The evolution of China's rural labor market in the 21st century: an empirical study based on nationally representative survey data at the household level

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tonglong Zhang ◽  
Xiaowen Huang ◽  
Lina Zhang ◽  
Linxiu Zhang
Keyword(s):  
Human Capital ◽  
Labor Market ◽  
Labor Markets ◽  
Representative Survey ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Rural Labor ◽  
Household Level ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
And Migration

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to assess the development of China's rural labor markets and the identification of the important factors that affect rural labor's off-farm employment and migration.Design/methodology/approachBased on a set of long-term panel data, this paper makes a clear judgment on the trend of rural labor transfer. High-quality survey design makes it possible to examine the development of the rural labor market from multiple dimensions. Adding household fixed effects to the empirical model alleviates endogenous problems.FindingsThe authors find that the increasing trend toward off-farm employment, which is dominated by migration, has continued. There are some other important findings: (1). young male workers dominated off-farm employment, but the gap between groups continues to narrow; (2). the structure of employment is a good response to the economic transformation and (3). the quality of off-farm laborers, especially in terms of human capital, has also enhanced significantly and has continued to support off-farm employment and migration. These findings all indicate that the China's rural labor markets have been constantly improving in recent years, although there is still segmentation.Originality/valueIt is the first paper that uses a nationally representative survey data to address the development of rural labor market in the 21st century. With the help of a long-term panel data structure and by controlling the household-level fixed-effect, the authors obtained a deeper and more robust conclusion. Specifically, this article finds that whether it is for the off-farm transfer or the migration, the influence of labor age, gender, human capital and marital status is gradually weakening.

scholarly journals Returns to Education in Different Job Locations for Off-Farm Wage Employment: Evidence from China

2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (2) ◽  
pp. 455
Author(s):  
Weidong Wang ◽  
Yongqing Dong ◽  
Yunli Bai ◽  
Renfu Luo ◽  
Linxiu Zhang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Human Capital ◽  
Labor Markets ◽  
Labor Force ◽  
Returns To Education ◽  
Rural China ◽  
Rural Labor ◽  
Wage Employment ◽  
Big Cities ◽  
Nationally Representative ◽  
Representative Samples

In this study, we explore the returns to education among different job locations for off-farm wage employment using nationally representative samples from rural China. Through a series of robustness checks, we conclude that there is heterogeneity in returns to education for different job locations within the rural labor force. Specifically, we have found that the returns to education for laborers in big cities are significantly higher than those for laborers working both in ordinary cities and within counties. That is to say, the utility of education is better-reflected in big cities. We conclude that the returns to education in big cities are 5.4 percent, while the returns to education are no more than 1 percent in ordinary cities and within counties. These results suggest that labor markets in the underdeveloped regions of China have factors that undermine the productivity effect of human capital.

HC and financial performance with two HRM strategies

2017 ◽  
Vol 66 (4) ◽  
pp. 459-478 ◽  
Author(s):  
Nopadol Rompho
Keyword(s):  
Human Capital ◽  
Regression Analysis ◽  
Financial Performance ◽  
Lead Time ◽  
Design Methodology ◽  
Strategy Choice ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Practical Implications

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between levels of human capital and financial performance of firms that use two distinct human resource management (HRM) strategies. Design/methodology/approach A survey of 128 HRM managers was conducted to assess differences in human capital between firms using different HRM strategies. A multiple regression analysis was used to investigate the relationship between firms’ human capital and financial performance. Findings The results show that companies employing a make-organic strategy have a higher level of human capital than companies employing a buy-bureaucratic strategy. There was no relationship between the level of human capital and long term financial performance of firms with both make-organic and buy-bureaucratic strategies. Research limitations/implications This research contributes toward understanding the effect of HRM strategy and facilitates an optimal strategy choice depending on the organization. However, this study did not consider the lead time between changes in human capital and the effect on financial performance. Practical implications The research encourages firm managers to understand the value of human capital, preparing them for changes in the future. Originality/value This study is among the first to investigate the relationship between human capital and financial performance considering different HRM strategies.

scholarly journals Gendered Experiences of Appearance-related Perks and Penalties in Finnish Labor Markets

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Iida Kukkonen ◽  
Outi Sarpila
Keyword(s):  
Labor Market ◽  
Labor Markets ◽  
Service Sector ◽  
Multinomial Regression ◽  
Subjective Experiences ◽  
Daily Work ◽  
The Feminine ◽  
Labor Market Success ◽  
Research Gap ◽  
Nationally Representative

Physical appearance is generally associated with considerable labor-market sanctions, and appearances are thought to be of particular importance in the feminine service sector. However, little is known about workers’ experiences of appearance-based perks and penalties in Nordic labor markets. Drawing on literature on aesthetic capital and labor, this study aims to fill this research gap. The study uses a nationally representative survey (N = 1600) fielded in Finland and multinomial regression to determine whether subjective experiences of appearance-related perks and penalties are gendered, dependent on the field of work or daily work on appearances. Our main finding is that while both men and women experience looks-based perks and penalties, men are more likely to have experienced appearance having a say in salary negotiations. Our results shed light on the gendered logics of aesthetic capital and labor, and question economic understandings of beauty work as a pathway to labor market success for women

Rethinking Labor Demand

2020 ◽  
pp. 174-194
Author(s):  
Phillip Brown
Keyword(s):  
Human Capital ◽  
Labor Markets ◽  
Capital Investment ◽  
Labor Demand ◽  
Occupational Structure ◽  
Life Chances ◽  
Orthodox Theory ◽  
Investments In Education ◽  
And Training

This chapter turns to questions of labor demand at the heart of the new human capital. It rejects Gary Becker’s claim that orthodox theory offered an entirely new way of looking at labor markets, where the main focus is on labor scarcity and a skills competition, in which individuals, firms, and nations compete on differential investments in education and training. It also rejects David Autor’s claim that the issue is not that middle-class workers are doomed by automation and technology, but instead that human capital investment must be at the heart of any long-term strategy for producing skills that are complemented by rather than substituted for by technological change. The chapter argues that the new human capital rejects the view that demand issues can be resolved through a combination of technological and educational solutions. Rather a jobs lens is required to shed new light on changes in the occupational structure, transforming the way people capitalize on their education, along with the distribution of individual life chances.

Monitoring of regional labor markets and the main trends of labor underutilization in Russia

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Elena V. Sibirskaya ◽  
Maria V. Volkova ◽  
Lyudmila V. Oveshnikova ◽  
Natalia A. Shchukina ◽  
Paweł Lula
Keyword(s):  
Labor Market ◽  
Labor Markets ◽  
Job Search ◽  
Unmet Need ◽  
Developed Countries ◽  
International Standards ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Normative Documents ◽  
Regional Labor ◽  
Labor Underutilization

PurposeIn the recent two decades, a model of the labor market formed in Russia; it differs from the model that is peculiar for most developed countries. Its specific feature consists in the fact that adaptation to the fluctuations of the economic situation takes place by means of changes in the labor price, not by means of changes in employment and unemployment.Design/methodology/approachSuch model ensures high and stable level of employment and low level of unemployment with significant pro-cyclic fluctuations of wages. Changes that take place in the sphere of employment of population in labor markets and gradual implementation of collection of information in view of the forms of labor activities into the practices of different countries led to the necessity for reconsidering the previously adopted international standards.FindingsThis is due to the fact that the normative documents present the treatment of unemployment without the criterion “job search,” and new indicators of measuring potential labor force and incomplete employment were adopted. The authors analyze the situation of labor underutilization, which is important for characterizing a region of the Russian Federation by the indicator of unmet need for employment.Originality/valueThe offered information could be used for wider monitoring of the labor market, studying the volume and tendencies in the sphere of unemployment, evaluating the problems of integration in the labor market, studying the connection between employment and poverty and forecasting the tendencies.

The colonial exports pattern, institutions and current economic performance

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tania El Kallab ◽  
Cristina Terra
Keyword(s):  
Human Capital ◽  
Economic Development ◽  
Resource Curse ◽  
Data Set ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Long Run ◽  
French Colonies ◽  
Colonial Institutions ◽  
The Impact

PurposeThis paper explores the role of colonial heritage on long-term economic development from a resource-curse perspective. The authors investigate the impact of colonial exports on long-term economic development through two channels: (1) a direct impact of the economic dependency on natural resources and (2) an indirect impact via its effect on colonial institutions, which persisted over time and influenced current economic development.Design/methodology/approachTo address this issue, the authors use an original data set on French bilateral trade from 1880 to 1912. The authors use partial least square structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) in the empirical analysis, so that the authors are able to construct latent variables (LVs) for variables that are not directly observable, such as the quality of institutions.FindingsThe authors find that exports of primary goods to France had a negative impact on colonial institutions and that for French colonies, this impact was driven by minerals exports. Despite its impact on colonial institutions, exports of French colonies had no significant indirect impact on their current institutions. The authors find no significant direct impact of colonial trade on current development for French colonies. Finally, colonial exports of manufactured products had no significant impact on colonial institutions among French colonies and a positive impact among non-French ones.Research limitations/implicationsResearch implications regarding the findings of this paper are, namely, that the relative poor performance within French colonies today cannot be attributed to the extraction of raw materials a century ago. However, human capital and institutional development, instead of exports, are more relatively important for long-term growth. Some limitations in trying to determine the simultaneous relationship among colonial trade, institutions and economic performance are the relation between colonial trade and the extent of extraction from the colonizer, which is hard to quantify, as well as its precise mechanism.Practical implicationsSince the initial institutions set in those former colonies presented a strong persistence in the long run, their governments should focus now on building sound and inclusive political and economic institutions, as well as on investing in human capital in order to foster long-term growth. Once a comprehensive set of institutional and human resources are put in place, the quality and quantity of exports might create a positive spillover on the short-run growth.Social implicationsOne social implication that can be retrieved from this study is the ever-lasting effect of both human capital investment and introduction of inclusive political and economic institutions on the long-run impact of growth.Originality/valueThe paper uses an original primary data set from archival sources to explore the role of colonial heritage on long-term economic development from a resource-curse perspective. It applies a relatively new model partial least squares path modeling (PLS-PM) that allows the construction of LVs for variables that are not directly observable, as well as channeling the impact on growth through both direct and indirect channels. Finally, it allows for the simultaneous multigroup analysis across different colonial groups.

A representative organizational diversity metric: a dashboard measure for executive action

2018 ◽  
Vol 37 (3) ◽  
pp. 219-232
Author(s):  
E. Holly Buttner ◽  
William Latimer Tullar
Keyword(s):  
Labor Market ◽  
Labor Markets ◽  
Work Force ◽  
Organizational Diversity ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Hr Management ◽  
Legal Perspective ◽  
The Usa ◽  
Executive Action ◽  
Representative Work

Purpose Workforce analytics is an evolving measurement approach in human resource (HR) planning and strategy implementation. Workforce analytics can help organizations manage one of their most important resources: their human capital. The purpose of this paper is to propose a diversity metric, called the D-Metric, as a new tool for HR planning. The D-Metric can be used to assess the demographic representativeness of employees across skill categories of an organization’s workforce compared to its relevant labor markets. Design/methodology/approach The authors present a real example and discuss possible applications of the D-Metric in HRM strategic planning and diversity research. Findings The D-Metric is a statistic useful in assessing demographic representativeness in the occupational categories of an organization’s workforce compared to the demographics of its relevant labor markets. The methodology could be implemented to assess an organization’s work force representativeness on dimensions such as race, sex, age and pay levels. When the labor market is unitary, without measurable variance, a substitute metric, the U-Metric also presented in this paper, can be used. Research limitations/implications Use of the D-Metric requires publicly available labor market data with variance across labor market segments. Originality/value There currently is no published metric that evaluates the representativeness of an organization’s work force relative to its relevant labor markets. Many organizations seek a demographically representative workforce to better understand their diverse customer segments. Monitoring the representativeness of an organization’s work force, as captured in Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO-1) forms in the USA, for example, is an important component of HR management strategy. From a legal perspective, the D-Metric or the alternative U-Metric, could be useful in showing progress toward a demographically representative work force.

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