Richard Disney, Amanda Gosling and Stephen Machin
De‐unionization has been one of the most significant features of the British labour market in the 1980s. All conventional measures of union presence and power vividly demonstrate…
Abstract
De‐unionization has been one of the most significant features of the British labour market in the 1980s. All conventional measures of union presence and power vividly demonstrate this. The proportion of British establishments which recognised manual or non‐manual trade unions for collective bargaining over pay and conditions fell by almost 20% (from 0.67 to 0.54) between 1980 and 1990; the proportion of workers covered by a collective agreement fell from 0.71 in 1984 to 0.51 in 1990 (Millward et al., 1992); aggregate union membership fell from 13.2 million in 1980 to 9.9 million by 1990; the corresponding fall in aggregate union density was from 54% to 38% (and it has continued to fall post‐1990). The longer time series profile of aggregate union density (defined as the number of union members divided by the total workforce) is very dramatic. The 1980s declines have completely reversed the gains achieved in the 1970s and union density now stands at its lowest level for 30 years.
At the start of the 1990s trade unions were reeling from a decade of Thatcherism, in which their density amongst employees had been whittled down to 35% by 1990. Several…
Abstract
At the start of the 1990s trade unions were reeling from a decade of Thatcherism, in which their density amongst employees had been whittled down to 35% by 1990. Several explanations for the decline have vied for attention: the changing composition of industry and of the economy generally, with more part‐time work, fewer large‐scale establishments, the collapse of manufacturing industries and so on; the changing legal environment; the distinctly uncongenial macroeconomic environment, which with lowish inflation and mass unemployment was a discouragement to membership (see for example Disney, 1990; Green, 1991). Such explanations have varying implications for unions' future prospects. For example, if the changed level environment were the key factor, one would predict a further decline of union membership in the 1990s, unless there were a change of government and a wholesale repeal of Thatcherite trade union laws (which is not to be expected). A distinction has been drawn in the literature between the structural factors that determine the social context in which individual employees make their decisions with regard to union membership, and the varying preferences that individuals may have in favour of or against unions. Attempts have been made to show that despite years of attacks from Thatcherism, it is not so much the attitudes and commitment of workers to unions that has changed, as the opportunities that they face. Thus it is said that for many the reason that they left unions is because unions simply were not available at the new workplaces (Gallie, 1989).
The Convention signed at Lomé on 28 February 1975 between the nine members of the European Economic Community and forty‐six developing countries, known as the ACP States, has been…
Abstract
The Convention signed at Lomé on 28 February 1975 between the nine members of the European Economic Community and forty‐six developing countries, known as the ACP States, has been hailed as an important advance in economic cooperation between rich and poor nations. Not only has the number of countries associated with the EEC been raised from the nineteen involved in the earlier Yaoundé Convention, but the ACP countries as a group now appear to enjoy more favourable provisions for trade and aid than those obtained under earlier agreements. Among the new ACP States is Ethiopia, a country neither connected with the EEC through previous arrangements nor having any historical links with Europe apart from a brief period of colonial rule by the Italians during 1936–41. The objective of this paper is to examine the implications of the provisions of the Lomé Convention in relation to Ethiopia. In addition to addressing the major question of local concern, i.e. whether or not Ethiopia is likely to benefit from association, a case study of this country is of more widespread interest. The lessons for Ethiopia may be applicable to other countries with similar circumstances. In addition, on the grounds of absolute poverty the Lomé Convention provides preferential treatment in some areas for certain of the least developed ACP countries, of which Ethiopia is one. The likely benefits of association for Ethiopia may serve, therefore, as an indicator of the extent of the EEC's commitment to assisting the ACP States, and the least developed in particular.
Charitable Choice Policy, the heart of President Bush’s Faith‐Based Initiative, is the direct government funding of religious organizations for the purpose of carrying out…
Abstract
Charitable Choice Policy, the heart of President Bush’s Faith‐Based Initiative, is the direct government funding of religious organizations for the purpose of carrying out government programs. The Bush presidential administration has called for the application of Charitable Choice Policy to all kinds of social services. Advocates for child‐abuse victims contend that the Bush Charitable Choice Policy would further dismantle essential social services provided to abused children. Others have argued Charitable Choice Policy is unconstitutional because it crosses the boundary separating church and state. Rather than drastically altering the US social‐policy landscape, this paper demonstrates that the Bush Charitable Choice Policy already is in place for childabuse services across many of the fifty states. One reason this phenomenon is ignored is due to the reliance on the public‐private dichotomy for studying social policies and services. This paper contends that relying on the public‐private dichotomy leads researchers to overlook important configurations of actors and institutions that provide services to abused children. It offers an alternate framework to the public‐private dichotomy useful for the analysis of social policy in general and, in particular, Charitable Choice Policy affecting services to abused children. Employing a new methodological approach, fuzzy‐sets analysis, demonstrates the degree to which social services for abused children match ideal types. It suggests relationships between religious organizations and governments are essential to the provision of services to abused children in the United States. Given the direction in which the Bush Charitable Choice Policy will push social‐policy programs, scholars should ask whether abused children will be placed in circumstances that other social groups will not and why.
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This paper presents an autobiographical sketch of Philip Kotler.
Abstract
Purpose
This paper presents an autobiographical sketch of Philip Kotler.
Design/methodology/approach
I use an autobiographical narrative.
Findings
This sketch focuses on my contributions to the marketing discipline in teaching and, especially, in book publishing while including some of the many scholars who have collaborated with me.
Originality/value
This paper is a condensed sketch based on the full-length autobiography titled My Adventures in Marketing forthcoming on Kindle.
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John B. Williamson and Stephanie A. Howling
Most countries around the world base their old‐age pension programs largely on the pay‐as‐you‐go defined benefit (PAYGO DB) model. However, due to a number of factors including…
Abstract
Most countries around the world base their old‐age pension programs largely on the pay‐as‐you‐go defined benefit (PAYGO DB) model. However, due to a number of factors including population aging, the maturing of these schemes, rapidly increasing old‐age pension costs, and the perceived need to become more competitive in international markets, many nations have become increasingly concerned about the present (or projected future) economic burden of paying for the pension benefits promised by these schemes. This concern has led policy makers to look for alternative models. One of the most innovative alternatives to emerge during the past ten years is the notional defined contribution (NDC) model. In this article we describe this model and discuss some of the implications of a shift to this model for women and low‐wage workers. We conclude that in the industrial nations women and low‐wage workers are likely to do less well with schemes based all or in part on the NDC model because such schemes are typically designed to be less redistributive (from higher to lower income groups) than the PAYGO DB schemes they will be replacing. However, in developing countries the reverse will often be true as the NDC schemes are likely to be replacing PAYGO DB schemes that tend to redistribute from low‐income groups to higher income groups. Relative to funded DC schemes a major advantage of the NDC model is that it does not subject individual pension benefits to the volatility of financial markets. This issue is relevant to workers in both developed and developing nations, but it is a particularly important consideration in developing nations.
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Alan Carruth and Andrew Henley
Recent work on the econometric specification of the consumptionfunction by London Business School (LBS) forecasters has argued that theinclusion of a variable capturing movements…
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Recent work on the econometric specification of the consumption function by London Business School (LBS) forecasters has argued that the inclusion of a variable capturing movements in demographic structure is essential to the explanation of the recent sharp drop in the UK personal savings ratio. It is shown that the inclusion of demographic factors does not provide a model that is robust to alternative data formulations. On the contrary, an adequate explanation for recent movements in aggregate consumers′ expenditure can be found using the LBS data by specifying a consumption function that incorporates adjustment of income to control for the maintenance of the real value of asset holdings, following Hendry and Von Ungern‐Sternberg (1981).
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The purpose of this paper is to use the Health and Retirement Study to examine the social security (SS) claiming decision of older Americans, with a focus on the behavior of the…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to use the Health and Retirement Study to examine the social security (SS) claiming decision of older Americans, with a focus on the behavior of the unemployed.
Design/methodology/approach
Using a duration model first, and a bivariate probit framework then, the author investigates whether older unemployed individuals lacking liquidity use SS benefits as a safety net in order to finance consumption during an unemployment episode, even if they do not retire at the same time. In this way, SS might be thought as a form of unemployment insurance (UI) which would allow them to maintain their standard of living during their job search.
Findings
The author finds evidence of a claiming pattern specific to the unemployed: they claim sooner than full-time workers, even when they do not retire at the same time. They also seem to discontinue this behavior when their access to UI is extended, which gives support to the author’s hypothesis that the unemployed workers, who lack liquidity, claim their SS benefits even if they do not wish to retire, as a source of alternative unemployment benefits.
Originality/value
By focusing on the SS claiming behavior of the unemployed rather than on their retirement patterns, this paper sheds light on the social insurance role of SS retirement benefits for unemployed workers who are not willing to retire, but need a new source of income while they continue looking for a job.
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This case is set in the midst of the attempted takeover of Walt Disney Productions by the raider Saul Steinberg in June 1984. Disney's chief executive officer ponders whether to…
Abstract
This case is set in the midst of the attempted takeover of Walt Disney Productions by the raider Saul Steinberg in June 1984. Disney's chief executive officer ponders whether to fight the takeover or to pay “greenmail”. One significant influence on the decision is the “true” value of the firm. The case offers, either directly or through analysis of it, several estimates of value. The valuation question invites a review of Disney's past performance and current competitive position. Other significant influences on the decision are the ethics and economics of paying greenmail. The rich range of issues raised in the case (strategy, valuation, performance measurement, and ethics) makes it an effective first case, review case, or final exam in a corporate-finance course. A student worksheet file is available for use with this case.
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Espouses the Web with regard to the media and all its areas of relevance. Encourages and supports multinational forms of production as new but admits they may be no more…
Abstract
Espouses the Web with regard to the media and all its areas of relevance. Encourages and supports multinational forms of production as new but admits they may be no more sympathetic to social need and democratic practice than previous commercial media. Charts the market and the Web’s changes for commercial business.