsen gender disparities. The aim of this paper is to expand the gender gap studies incorporating the effects of trade in value added in the European Union. The study used a panel of data from various sources, including Eurostat, Trade in Employment (TiM), and the World Bank. The results suggest that an increase in exports, regardless of the level of technological intensity, tends to exacerbate the gender gap in export sectors by increasing the proportion of male workers relative to female workers. However, a higher female participation rate in medium-low technology sectors could reduce the gender gap in export sectors. The study identified obstacles to female insertion in export markets, including the need to improve education and training for women in high-demand areas, promote STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) education and labor participation for women. This paper makes significant contributions to the literature by incorporating global value GVCs and considering the European context. Additionally, it provides an in-depth analysis of socioeconomic factors that are crucial for designing policies aimed at addressing gender inequality.

Active ageing in Europe: An analysis of the association between labour force participation and health

The concept of active ageing arises in response to the challenges posed by the demographic changes that Europe faces. Thus, economic policy has included this concept in its strategy to extend the quality of life of the older people without compromising public finances. The main aim of this work is to analyse the association between two dimensions of this phenomenon: the labour participation of the older people and their impact on health. To this end, we use microdata from the Survey on Health, Ageing and Retirement in Europe for the period 2004-2017. Our main results highlight the importance of people older than 50 remaining active to enjoy better health levels.

Pengaruh Tingkat Pendidikan, Usia Dan Tingkat Pendapatan Suami Terhadap Partisipasi Kerja Perempuan Menikah Pada Sektor Industri Pengolahan Di Kabupaten Pelalawan

This research is conducted to assess the impact of educational attainment, age, and husband's income on the labor participation of married women in the processing industry sector within Pelalawan Regency. Additionally, the study aims to identify the most influential variable among these factors on the work participation of married women in the same sector and region. The research employed purposive sampling, with a total of 64 respondents, and conducted data analysis using multiple linear regression, assisted by the Eviews 10 software program. The findings indicate that collectively, the level of education, age, and husband's income level have a statistically significant impact on the work participation of married women in the processing industry sector in Pelalawan Regency. On an individual basis, the level of education (X1) exhibits a significant and positive influence on married women's work participation, while age (X2) has a significant and negative effect on their work participation. Similarly, the level of husband's income (X3) significantly and negatively affects the work participation of married women. Among these three independent variables, the level of education emerges as the most dominant factor influencing the work participation of married women in the processing industry sector in Pelalawan Regency. The cumulative effect (R2) of these three variables on the dependent variable accounts for 63%, leaving the remaining 37% influenced by other unexamined variables in this study.

Toward a general neoclassical theory of economic growth

The Harrod-Domar (H-D) growth model assumes a fixed capital-output ratio, signifying absence of substitutability between capital and labor, leading to a “knife-edge” problem wherein balanced growth of capital (fixed warranted rate) and labor (fixed natural rate) occurs only by accident, preventing the attainment of macroeconomic stability with full employment. The neoclassical Solow-Swan (S-S) growth model provides an elegant solution to the H-D problem by endogenizing the warranted rate via the saving-investment relation, wherein capital growth is a function of a fully adjusting income-capital ratio (inverse of the H-D capital-output ratio)— allowing for smooth substitutability between capital and labor while keeping the natural rate exogenously fixed. The S-S model implies a positive, albeit temporary output growth effect of a higher saving rate. The present paper extends the capital-labor ratio’s influence onto the natural rate via effects on labor productivity through a modified Arrow learning by doing framework, and via labor participation through real wage adjustments. Thus, the positive output growth of a higher saving rate, although temporary in the short run as in the S-S model, is permanent in the long run through adjustments in both the warranted and natural rates—a generalization of the Solow-Swan model.

The athletic work force: Sport as a key to employment for people with intellectual disabilities?

People with disabilities are employed at lower rates than non-disabled individuals and, among people with disabilities, those with intellectual disabilities have most difficulty finding and keeping employment. The reasons for the low labour participation among people with intellectual disabilities are many. Sport participation has a number of positive effects for the individual, and it is reasonable to hypothesise that sport participation favours labour-force participation for individuals with intellectual disabilities. The dual aim of the current study was to investigate labour market participation among Swedish athletes with intellectual disabilities attending Special Olympics Invitational Games, and to investigate these athletes' experiences regarding the effect of sport participation on finding and keeping a job. The study design includes two parallel data collections, a survey and an interview study. The survey was analysed using descriptive statistics and the interviews were analysed using content analysis. The major result of the survey was the large number of individuals with intellectual disabilities who were in work: among men, 72% and, among women, 44%. This result was encouraging and differs from previous statistics on employment among Swedes with intellectual disabilities. The content analysis resulted in a first step in the categories manual work, individual sports and team sports, and in a second step, where the relation between sports and work was analysed, in two categories, namely indirect and direct relations between sport and work. To improve chances for individuals with intellectual disabilities to find and keep a job, sports participation should be encouraged.

Digital Public Health Marketing of Physical Activity and Its Effect on Wellbeing in Saudi Arabia

Developing countries experienced insufficient levels of physical activity, particularly Saudi Arabia. In recent decades, Saudi Arabia has been experiencing a significant change in economy, urbanization, modernization, extensive and rapid demographic changes, and lifestyle transformation. These changes had negatively increased sedentary behaviors, inactivity physical activity, and lifestyle. Physical inactivity increases the risk of non-communicable and disease chronic diseases. Objectives: To highlight the gap in information such as gender inequality, cultural sensitivity, and social norms, including geography. Methods: Saudi Digital library, Google scholar, and UOW library. The terms used are “physical activity”, and “exercise” and research strategy were also adopted. Results: The recent Household Sports Practice Survey Bulletin in 2019 showed significant inequality between males and females. Also, the data showed different results relative to school type and gender. There are specific socio-cultural factors that limit women to participate in physical activities. Females have a low rate of total labor participants in the country. Geographical factors should be considered when establishing a promotion plan for physical activity, and there are no studies that focus on the effect of climate on participation in physical activity. Conclusion: The Saudi country has commenced numerous initiatives to improve people's health and well-being, and hopes to achieve this by 2030. It is important to build a community health center for females because there is a segregation policy to separate males from females in public places and workplaces. Having a national policy or promotion plan and collaborating with government parties is important. In addition, monitoring and evaluating the programs is important to ensure their success.

Empowering Voices through Community-Driven Child Protection in Soppeng Regency

This research aims to analyze community participation in implementing child protection in Soppeng Regency. This research uses qualitative research methods with descriptive research. Data collection techniques were carried out using interviews and documentation studies. Then the data was analyzed using the analysis method with data reduction techniques, data presentation, and drawing conclusions. Furthermore, the location chosen by researchers was Soppeng Regency. The research results show that community participation in this program has run optimally based on the four dimensions participation (1) participation in decision making has gone well, this can be seen from the involvement of the community who participated in the planning and decision making process at socializations or meetings. (2) Participation in implementation, proven by active community activities in socializing child labor (3) Participation in benefit taking, can be seen from the follow-up carried out by PATBM cadres, namely by assessing children (4) Participation in evaluations, can be seen from their involvement during evaluations to determine the progress and obstacles experienced by PATBM cadres when carrying out child protection activities.

Formation of a healthy lifestyle in surgical medical workers

It is completely justified that recently, close attention has been directed to a healthy lifestyle of both the population as a whole, and certain categories of citizens, which include medical workers. This is due to the fact that a healthy lifestyle is a prerequisite for the successful development of various aspects of human life, achievement of active longevity, full performance of social functions, and participation in labor, social, family, household, and leisure activities. Target. To determine the attitude of surgical medical workers towards their own health and assess their level of healthy lifest yle. Results. The attitude of medical workers to their health and the desire to develop it have been determined, and the reasons that impede the preservation of the health of surgical medical workers have been identified.