Wage Costs Research Articles

Two-phase optimization approach for maintenance workforce planning in power distribution utilities

This work addresses the maintenance workforce planning in electric power distribution utilities. A two-phase optimization procedure is proposed to consider the strategic (long-term) and tactical/operational (medium/short-term) planning. In the first phase (strategic planning), a bi-objective optimization problem is solved to locate depots and to size the number of repair teams at each depot. One of the objectives includes operating and capital expenses, while the other one is based on continuity indicators related to the interruption in the electrical energy supply. In order to solve this problem, we use a memetic algorithm which combines a metaheuristic with a mixed-integer linear programming (MILP) model. On the other hand, the second phase (tactical/operational planning) consists of solving other MILP model to determine, for each depot, the required number of electricians (now based on more detailed forecasts) and define their work schedules, minimizing the wage costs and hiring/firing expenses. The results show that a larger number of solutions can be found through the memetic algorithm compared to the purely metaheuristic approach. The proposed optimization algorithm is part of an innovative web-based system developed during a research and development project and it is now available for eleven Brazilian power distribution utilities.

ANALYSIS OF COMPARISON OF CERAMIC FLOOR INSTALLATION PRODUCTIVITY AND WAGE COST BASED ON LABOR COMPOSITION

Completion time of construction project that consist of many work items should not exceeds the given time requirement and the cost should not exceeds the planned budget. This study analyzed a work item that is floor ceramic installation by acquiring the comparison of labor productivity and the comparison of wage cost based on different labor compositions. Out of the three (3) studied labor compositions in floor ceramic installation, the composition that consist of 2(two) masons and 2(two) journeymen produces the highest productivity that is 1,73 m2 and based on the productivity the incurred wage cost, composition 2(two) is the cheapest with IDR. 9.046,-/m2.

PERBANDINGAN EFESIENSI DAN EFEKTIVITAS PENGENDALIAN HAMA TIKUS (RATTUS TIOMANICUS) DENGAN CARA KIMIAWI DAN BIOLOGI DI PT. TRITUNGGAL SENTRA BUANA

This study aims to determine the effectiveness of cleric rodenticide, the active ingredient brodifakum 0.05% and the effectiveness of using Tyto alba which is used as a natural enemy/predator of rats. In addition, to find out the costs incurred for controlling the use of cleric poison and the costs incurred for tyto alba in oil palm.This research was conducted at PT. Tritunggal Sentra Buana Saliki Village, Kec. Muara Badak was held for 3 months from September to December 2020.The method used in this study is a strengthened field observation method and secondary data, including company documents and libraries, as well as in-depth discussions with related R&D assistants in the field. The results are then analyzed and evaluated descriptively.Based on the results of this study, controlling rat pests using owls and cleric poison can effectively reduce severe rat attacks to light attacks. Economically, using owl predators can save on the cost of controlling rats, when compared to cleric poison, the costs incurred are certainly much higher because of the cost of poison and the cost of kindergarten wages.

ECOLOGICAL AND ECONOMIC ASPECTS OF EXPENDITURE OF HUNTING FARMS IN ZAPORIZHZHIA REGION

The purpose of the article is to study the composition and cost structure of hunting farms in the Zaporizhzhia region and consider the economic and environmental aspects of their formation. The method of analysis and synthesis revealed the dynamics of changes in the costs of hunting farms over five years (2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019). Using the method of comparison, the main trends in the change of individual loss items are identified. Methodology. The classification of costs, their dynamics and structure on 37 hunting farms of Zaporizhzhia region are given. The studied farms differ in different forms of use of hunting grounds. Thus, as of January 1, 2020, 6 farms were part of the Ukrainian Society of Hunters and Fishermen, 20 - belonged to the enterprises of the State Forestry Agency of Ukraine, the remaining 11 - were part of other private and public hunting organizations. A vertical and horizontal analysis of costs was conducted, which revealed an increase in their volume throughout the structure, without significant changes in the structure itself. There is a tendency to reduce the share of costs for the protection, reproduction and accounting of wild animals and the management of hunting grounds. Instead, the costs of maintaining the current activities of hunting farms are increasing. The results of the study showed that the main part of the costs of hunting farms in Zaporizhzhia region (almost 80%) consists of the cost of wages and a single social contribution, operation and maintenance of vehicles, hunting buildings and structures and costs associated with the purchase of weapons, ammunition and other costs. The costs of environmental activities are decreasing, among which the costs of biotechnical measures play an important role. The share of expenditures on biotechnical measures for the conservation and reproduction of wild animals in total expenditures decreased from 14.5% in 2015 to 11.8% in 2019. Practical consequences. The study found that the current costly model of hunting in the Zaporizhzhia region, and in Ukraine as a whole, does not meet market relations and inhibits the development of effective economic and environmental hunting. Its formation was influenced by the following factors: imperfection of hunting legislation; non-compliance with European standards; excessive number of hunting grounds in use and lack of a clear mechanism for payment for their use; poaching; lack of programs for breeding wild animals, control of predators and clear requirements for the hunting service; low level of hunting culture and ethics. The current hostilities in the Zaporizhzhia region further complicate the environmental situation. Value/originality. Economic evaluation of hunting farms should take into account, in addition to estimating the direct costs and revenues of hunting farms, their total environmental, economic and social role. This is confirmed by foreign experience. For its implementation there is a need to develop a new methodology.

Dynamics of insolvencies / registrations of entities in correlation with wage costs

"The paper aims to investigate the nature of the relationship between insolvencies or registrations and the wage cost in Romania. The study uses monthly / annual data covering the period 2014 - October 2019. In order to investigate the short and medium term dynamics of insolvencies, enrolments and the influence of wage costs, the data collected for the mentioned period will be examined, highlighting the causal links between the three concepts at the level of the country as well as in the field of constructions. This study highlights the existence of a relationship between the three variables, but it does not provide certainty regarding the information about the direction and meaning of this causal link. The subject deserves to be investigated from the perspective of the existence of a “long term equilibrium” property, for the pair of registration and insolvency variables. The question we can answer by means of looking for actual relationships is whether there is a connection between the registrations and insolvencies of the entities in a certain field. The result of the study reflects a very similar evolution of the insolvency pairs - insolvencies in the field of construction, registrations - registrations in the field of construction, registrations - insolvencies. "

Raising the Bar: Minimum Wages and Employers’ Hiring Standards

Many scholars have studied the employment effects of minimum wages, but little is known about effects on the composition of hires. I investigate whether Germany’s minimum wage introduction raised hiring standards, using worker fixed effects as a proxy for worker productivity. For the least productive workers hired, the minimum wage led to a 4 percentile point shift in the productivity distribution. This increase is missed using standard observable measures of worker productivity. The effects are larger with greater pre-reform screening intensity—indicating an employer response. This more selective hiring compensates about two-thirds of higher wage costs for the least productive hires. (JEL J23, J24, J31, J38, M51)

The Cumulative Costs of Racism and the Bill for Black Reparations

Two major procedures for establishing the monetary value of a plan for reparations for Black American descendants of US slavery are considered in this paper: 1) Enumeration of atrocities and assignment of a dollar value to each as a prelude to adding up the total, and 2) Identification of a summary measure that captures the dollar amount of the cumulative, intergenerational effects of anti-Black atrocities. Under the first approach, the itemization strategy, we assess wage costs to the enslaved of bondage; financial gains to the perpetrators of slavery; damages to Black victims of post-Civil War white massacres and lynchings; losses from discrimination in the provision of the home buying supports from the Federal Housing Administration and the G.I. Bill; and income penalties due to racial discrimination in employment. Under the second approach, the global indicator strategy, we calculate the present value of providing 40 acres of land to freed slaves in 1865 and the current wealth gap between Black and White Americans. We conclude that the latter standard, the racial wealth gap, provides the best gauge for the size of the bill for Black reparations.

A spatiotemporal equilibrium model of migration and housing interlinkages

This paper develops and solves a spatiotemporal equilibrium model in which regional wages and house prices are jointly determined with location-to-location migration flows. The agent’s optimal location choice and the resultant migration process are shown to be Markovian, with the transition probabilities across all location pairs given as non-linear functions of wage and housing cost differentials, endogenously responding to migration flows. The model can be used for the analysis of spatial distribution of population, income, and house prices, as well as for spatiotemporal impulse response analysis. The model is estimated on a panel of 48 mainland U.S. states and the District of Columbia using the training sample (1976–1999), and shown to fit the data well over the evaluation sample (2000–2014). The estimated model is then used to analyze the size and speed of spatial spill-over effects by computing spatiotemporal impulse responses of positive productivity and land-supply shocks to California, Texas, and Florida. Our simulation results show that states with a lower level of land-use regulation can benefit more from positive state-specific productivity shocks; and positive land-supply shocks are much more effective in states, such as California, that are subject to more stringent land-use regulations.

Values and Costs in History: A Case Study on Estimating the Cost of Hadrianic Aqueduct’s Construction

The pursuit of wealth has been a basic occupation of humans; as it turns out, wealth increases life expectancy. Analyzing global data, we show that money, probably connected with medical care, increase life expectancy. However, the base of real wealth is access to the Water–Energy–Food nexus, and the access to this also increases life expectancy. The first objective of this study was to compare the present values of wealth with antiquity, and we showed that about 1.4 billion people live in the present under the average lower wages of antiquity. As a case study, we analyze the construction of the Hadrianic aqueduct. We present a detailed description of the construction and the used methods, and we identify the total requirement of labor–time. Then, we investigate the wages of various occupations in the first century AD. The second objective of this study was the estimation of the total cost of daily wages for the construction of the project and the effect of the aqueduct on Athenians’ quality of life. Finally, we show that, today, about two billion people live with less available water than Athenians had with the Hadrianic aqueduct in the second century A.D.

The English Premier League and the City of London (1980–2010): a tale of two ‘revolutions’

ABSTRACT This work analyzes the English football ‘revolution’ of the 1980s–90s, epitomized by the launch of the English Premier League, through the lens of the financial ‘revolution’, which transformed Britain from the late 1970s. It identifies analogies between the two industries’ transformation and the attempts to regulate them, as well as differences, related in particular to the nature and implications of the respective crises. While research has concentrated on Americanization and globalization of English football, this article focuses on its (supposed) financialization. It looks at attempts to apply the shareholder value principle to English football and to generate profits for football clubs through financial, rather than traditional, channels. This article identifies instances of financialization in football. It argues, however, that unlike the financial sector, the fundamental causes of the crisis in English football were not rooted in its financialization, but in traditional factors, such as excessive wage costs.

Application of the Hungarian Method and Software Quality Management (QM) Testing in Determining Optimal Wage Costs at OneTop Frozen Food Stores

Linear programming that can be found in life around is an assignment problem. Common assignment problems include n tasks that must be assigned to m workers assuming each worker has different competencies in completing each task. One of the methods in solving this problem is the Hungarian method. The purpose of this research is to optimize the assignment of employees by looking at the cost of daily wages. The problems that occur at the OneTop Frozen Store are the ineffectiveness of the work process and the swelling of operational costs, especially at work, Order Sorting, Packing, Labeling, Delivery with 4 workers. The application of the Hungarian method and testing of Software Quality Management obtains optimal wage costs so that operational costs can be reduced to a minimum without reducing the quality of service to consumers. Based on data processing in the Hungarian method, an assignment that is in accordance with the work in preparing Frozen Food orders at the OneTop Store can cost a daily wage of Rp.130,000 (one hundred and thirty thousand) to be the optimal wage cost per day. when compared with the previous calculation without using the Hungarian method by paying wages of Rp. 175,000 (one hundred and seventy five) per day. Based on the application of the Hungarian method, it is effective in determining an assignment and placement of workers so that they can work more effectively on a better and optimal Frozen Food ordering process.

ON THE CRISIS OF PAYMENT FOR TRAINERS OF SPORTS SCHOOLS: INVITATION TO DISCUSSION

The article is devoted to the study of the procedure for the formation of standard costs for the remuneration of the coaching staff in relation to the applied systems of remuneration of their labor. The authors, having studied the issue of the systems of remuneration used, come to the conclusion about the enormous popularity of the “group” system, but the partial use of the “hourly”, “capitation”, “rating” system of remuneration. The study of the procedure for the formation of standard costs for the wages fund indicates a devaluation of the standard costs for wages of trainers to 72.5%, which is explained by insufficient consideration of the conditions of the external and (or) internal environment of the organization. In the context of the harmonization of legislation carried out in the country, the authors proposed to restructure the procedure for determining the normative costs, taking into account the identified contradictions, taking into account: 1) revision of the allocation of independent work as a mandatory form of organizing the training process, 2) unification of the duration of the lesson regardless of the type of economic activity of the program being implemented, 3) special the nature of the work of coaches, 4) the peculiarities of recruiting groups of sports training, 5) the need to revise the classification of sports training services.

Workforce Planning Framework for a Mobile Call Center Considering a Special Event

Workforce planning is essential in today’s business management. If an organization can find and keep enough staff who have the right values, then they can provide high-quality service. This paper presents a workforce planning framework for selecting the best forecasting model in order to provide minimum wage and computer electricity costs for a mobile call center during the Songkran festival event, and to optimize workforce planning. The framework is constructed with four main steps: a study of a separate period; the separation of models with different data types; the simulation of models under different service levels to determine the number of customers waiting in a call center; and the evaluation of the models. The results from the proposed framework presented the best forecasting method and the optimal workforce plan. It is clear that this approach can assist in systematically selecting the best forecasting model. In addition, a workforce planner can use this framework to support workforce planning and cost evaluation in other event periods.

Pay for performance schemes and manufacturing worker productivity: Evidence from a kinked design in China

This paper examines workers’ response to a nonlinear payment system with a penalty and a reward design in a manufacturing firm in China. Using bunching methods, our estimates show that about 31% of workers make decisions with errors, and the structural elasticity of output response to the piece rate is 0.28. The focal nonlinear payment scheme generates 4% output gains compared with a linear payment scheme given the same total wage costs. Further decomposition analysis shows that the reward aspect of the nonlinear scheme mainly contributes to total output gains. Counterfactual analyses show that total output generated by the nonlinear payment system falls with the reduced worker heterogeneity. Our results illustrate the role of worker heterogeneity in designing compensation schemes and provide new insights into the increasing adoption of nonlinear payment systems in modern manufacturing production.

Need to choose between cutting people and pay? A work sector may matter if maintaining work attitudes is your concern

Despite the increase in the cases of reducing payroll costs (i.e., the costs of wages and salaries), studies that directly compare the effects of related methods (cutting pay vs. downsizing) on work attitudes are extremely limited. Moreover, there has been no effort to answer the question of “who” is more or less affected by one method over the other. This study directly compares the effects of cutting pay vs. downsizing on work attitudes (i.e., affective commitment and job satisfaction) of remaining employees (i.e., employees whose pay is cut vs. survivors of downsizing). The study also examines the moderating effect of the work sector (private vs. public sectors) in this comparison. To do this, 4,359 Irish workers who participated in the 2009 National Workplace Survey (NWS) were analyzed. The analysis reveals no overall difference in the effects of the two methods in maintaining the work attitudes of remaining employees. However, this comparison is moderated by sector. In the private sector, downsizing better maintained the work attitudes of remaining employees than cutting pay. In the public sector, in contrast, there was no significant difference in these effects between the two methods. The results challenge the earlier belief that pay cuts cannot be a feasible alternative to downsizing due to their detrimental effect on employee motivation. The study outcomes indicate that this concern is applicable only in the private sector. Thus, the findings suggest that organizations in the public sector can utilize the pay cut option (rather than downsizing) to gain social approval, which can also be an essential resource that allows firms to better compete in the market.

The Importance of Product Cost Rationalization to achieve a Customer Satisfaction Applied research in the Electric Cables Plant / Ur State Company

The research aims at explaining the reasons for the high cost of production and the application of modern concepts in accounting costs and administrative, which came to remove loss and waste and rationalization of costs and improve operational performance and in response to changing conditions in the business environment. As a result of these variables and circumstances, the research problem was manifested in the high cost of manufacturing the products of Ur Company, which lost competitive precedence with other products in terms of price, quality and other specifications imported from various sources. In order to achieve the objective of the research and solve the problem was developed a basic hypothesis that the use and application of modern concepts lead to rationalize the cost of manufacturing products and improve activities and processes and create a market share in the local environment. divided of research into three topics The first topic reviewed the theoretical aspect of modern concepts and competitive priorities, including rationalization of costs and removal of loss and improve performance and address the negatives in traditional concepts and methods. Either the second topic dealt with how to rationalize the cost of some of the products of the electrification plant, either the third section, he concluded with a number of results, the most important of which was the high proportion of production costs, especially the proportion of direct wage costs to the total cost of manufactured goods (37%)Very high percentage and low competitive precedence prices of local products of the company compared to the prices of imported products, and the obsolete equipment and machines in the factory. This caused a significant increase in the cost of maintenance and backup tools. A significant reduction in actual production levels from the planned annual level of energy. It is also necessary to continuously seek to reduce the production

Measurement of Total Factor Productivity and its Determinants in Indian Pharmaceutical Industry: An Application of Data Envelopment Analysis

The present paper evaluates total factor productivity growth and its determinants for the period of 2009-10 to 2019-20. The paper employs data envelopment analysis based Malmquist Index for calculating TFP growth and panel data models for estimating its determinants. The data were collected from CMIE- PROWESS for the firms that are having sales more than Rs. 100 Crores based on the year 2009-10. The total of 96 firms were used for the analysis and are in terms of rupees in Crores. Total sales, cost of raw materials, salaries and wages, capital cost, and cost of Advertising and marketing are used for calculating TFP. Company age, value of shares, profit, R&D expenditure, value of import and value of exports are used for determinants. It was found that the year 2013-14 recorded positive TFP growth that was mainly due to technological change. It is evident from the result that negative TFP growth is reported in most of the firms during the study period. The main reason for lowest TFP growth is due to technological change in Indian Pharmaceutical firms. Age and export were significant and positive, whereas R&D was a significant and negative relationship with TFP. Rests of the determinants were insignificant with TFP.

Individual and group motivation in the management of a modern enterprise

The theoretical bases of individual and group motivation in the management of a modern enterprise are considered in the work. Emphasis is placed on studying the effective work of the team. Existing individual and group motivations are described and the main literature is analyzed, which covers issues of motivation and effective team work, the concept of «motivation» and «effective team work». The author's interpretation of the concept of effective team work and motivation is offered. It is established that the company's management has a system of staff incentives, the main components of which are: creating working conditions; creation of a reward system; creating favorable relationships in the team, ensuring independence in work and demand for results. It is determined that the methods of incentives used by management indicate that staff are dissatisfied with the organization of the remuneration system. The article conducted a study of wage costs for a company employee (employee survey). These conditions indicate the importance of remuneration as a motivating factor for employees of Eva LLC, but in general employees are not satisfied with the reward system. In the course of scientific research it was established that Eva LLC noted an inefficient personnel evaluation system. To improve the incentive system in this company, it is proposed to introduce a new system of evaluation of sales staff using the «Mystery Shopper» method. It is stated that in order for the audit results to be used by the manager and the HR manager as a working tool, the information obtained must be properly structured. To achieve the best quality of the studio, you can arrange direct meetings with representatives of the customer company, during which the peculiarities of the behavior of sales staff will be clarified. After completing the mystery shopper program, you need to analyze the agents' questionnaires and reports to find out the strengths and weaknesses and a general description of the team's performance. Based on a thorough analysis of the scientific literature, we concluded that the effective work of the team is the effective work of staff, from manager to employee, and therefore the motivating factor plays an important role in achieving the goals of the organization.

Redesign Road Project Using Critical Chain Project Management Method and Crashing Method

Construction of the Provincial road project from Parigi to Sukamanah is carried out by PT. Jaya Madiri Konsulindo as consultant and PT. Karya Tunas Mandiri Persada as contractor. The problem of the construction project is implementation duration does not match to previous planning which results delay in completion time. It is necessary to re-plan the project in order to get either optimal time or cost. The purpose of this research is to find out the critical work path using critical chain project managemet method by utilizing microsoft project software and optimization of project time and cost using crashing method with alterative increase of working hours (overtime) and addition of labor. The research’ scope is limited on labor cost only. Based on the results of the study obtained that initial labor wage cost is IDR 585,025,000.00 with a working duration of 154 days, and results of the alterative crashing method is lower with labor wage cost IDR 576,750,000.00. It could save cost about IDR 8,275,000.00 with duration of work 150 days or earlier 4 days from the initial duration.

Employer of Last Resort for the Czech Republic

This article simulates a programme called Employer of Last Resort, and analyses its potential impact in the Czech Republic. The design of the programme guarantees perfectly inelastic demand for labour at a given wage level. In practice, the state would offer a job to anyone willing to work in order to eliminate involuntary unemployment, reduce poverty and income inequality and secure stable growth. My aim is to estimate hypothetical effects on the main objectives and calculate fiscal demands if the programme was launched on the Czech labour market. The results suggest that the programme could significantly reduce unemployment and decrease income inequality. On the other hand, it would have limited impact on income poverty. The gross wage costs of implementing the Employer of Last Resort programme in the Czech Republic are in all constructed scenarios below 1% of the gross domestic product and further calculations suggest that the total net costs could even be negative.