Labor Productivity and Surplus Labor in Chinese Iron and Steel Firms

Introduction. An attempt is made to analyze the dynamics of labor productivity in the iron-making industry of the Urals using the equal cost vector during the replacement of welding iron production technologies with cast steel production technologies in open-hearth and Bessemer furnaces, as well as to determine the heuristic potential of this method. Materials and Methods. The study uses a vector of equal costs. This vector connects the points on the graph that reflect the number of two products released per unit of resource for a certain period of time. The source of the study was the “Collections of statistical data of the mining industry of Russia”. Results. The vectors of equal costs for the production of iron and steel per worker of the iron- making industries of the Urals in 1893–1911 are constructed. The periods in the development of iron-making production are highlighted. Discussion and Conclusion. The method of equal cost vectors revealed the following: 1) rational use of labor in private factories and irrational in state-owned ones; 2) significant influence of the Nadezhdinsky Plant on the structure of iron-making industries; 3) a more precise chronological framework for the replacement of welding iron production technologies by open-hearth and seedless production, the influence of market conditions on this process; 4) the replacement of old technologies with new ones did not cause an increas

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The Great Exodus

China Agricultural Economic Review ◽

10.1108/caer-10-2017-0178 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 10 (1) ◽

pp. 3-15 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Fang Cai

Keyword(s):

Economic Growth ◽

Labor Productivity ◽

Allocative Efficiency ◽

Chinese Economy ◽

Growth Effect ◽

Middle Income ◽

Content Type ◽

Labor Reallocation ◽

Surplus Labor ◽

Income Status

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to review the process of rural labor reallocation and unfolds its growth effect through sufficiently supplying human resources, preventing diminishing return to capital, and increasing labor productivity. Design/methodology/approach The author surveys literature and statistics related to the subject to comprehensively picture the 40-year course of the shift and reallocation of agricultural surplus labor. Findings In the past 40 years, reforms in relevant areas have eliminated institutional barriers deterring labor mobility and allowed agricultural laborers to exit from low-productivity farming employment, migrate beyond rural-urban boundary and across regions, sectors, and ownerships, and enter higher productivity employment in non-agricultural sectors. As a result, resources allocative efficiency has been substantially improved, contributing a significant part to labor productivity growth and thus economic growth of the Chinese economy as a whole. Social implications To sustain this source of economic growth as far as China completes its transition from upper-middle income status to high-income status, deepening reforms is urgently needed. The author provides policy suggestions for further reform. Originality/value This paper enhances people’s understanding of the Chinese economic reform and its nature of efficiency and inclusion.

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THE DIRECTION OF AGRIBUSINESS DEVELOPMENT IN EU COUNTRIES

Annals of the Polish Association of Agricultural and Agribusiness Economists ◽

10.5604/01.3001.0010.7927 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol XIX (6) ◽

pp. 182-189

Author(s):

Aldona Mrówczyńska-Kamińska

Keyword(s):

European Union ◽

Labor Productivity ◽

Agricultural Development ◽

The European Union ◽

Food Sector ◽

Surplus Labor ◽

Eu Countries ◽

European Union Countries ◽

Food Economy ◽

The Individual

The main objective of the research is to evaluate the development of the food economy (agribusiness) in the European Union countries. The aim of the study was to analyze the productivity of agribusiness work in the European Union countries against the national economy. This was then compared to the level of socio-economic development (measured by GDP per capita) of the individual EU countries, and on this basis, the development of the agri-food sector was assessed. The time series of the study covered 1995 and 2010, ie the years for which the first and the most recent data on “Inputs for balances” are available for individual EU countries. One of the most important methods used to evaluate the development of agribusiness in the European Union was the input-output method. Research has shown that productivity in agribusiness in the EU-12 is still lower than in most EU-15 countries. Differences in productivity levels in agribusiness between countries are mainly influenced by surplus labor in agriculture. Increasing labor productivity in agriculture contributes to a stronger social division of labor in both agriculture and agribusiness, ie the development of modern food sector in line with the model of agricultural development. The question remains, however, whether the new member states will duplicate the path set by the developed Western and Northern European countries, based primarily on a large increase in labor productivity, but will follow a completely different path in food production.

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