Factors Affecting Labor Productivity: An Empirical Evidence from Pakistan

Labor productivity is important as it is the major factor determining nations' living standards. This study analyzes the factors affecting labor productivity in Pakistan using time series data. ARDL model is applied for estimation of the long run relationship of variables for the period 1981-2018. Data have been taken from the Handbook of Statistics of State Bank of Pakistan and various economic surveys of Pakistan. The findings show that wages, human capital investment, labor force participation, and inflation significantly affect labor productivity. The results indicate that wage rate has a positive effect on labor productivity, and human capital investment also is positively related to labor productivity. At the same time, labor force participation and inflation are negatively related to labor productivity. These findings imply that labor productivity can be raised by increasing the wage rate and investing more in human capital. Results are consistent with efficiency wage theory and human capital theory.

Labour Absorption in Crop Production for Principal Crops in Semi-Arid and Flood Prone Eastern Plain Region of Rajasthan

The present investigation was undertaken with a view to study the labour absorption (both family and hired labour) in principal crops in Semi-Arid and Flood Prone Eastern Plain Region of Rajasthan. The primary data were collected from 200 households of 10 villages during the year 2018-2019. To study the labour absorption in crop production for principal crops the model suggested by Singh, 1996 was used. In semi-arid and flood prone eastern region (Region-III), the average labour absorption in crop production was 48.72 man-days per hectare in selected principal crops i.e., pearl millet, green gram, wheat, rapeseed & mustard and chickpea. The participation of family and hired labour was 31.11 man-days per hectare and 17.61 man-days per hectare in region-III. The wage rate for machine labour was maximum on marginal farms (Rs. 849.86 per hour) while minimum on large farms (Rs. 596.71 per hour).

SOCIAL WELFARE SCHEMES FOR DOMESTIC WORKERS IN INDIA

Domestic Workers in India face the plight of low wages, insecure employment, exploitation and hostile working conditions. Most of them, being migrant workers, become ineligible to avail benefits of state-specific schemes governed by the labour department. Even otherwise, the social security benefits for domestic workers in India are minimal, both in the public as well as private sector. It becomes necessary to identify the loopholes in existing governance mechanism to direct domestic work towards formalization, similar to the work in construction or transportation sector. Also,standards for minimum wage rate and adequate working conditions must be set for domestic workers to protect them from being at the mercy of the employer.

AN ASSESSMENT OF LABOUR DAILY WAGE RATE FOR AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION ACTIVITIES IN THE NORTH CENTRAL ZONE, NIGERIA

The study evaluated small-scale farmers’ access to human labour in North Central Nigeria. Multi-stage random sampling technique was used for sample selection while questionnaires were used for data collection. A total of 1,750 farmers were randomly interviewed. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and two-way mixed factorial analysis of variance and mean separation was done at 5% probability level. Result revealed labour wage per rate significantly (P < 0.05) dependent on the labour category, the location (state) and the effect of both human labour type and location (state). Mean separation showed adult male is the highest paid while young female is the least paid, while Kwara State has the highest labour wage rate and plateau State has the lowest wage rate per day. Based on the findings, the research concluded that small scale farmers access to labour based on wage rate is low, cost of agricultural labour is high which has resulted increased cost of production for the small-scale farmers. The study recommends among others that combine hiring should be encouraged among farmers for the adoption of expensive labour saving technologies/ implements

Sub-national union coverage and the youth's labor market outcomes: evidence from a national survey in Vietnam

PurposeThis paper examines the effects of sub-national union coverage on the youth's labor market outcomes.Design/methodology/approachIn the context of the private business sector in Vietnam, this study link individual labor market data with union coverage at provincial level in the period 2013–2016 to investigate the effects of sub-national union coverage on the youth's labor market outcomes. Contingent on the outcome variable, we use the OLS and probit model that control for diverse individual characteristics, year- and industry-fixed effects, and particularly control for selection bias in the labor market.FindingsThe empirical results show that the union coverage is positively associated with a wide range of the youth's labor market outcomes, including employment status, wage rate, work hour, and job formality. Also, the coverage is complementary to individual labor contract in determining the youth's wage rate.Originality/valueThis study provides an in-depth study on the interplay between trade union and the youth's labor market outcomes that contributes to the literature of labor market institutions and youth employment policies in a dynamic transitional economy of Vietnam.

Factors Affecting Sectoral Employment in Nigeria during the Period of Growth (1981-2014)

The Nigerian economy was characterised with high levels of unemployment during the periods of substantial growth between 1981 and 2014. Various economists described the growth regime as “jobless”. Sectoral differences were, also, observed with regard to their job absorptive capacities. Time series secondary data covering 1981 to 2014 on the rebased Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and sectoral Gross Value Added (GVA) at 2010 constant basic prices, employment, wage rate, inflation rate and interest rate were collected from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). The variables were extracted from statutory publications of the institutions, collated and summarised into a table of data. The unit root test was carried out to test for stationarity of variables. The data was analysed using VECM at α 0.05. The result shows that wage rate, inflation rate, and interest rate all affected employment negatively across sectors. Gross Value added affected employment positively in the non-agricultural sectors, but negatively in the agricultural sectors. Inter-sectoral linkages and dependences also peculiarly affected job creation positively or negatively.

The Rate of Surplus Value in Brazil, 1996–2016

This paper estimates the Brazilian economy’s rate of surplus value as well as its underlying determinants, i.e., wage rate and labor productivity between 1996 and 2016. In addition, it builds a theoretical narrative of the Brazilian economy that integrates its political successions, highlighting the governments of Fernando Henrique Cardoso (1995–2002), Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva (2003–2010), Dilma Rousseff (2011–August 2016), and the parliamentary coup d’état (December 2015–August 2016). The findings are presented based on the classical political economy tradition, which sees capital-labor struggle as a key, albeit nonexclusive, condition that frames the economic, political, and ideological disputes of society. JEL Classification: B51, E25, N16

Negative Real Balance Effects in the Presence of Involuntary Unemployment

We examine positive or negative real balance effect (or so-called Pigou effect) by falls in the nominal wage rate and the prices of the goods in situations where there is involuntary unemployment using a three-generations overlapping generations model with childhood period and pay-as-you go pension system for the older generation consumers. We will show that if the net savings of the younger generation consumers are larger than their debts due to consumption in their childhood period, there exists positive real balance effect and the employment increases by a fall in the nominal wage rate; on the other hand, if the net savings of the younger generation consumers are smaller than their debts, there exists negative real balance effect and the employment decreases by a fall in the nominal wage rate.