Welfare Measures Research Articles

Assessing Negative Welfare Measures for Wild Invertebrates: The Case for Octopuses.

Welfare metrics have been established for octopuses in the laboratory, but not for octopuses living in the wild. Wild octopuses are constantly exposed to potentially harmful situations, and the ability to assess the welfare status of wild octopuses could provide pertinent information about individuals' health and species' resilience to stressors. Here, we used underwater photos and videos to identify injuries and stress-related behaviors in wild Octopus insularis in a variety of contexts, including interacting with fishermen, interacting with other octopuses and fish, proximity to predators, in den, foraging, and in senescence. We adapted established metrics of octopus welfare from the laboratory to these wild octopuses. In addition to observing all of the stress measures, we also identified two previously unknown measures associated with decreased welfare: (1) a half white eye flash and (2) a half-and-half blotch body pattern. More than half of the individuals analyzed had arm loss, and almost half of the individuals had skin injuries. We also observed that irregular chromatophore expression and abnormal motor coordination were associated with interactions with fishermen. This is the first study to apply measures of welfare from the laboratory to wild octopuses. Our results may also aid in the identification of welfare measures for other wild invertebrates.

From egg to slaughter: monitoring the welfare of Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus, throughout their entire life cycle in aquaculture.

The primary aim of this study was to comprehensively evaluate the welfare of Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus) throughout their entire life cycle within aquaculture, spanning from reproduction to slaughter. The methodology was structured to identify welfare indicators closely aligned with the principles of animal freedoms defined by the Farm Animal Council, encompassing environmental, health, nutritional, behavioral, and psychological freedom. Notably, psychological freedom was inherently considered within the behavioral and physical analyses of the animals. To accomplish this, an integrative systematic literature review was conducted to define precise indicators and their corresponding reference values for each stage of tilapia cultivation. These reference values were subsequently categorized using a scoring system that assessed the deviation of each indicator from established ideal (score 1), tolerable (score 2), and critical (score 3) ranges for the welfare of the target species. Subsequently, a laboratory experiment was executed to validate the pre-selected health indicators, specifically tailored for the early life stages of tilapia. This test facilitated an assessment of the applicability of these indicators under operational conditions. Building on the insights gained from this experimentation, partial welfare indices (PWIs) were computed for each assessed freedom, culminating in the derivation of a general welfare index (GWI). Mathematical equations were employed to calculate these indices, offering a quantitative and standardized measure of welfare. This approach equips tilapia farmers and processors with the tools necessary for the continuous monitoring and enhancement of their production systems and stimulate the adoption of more sustainable and ethical practices within the tilapia farming.

Does household welfare change with finance access? The case of women and the youth in The Gambia

AbstractPoor access to finance remains one of the key challenges faced by households and businesses in The Gambia in the face of an underdeveloped financial market. Yet, women and the youth are further disadvantaged as they are reported to face peculiar challenges in finance access, in spite of efforts taken by different stakeholders, including the government. Therefore, this study examines the impacts of various forms of finance on welfare for these marginalized groups by supporting quantitative analyses of the Integrated Household Survey data with some qualitative information. Adopting Lokshin and Sajaia's (2004) endogenous regime switching estimator, due to the nonrandomness of access to finance, the study finds that women households significantly benefit from informal finance through improved food consumption expenditure, and from formal finance through improved income amidst a growing business culture. For the youth, estimates of treatment effects show that informal finance is significantly welfare‐degrading, but formal finance improves almost all measures of welfare. The results reveal, among other things, variations in efficiency and risk attitudes in the use of various forms of finance by the different subpopulations, calling for interventions that increase the level of knowledge and consumer protection.

The urban poor and everyday states in an Indian metropolis

AbstractThis article examines an incident of fire in a squatter settlement in Delhi to understand the interaction between the urban poor and the state. Following the incident, the Delhi government undertook different welfare measures for the affected residents. These included immediate relief in the form of temporary tents for the families, a proposal to build proper houses for them, and compensation checks as direct monetary support. The empirical materials presented in this article show how state interventions tend to suffer from deficiencies of knowledge, trust, and bureaucratic effectiveness. Thus, they do not commensurate with the apparent intentions behind them. Each of these welfare measures engendered an entanglement of the urban poor in the state that affects their relationship to the law, urban space, the local economy, and bureaucratic structures. Analyzing the unfolding of the everyday state on the ground, I suggest that a squatter settlement's dynamic and entangled relationships with the state make it a unique site for analysis of the state from an urban perspective. Critical interpretations of their interactions and the discourses they engender are key ethnographic resources for understanding the dynamics of inequality in contemporary cities.

Production, Bone Health, and Economic Comparison of Indoor versus Pasture-Raised Red Ranger Broilers

The implementation of livestock into cover crop integrated systems is a sustainable practice that has been shown to improve soil health and system diversity. However, the effects of pasture-raised poultry systems on broiler performance and welfare have not been well-documented. The experimental objective was to compare the performance, physiological, and economic outcomes of Freedom Ranger broilers raised in outdoor pastured versus conventional indoor settings. 176 slow-growing Freedom Ranger broilers were started in brooders for 21d, and then half were transferred to either indoor floor pens or outdoor chicken tractors for a 6 week grow-out cycle. Performance and welfare measures were recorded weekly. At d64, 40 birds per treatment were euthanized for tibia collection, and bone mineral density was analyzed by Dual-energy X-ray Absorptiometry (DXA). Under our research conditions, performance and welfare measures were not significantly affected by housing treatments, but bone mineral content and density were significantly increased by 37.9% and 15.4%, respectively, in the outdoor flock (P<0.05). Future research will investigate the impacts of pasture-raised poultry systems on bird behavior and welfare.

The Evolution of Market Power in the U.S. Automobile Industry

Abstract We construct measures of industry performance and welfare in the U.S. automobile market from 1980 to 2018. We estimate a demand model using product-level data on market shares, prices, and attributes, and consumer-level data on demographics, purchases, and stated second choices. We estimate marginal costs assuming Nash-Bertrand pricing. We relate trends in consumer welfare and markups to trends in market structure and the composition of products. Although real prices rose, we find that markups decreased substantially, and the fraction of total surplus accruing to consumers increased. Consumer welfare increased over time due to improved product quality and improved production technology.

The intergenerational transmission of mental and physical health in the United Kingdom

As health is increasingly recognized as a key component of human welfare, a new line of research on intergenerational mobility has emerged that focuses on broad measures of health. We extend this research to consider two key components of health: physical health and mental health. We use rich survey data from the United Kingdom linking the health of adult children at around age 30 to their parents. We estimate that the rank–rank slope in health is 0.17 and the intergenerational health association is 0.19 suggesting relatively rapid mobility compared to other outcomes such as income. We find that while both mental and physical health have a similar degree of intergenerational persistence, parents’ mental health is much more strongly associated with broad measures of adult children’s health than parents’ physical health. We also show that the primacy of parent mental health over physical health on children’s health appears to emerge during early adolescence. Finally, we construct a comprehensive measure of welfare by combining income and health and estimate a rank–rank association of 0.27. This is considerably lower than the comparable estimate of 0.43 from the US suggesting that there is greater mobility in welfare in the UK than in the US.

Conditional cash transfers in OECD countries: a realist synthesis.

Conditional Cash Transfers (CCTs) schemes have been adopted mostly in low-income countries as a tool to break the vicious cycle of poverty transmission. Although their use is controversial, behavioral conditionalities have also been widely used in welfare-to-work strategies, minimum income scheme, and labor market "activation" policies in OECD countries. The paper presents the results of a Realist Review to synthesize the evidence of CCTs related to work conditionality, delivered in OECD countries. The evaluation literature of 23 selected CCT programs was analyzed by reconstructing Context-Mechanism-Outcome configurations. The main findings show that CCTs can be an effective counterbalance to work disincentives introduced by welfare measures. The unintended negative impacts, the role of sanctioning, and the causal pathways that may affect the most disadvantaged people and their children are discussed.

Developing a welfare assessment protocol for Australian lot-fed cattle

Lot feeding of cattle has gained momentum in recent years to improve efficiency in meeting market demands for high quality protein. Concurrently, societal concern for the welfare of animals raised in intensive farming systems has increased. Thus, the reporting of animal health and welfare measures is a key goal for the Australian cattle lot-fed industry. Although feedlots vary in location, climate, capacity, cattle genotype, and feeding programs, many welfare concerns are applicable across the industry. Despite this, no recognised standardised animal welfare assessment protocol exists for the Australian lot-fed industry. This study aimed to identify relevant measures to develop an assessment protocol, by identifying key welfare issues and their relevant measures, considering the validity, reliability, and practicality of each when applied to the feedlot context. An advisory model was derived after reviewing the relevant literature and five international protocols for the assessment of beef cattle (Welfare Quality®, AssureWel, US Beef Quality Assurance assessment tool, Canadian Feedlot Animal Care Assessment program, and an Australian Live Export industry protocol), followed by stakeholder consultation. A total of 109 measures were evaluated, with 99 environmental-, management-, resource- and animal-based measures being proposed. Piloting of the protocol on commercial feedlots will enable further refinement and validation, to provide an evidence-based, practical protocol to facilitate standardised monitoring of cattle welfare. Such a protocol could promote continued advances in animal welfare at a feedlot level and support a sustainable industry by addressing societal concerns.

Implementation of Local Government Financial Reporting and Community Welfare

Objective: Research objectives financial reports as a means of accountability for its financial performance to the public.
 
 Theoretical framework: The primary objective of government-led development initiatives is to promote the well-being of the community. This objective is reflected in the formulation of programs and budgets that incorporate measures of community welfare. Furthermore, the program and budget are reported to the public through the Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) to determine budget accountability and performance. The Kediri City Government must be able to present financial reports that contain financial information that is not only of good quality but is able to spur economic growth that has an impact on people's welfare.
 
 Method: The present study, conducted in the urban setting of Kediri, employs a qualitative descriptive approach. Data collection methods encompass observation, interviews, and documentation. The analysis of data follows the Miles and Huberman model, involving the stages of data reduction, data presentation, and drawing conclusions.
 
 Results: The findings of the research indicate that the incorporation of financial statement reporting within the Kediri city government has adhered to the appropriateness of government accounting standards, sufficiency of disclosure, adherence to laws and regulations, and the efficacy of the internal control system.
 
 Conclusion: The findings of the BPK audit indicate that the financial reporting of entities within the Kediri City Government has received a Unqualified Opinion(WTP). This Kediri City Government Financial Report also shows how the programs implemented by the Kediri City Government seek to improve the people's standard of living.

A STUDY ON EMPLOYEE ATTITUDE TOWARDS WELFARE MEASURES AND ITS INFLUENCE ON PERFORMANCE AT KSRTC, KOLAR

Employee welfare measures refer to various initiatives, benefits, and programs that organizations implement to promote the well-being and overall quality of life of their employees. These measures are designed to go beyond basic compensation and address the broader needs and concerns of employees both inside and outside the workplace. This study investigates the employee attitudes towards employee welfare measures and their influence on performance within the KSRTC, Kolar district. Employee welfare measures play a pivotal role in enhancing employee satisfaction and motivation, consequently impacting individual organizational performance. The study employs a descriptive research design, incorporating surveys to gather data from the 80 employees of KSRTC. The primary objectives of this initiative within KSRTC are to identify and prioritize influential welfare measures for its employees, evaluate the effectiveness of existing welfare measures and measure employee performance and culture of continuous improvement within the organization. KEY WORDS: Employee welfare measures, work satisfaction, organizational performance, employee productivity.

Examining obesity kuznets curve in the United States from the perspective of globalization and biocapacity

Given the recent rise in the adult obesity prevalence in the United States, the central and state-level governments and health agencies in the country are considering appropriate measures. Further motivation for this investigation stems from the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UNSDG-3, 8, and 13), that highlights the need for sustainable health for all, sustainable decent economic growth amidst environmental sustainability. Driven by this motivation, this study investigates the validity of Obesity Kuznets curve (OKC) in the United States over the experimental period of 1975–2016. In addition, this study illustrates the (mediating) role of globalisation and biocapacity in controlling the prevalence of obesity in the United States. While the study established the validity of obesity Kuznets curve, especially in the short run, it found an inverted U-shaped relationship between globalisation and obesity for the United States. This interprets that a significant reduction in wealth-related health issues is achievable with increased (socioeconomic and political) globalisation policy amidst improved (socioeconomic) welfare of the Americans. Moreover, biocapacity showed a desirable impact on obesity since the short- and long-run relationship with a respective elasticity of 0.02 and 1.86 is negative and statistically significant. In general, this study puts forward policy from the perspective of socioeconomic and political globalisation and domestic welfare measures across the country.

Impact of financial inclusion on household welfare in Ethiopia

Despite the overwhelming consensus on the positive effect of financial inclusion on economic outcomes, there is limited rigorous micro-econometric evidence on the causal impact of financial inclusion on household welfare in Ethiopia. This study uses the 2018 Ethiopian Socioeconomic Survey data and an endogenous switching regression model to investigate the determinants and the causal impact of financial inclusion on multiple measures of household welfare. The results suggest that households headed by older, more educated, wage or self-employed people in the non-agricultural sector are more likely to access financial services, as are those headed by non-Muslims. In addition, greater financial access appears to be associated with membership in a local social group (iddir), ownership of mobile phones, credit information, and knowledge of how to open bank accounts, but negatively associated with the distance from the household’s residence to the nearest formal financial institution. This study further indicates that financial inclusion has a positive and statistically significant impact on multiple household welfare indicators. The most considerable impact of access to formal financial institutions is on utility spending, followed by total expenditure, food expenditure, and education spending. These findings thus suggest that policies geared toward improving household access to formal financial institutions are essential to enhance household welfare in Ethiopia.

Incidence of Anemia and Adherence to Fe Tablet Consumption Based on MCH Book Completion

Maternal mortality is a measure of welfare and health status in a country. The death of 1320 mothers in Indonesia is caused by bleeding, one of which is caused by anemia during pregnancy. The success of supplementing 90 Fe tablets in Indonesia is 51% and only 37.7% of pregnant women consume 90 tablets of Fe tablets. Pregnant women and giving 90 iron tablets in West Java Province amounted to 98.2%, or 943.34 people and there was a jump of 0.5% or 5,505 pregnant women did not get Fe tablets. One way to monitor the consumption of FE tablets is through the MCH book. Research Objectives: To determine the relationship between consumption of Fe tablets in terms of filling out the MCH handbook and the incidence of anemia in third trimester pregnant women at the Cipayung Health Center in 2022. Research Methods: This study used the chi square method where observations were made of pregnant women at one time to measure the relationship between consumption adherence FE tablets with the incidence of anemia. The sample used in this study were 33 people who met the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Research Results: demo data obtained the average age of the mother is 31 years. Mother's education 54.5% have higher education. As many as 84.4% of mothers have high knowledge. As many as 66.7% of the 21 pregnant women who adhered to the consumption of FE tablets did not experience anemia. Statistical tests showed a P-value of 0.016 and there was a relationship between adherence to consumption of FE tablets and the incidence of anemia in third-trimester pregnant women at the Cipayung Health Center in 2022. Conclusion: monitoring of FE consumption can be done through the MCH handbook for pregnant women so that early prevention of anemia during pregnancy, especially when entering the third trimester.

Constitutional and Legislative Perspectives of Gender Justice and its Evolving Nature

Justice is purpose and function of law assigned to it by the state. Injustice on gender basis calls for justice in general and gender justice in particular. However justice is not a static concept as it is evolved and gets changed over the time. Justice in its broadest sense comprises of all state actions to regulate selfish actions of people and thereby to treat equals equally on proportionate basis. Administration of justice in concerned with harmonization of individual assertions and rights with the community interests. At any point of time the balance is struck at that point of time where the society accepts it through its legitimate institutions. Gender equality has never received optimum attention of the society as the women are regarded as the champions of family and community interests. Assertion of rights by women has led to sea change in the socio-legal life of all societies across the world. Gender sensitivity and self assertion by women have led to changes in law through legislative instruments, policy documents and precedents. It is apparent that the law influences society is in turn influenced by the society. With the marginalization of women in their roles and treatment the society has been responsible for gender injustice. The law has responded to it by new protective legislations, welfare measures and inventive decisions. Hence the society has positively impacted the law. But the inverse question viz., whether the changes in law are positively changing the society in line with desired goals is moot question. Hence gender injustice cannot be alleviated by law alone. There has to be socio-economic movement changing the mindsets of different role players. In this paper an attempt is made give the conspectus of justice, gender justice and the state actions towards elimination of gender injustice. Suggestions are made to establish nexus between law and society through desired goals set for state and for the society.

Basic Needs (in)Security and Subjective Equivalence Scales

Equivalence scales are policy parameters for inequality measurement, tax deductions and subsidies. Thus, their accuracy is relevant both for budgets and social cohesion; however, their measurement is subject to debate regarding the underlying measure of welfare. Self-assessed insecurities in terms of clothing, housing and food—or basic needs—imply that at least some households are at lower levels of welfare than those that are meeting their needs. We use this to determine the increase in total expenditure required to meet their needs, on average, and thus we are able to calculate the implied equivalence scales. We compare these subjective scales to ones that arise from objective measures, such as expenditure shares on the same items. Our subjective scales are more consistent and plausible across all goods, and are similar to those arising from food expenditure shares. While scales arising from either housing or clothing expenditure shares are neither similar to those arising from food shares or basic needs adequacy nor are they plausible, given the plausibility rules we apply. Furthermore, the subjective equivalence scales are smaller than those proposed in the OECD-modified scale.

Impact Light Regimen and Melatonin on Growth Performance, Welfare and Physiological Parameters of Broiler Chickens

The study was conducted to evaluate the effects of lighting program and melatonin on growth performance, welfare, and some physiological characteristics of broilers. A completely randomized design involved 2 photoperiods (constant lighting 24 L:0 D). and intermittent lighting 4 L:2 D) periodically for group one and two respectively, the third group the birds were to continuous lighting 24 hours with the addition of the melatonin 20 mg/kg of diet. A total of 180 unsexed one-day-old ROSS 308 broiler chicks randomly divided into three treatments with three replicates (20 birds per replicate). The results showed a significant superiority in the body weight and weight Gain of the intermittent light treatments and the addition of melatonin compared to the control treatment for broilers at 21 days. No significant differences in growth performance for broilers at 38 days, and there were no significant differences in dressing percentage, relative weight of the internal organs, temperature of the bird’s body parts, biochemical characteristics, and hormones, except for the significant decrease in the level of ALT for birds treated with melatonin and when raising birds under a lighting program. Intermittently, there was an improvement in the level of antioxidants through a decrease in MDA. There was a significant improvement in the measures of welfare, as the incidence of inflammation of the hock burn and Footpad dermatitis decreased. Results above suggest that the raising broilers under intermittent lighting system and treatment with melatonin did not affect production performance, but it improved the status of antioxidants and welfare Indications for broilers.

A Study on Employees Welfare Measures, Bescal Steels Industries Pvt Ltd., George Town, Chennai

Employees play a key role in the existence and growth of any organisation, therefore their welfare is essential. During the past few years, both public sector and private sector organisation have been contributing towards the employee's benefits and also increase their efficiency. Employees' welfare facilities include housing facilities, free medical facilities, retirement benefits, children and adult educational benefits, welfare measures for the employee's families, loan facilities, etc. If the organisations do not bother about the employees benefit, but expect efficient and high performance from them, it is a mere waste. So there is utmost need for the employee's welfare in any type of organisation. Organizations have to provide welfare facilities to their employees to keep their motivation levels high. A comparative study was undertaken to know the satisfaction level of the employees on the enforceability of various welfare measures in both the public and private sector organizations. The study also throws light on impact of welfare measures on the employees' performance. Review of various literature that relates to the major variables involved in the research work especially employees productivity. The purpose of employee benefits is to increase the economic security of staff members, and in doing so, improve worker retention across the organization. As such, it is one component of reward management.

A Study on Training and Development Employee Welfare Seshasayee Paper & Boards Ltd in Erode

The research purpose is to determine the study of the employee welfare important of employees. Employees play a key role in the existence and growth of any organisation, therefore their welfare is essential. During the past few years, both public sector and private sector organisation have been contributing towards the employee's benefits and also increase their efficiency. Employees' welfare facilities include housing facilities, free medical facilities, retirement benefits, children and adult educational benefits, welfare measures for the employee's families, loan facilities, etc. If the organisation do not bother about the employees benefit, but expect efficient and high performance from them, it is a mere waste. So there is utmost need for the employee's welfare in any type of organisation. Organizations have to provide welfare facilities to their employees to keep their motivation levels high. A comparative study was undertaken to know the satisfaction level of the employees on the enforceability of various welfare measures in both the public and private sector organizations. The study also throws light on impact of welfare measures on the employees' performance. review of various literature that relates to the major variables involved in the research work especially employees productivity. The purpose of employee benefits is to increase the economic security of staff members, and in doing so, improve worker retention across the organization. As such, it is one component of reward management.

A Study on Verify the Welfare Measure provided in the Company with Regards to Employee Satisfaction in GK Sarees to Dindigul

Employee satisfaction research should be done with greatest care. Measuring Employee satisfaction must be a continuously, consistent, timely, accurate and reliable process. This is where a new employee satisfaction approach becomes a powerful strategic business development tool for organization.