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on Human Capital and Human Resource Management |
| By: | Kato, Takao (Colgate University); Kodama, Naomi (Hitotsubashi University) |
| Abstract: | There is a growing body of evidence on the efficacy of Short-Time Compensation (STC), a subsidy to promote worksharing in a recession, in achieving its intended goal of curtailing layoffs and preventing a sharp rise in unemployment. However, very little is known about the consequences of STC for firm performance. We apply the Propensity Score Matching (PSM) with difference-in-differences methodology to unique data from Japan, a country known for its extensive use, and find that STC results in improved profitability. The improved profitability is further found to be achieved through sales growth without raising labor costs. We explore possible mechanisms behind the observed positive consequences of STC for sales and profits. Additional evidence tends to favor what the psychology literature calls "shared adversity"- worksharing promoted by STC facilitates supportive interactions among workers in the firm and strengthens commitment of workers to the firm, and thereby enhances goal alignment between workers and the firm as well as between coworkers. Such workers are more open to the firm's effort to increase sales/revenues without raising cost. |
| Keywords: | short-time work, short-time compensation, worksharing, employment adjustment, firm performance |
| JEL: | J23 J65 J68 H25 |
| Date: | 2019–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp12596&r=all |
| By: | Bryson, Alex (University College London); Forth, John (Cass Business School); Gray, Helen (Institute for Employment Studies (IES)); Stokes, Lucy (National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR)) |
| Abstract: | Focusing on private sector workplaces in Britain, we investigate whether the employment of older workers has implications for workplace performance. We find no significant association between changes in the proportion of older workers employed and changes in workplace performance. We find some evidence that workplace labour productivity falls where the proportion of 'middle-aged' workers falls, either due to a rise in the proportion of older or younger workers, but this association does not carry through to financial performance. Overall, the findings suggest that any reluctance on the part of employers to employ greater numbers of older workers may be misplaced. |
| Keywords: | older workers, productivity, workplace employment relations survey |
| JEL: | J21 J23 J24 J63 L25 M51 |
| Date: | 2019–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp12598&r=all |
| By: | Cici, Gjergji; Hendriock, Mario; Jaspersen, Stefan; Kempf, Alexander |
| Abstract: | Sexual harassment, a widespread problem in the workplace, arguably keeps female employees from optimally employing their human capital. We show that removing or diminishing this friction improves productivity. Specifically, using the male-dominated fund industry as our testing ground, we show that productivity of female mutual fund managers significantly increased after the Harvey Weinstein scandal and the onset of the #MeToo movement. Evidence from lawsuits and organizational changes at several fund companies also suggests that reducing the threat of sexual harassment improves productivity. Our results have important implications for the policy debate on workforce diversity and costs of sexual harassment. |
| Keywords: | sexual harassment,mutual fund performance,gender discrimination,organizational frictions,human capital |
| JEL: | G23 J21 J71 M50 |
| Date: | 2019 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:cfrwps:1903&r=all |
| By: | Massimo Mariani; Alessandra Caragnano; Marianna Zito |
| Abstract: | The relationship between corporate governance and firm performance is still an open issue in the current academic debate. Some studies have investigated if and to what extent board diversity may influence corporate performance and according to the predominant opinion in the existing literature, diversity in boards is considered a valid way to improve firm performance through corporate governance mechanisms. In the last years board gender diversity has become a heavily debated corporate governance topic not only in the institutional environment, but also in the academic one. In this scenario, the presence of women on the board has been analyzed in order to underline potential advantages to be interpreted from an economic point of view as well as from an ethical and social one. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the aforementioned relationships, namely between board diversity, with particular reference to gender diversity, percentage of independent directors, age of board of directors, and financial performance focusing on European Green REITs specific industry. By taking a broader view, considering simultaneously corporate governance, environmental engagement and financial performance, we aim at contributing to the academic debate that have argued the financial performance improvement through the involvement in ESG practices. |
| Keywords: | board diversity; Corporate Governance; ESG factors; Financial Performance; Green REITs |
| JEL: | R3 |
| Date: | 2019–01–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arz:wpaper:eres2019_229&r=all |
| By: | Giuseppe Attanasi (Université Côte d'Azur, CNRS, GREDEG, France); Ylenia Curci (RECITS - FEMTO, UTBM, Belfort, France); Patrick Llerena (BETA, University of Strasbourg, France); Giulia Urso (Social Sciences, Gran Sasso Science Institute, L'Aquila, Italy) |
| Abstract: | Charness and Grieco (2019) have experimentally shown that financial incentives have a positive impact on individual creativity, but only in the case of “close” creativity, i.e., when there are constraints to the creative task that a subject has to accomplish. In this paper, we build on the same “close” creativity assignments of Charness and Grieco (2019) and analyze with undergraduate students and with experts in creativity the interplay between monetary incentives and group cooperation in creative assignments. We introduce a novel model of intrinsic vs. extrinsic motivation to group collaboration in creativity and run a theorydriven experiment to test our experimental hypotheses on the crowding out of intrinsic motivation due to extrinsic motivation to group creativity. We find more creativity in the group than in the individual treatment, apart when there are explicit monetary incentives to co-working (sharing ideas) in the creative assignment. Therefore, while Charness and Grieco (2019) show a positive interplay between monetary incentives (extrinsic individual motivation) and “close” creativity at the individual level, we provide evidence of a negative interplay between monetary incentives and “close” creativity at the group level (crowding out of intrinsic group motivation). Furthermore, and again in line with our model predictions, the latter effect is found more in the experimental sessions with experts in creativity than in those with undergraduate students. |
| Keywords: | Creativity, Group cooperation, Intrinsic Motivation, Extrinsic Motivation, Crowding out, Experiment |
| JEL: | I23 O31 O32 |
| Date: | 2019–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:gre:wpaper:2019-20&r=all |
| By: | Bellés Obrero, Cristina (University of Mannheim); Lombardi, María (Universidad Torcuato Di Tella) |
| Abstract: | We study the impact on student achievement of a nationwide teacher pay-for-performance program implemented in Peruvian public secondary schools in 2015. Schools compete in a tournament primarily based on 8th graders' performance in a standardized test, where the principal and teachers of the top 20 percent of schools receive a substantial bonus. We perform a difference-in-differences estimation comparing the internal grades of 8th and 9th graders of the same school, before and after the program. We find a precisely estimated zero effect on student achievement, and we reject impacts greater than 0.017 standard deviations, well below those previously found in the literature. We provide evidence against a series of potential explanations, and argue that this zero effect could be a consequence of teachers' uncertainty about how to improve their students' performance in the standardized test tied to the bonus. |
| Keywords: | education, teachers, incentives, compensation, Peru |
| JEL: | I21 M52 J4 |
| Date: | 2019–09 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp12600&r=all |