Private companies' engagement in the labour market integration of refugees: An exploratory study of the city of Stuttgart,Germany

Private companies of all sizes may engage in the integration of refugees into the labour market. Taking the case study of the highly industrialised German city of Stuttgart, this study explores the motivation of (a) private large-scale international enterprises including (automotive and high-tech companies) and (b) family-owned small- to medium-sized companies (private social enterprises, suppliers to the automotive industries, architecture, and engineering companies) to do so. The research further explores the companies' challenges, opportunities and the lessons learned throughout the process. Utilising the principles of Grounded Theory, a qualitative case study approach is applied with in-depth interviews with private companies, civil society, public private partnerships and experts. The findings show that the arrival of a large number of refugees during 2015/2016 has increased the engagement of the companies, increased their cooperation with other sectors, and has correspondingly led to some innovative initiatives in refugees' labour market integration and policy advocacy. The call for the engagement of the private sector and the existence of employment-related policies such as tolerated work permits (Ausbildungsduldung/Beschäftigungsduldung) were essential to create sufficient incentives for private companies to engage in the training and employment of refugees. However, the insecure residence permits and bureaucratic procedures in the public sector mostly discouraged their engagement. Our research shows that the two company types had different possibilities, different approaches towards refugees and faced different challenges while engaging in refugee labour market integration.     

Private security and military contractors: A troubling oversight

Though private military and security companies (PMSCs) have been addressed extensively in the literature, little research has been done on the contractors themselves, leaving us in the dark as to who these individuals are. In this article, we focus on the critical case of the United States armed services and argue that two broad developments have been converging that both point to the need for new, microlevel sociological research on the people who are involved in the global PMSC industry. To this end, we first draw from an extensive political science literature to illustrate the rise of the PMSCs and concomitant evolution of the security sector, while noting a new trend that points to the need for moving from the macrosocial to the microsocial level of inquiry. Second, we indicate the challenges contractors pose to the sociological paradigm of military professionalism: These suggest a need to move from the mesosocial to the microsocial level of inquiry. We conclude by reviewing the existing research on the demographics of the sector and then indicating the troubling gaps in our current understanding of this critical sector of the national security apparatus.     

From Boom to Bust: How Different Has Microfinance Been from Traditional Banking?

This article presents in‐depth analysis of developments in the microfinance sector before and after the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008, by comparing them with developments in the traditional banking sectors of emerging markets and developing countries. Its findings indicate that microfinance has been part of the same credit boom observed in the traditional banking sector, and that the boom was also fostered by substantial inflows of foreign capital. Further, that risks associated with credit booms in the traditional sector also evolved in the microfinance sector. The article comes to the conclusion that, by becoming part of the global financial system, microfinance has lost one of the characteristics distinguishing it from traditional banking, namely, its greater resilience to crises in domestic and global financial markets.     

The negative effects of construction boom on urban planning and environment in Turkey: Unraveling the role of the public sector

Construction sector is usually accepted as the engine that triggers economic growth due to its strong backward and forward linkages with other sectors. On the other hand, it is also argued that increased construction activity could end up with negative economic, social and environmental impacts. The literature emphasizes the role of public sector, especially the national governments in minimizing the negative impacts of construction activity. The related arguments mostly postulate that public sector is well aware of the environmental challenges caused by construction activity and devoted to the understanding of how to improve the sustainability performance of private developers. Yet the case of Turkey provides significant evidences to question these assumptions. In this respect, this paper elaborates on the negative impacts of increased construction activity in Turkey and argues the role of public sector in intensification of the negative environmental effects through deregulation on urban planning and housing production by public agencies. The findings of the research highlight the importance of sustainable construction and verify the need for mainstreaming of sustainable construction into public policy-making at national and local levels, especially in developing countries, where most, if not all, of the future urban population growth will take place.     

Innovation by nonprofit organizations: Policy and research issues

It is often claimed that a main reason public authorities and others use nonprofit organizations is that nonprofit organizations are innovative. But very little research has been conducted into innovative behavior by nonprofit organizations. How, then, does a funder formulate a policy with which to select innovative organizations? This article develops a classification matrix for types of innovations, sets out the elements of an innovation policy for a funder, and uses a review of the main theories of the spurs and inhibitions to innovation to consider how this ordering can be used in the construction of an innovation policy and as a framework for research.     

基于教师科研工作的高职学生创新能力培养

在示范性院校建设以后,科研是提升高职院校办学水平的重要方面。针对目前高职教师科研工作的困境以及高职学生创新能力培养不足的问题,分析了高职学生参与教师科研工作的可行性,提出了基于教师科研工作的高职学生创新能力培养方式和对高职学生创新能力的评价方法。     

Effect of Multiemployer Collective Bargaining on Employer-Provided Health Insurance in the Construction Industry

Research on employer provided health insurance has shown that worker characteristics, wages and unionization influence the prevalence of health insurance. Using the SIPP, this research confirms that these factors are also important in the construction industry. However, in this volatile industry populated by small firms, the institution of collectively bargained multiemployer health trust funds provides an additional impetus for the delivery of health insurance by exploiting cross-firm economies of scale in the purchase of health insurance services and reducing the barriers to health insurance created by firm-labor turnover through the creation of cross-employer portable health benefits that do not require multiple probation periods and tolerate spells of unemployment. Additionally, while there is a countercyclical pattern of health coverage in the nonunion sector associated with the shedding of marginal workers and contractors in the downturn, this countercyclical pattern is not present in unionized construction. The greater insurance coverage of marginal unionized workers facilitated by multiemployer trust-fund efficiencies means that the shedding of marginal workers in the downturn does not disproportionately shed workers who are not covered by insurance.     

The role of corporate image and extension similarity in service brand extensions

In this article we examine the role of corporate image in extending service brands to new and traditional markets in the telecommunications sector. With regards to corporate image, service brand extensions are primarily associated with innovation-related attributes, such as order of entry (i.e., pioneers versus followers). Increasingly, firms are extending their services to markets that are beyond the markets that they traditionally have been active in. The results of an experimental study show that consumers evaluate service extensions by providers with an innovative late mover image more favourably that service extensions by companies with a pioneer image in terms of perceived corporate credibility and expected service quality. With regards to these evaluation criteria, it was also found that consumers prefer service brand extensions to related rather than unrelated markets. In addition we find that the relative distance between service providers with an innovative late mover image and pioneers is larger in related markets.     

Sustainability reporting patterns of companies listed on the Johannesburg securities exchange

The demand by stakeholders for information about companies’ social and environmental performance has led to sustainability reporting becoming essential. The Global Reporting Initiative (GRI) guidelines are the international reporting standard whereas the Johannesburg Securities Exchange Socially Responsible Investment (JSE SRI) Index guidelines are used in South Africa. Although South Africa is regarded as one of the leaders in sustainability reporting in the world, the JSE SRI Index is still a relatively new standard and its efficiency will only be proved over time. The research on which this paper is based, determined whether reporting patterns exist across specific market sectors of the sustainability reports of companies listed on the JSE in order to establish if the JSE SRI Index guidelines on reporting are efficient. Results indicated that all the selected market sectors reported on the environment, society and governance (ESG) categories as per requirements of the JSE SRI Index. The mining and materials sector reported more in the environment and the society categories than the other sectors, while in the governance category less reporting on indirect impacts by all the sectors was noted. The implication of this is that in general, companies find the JSE SRI Index guidelines on reporting easy to implement. However, less reporting of companies’ indirect impacts on their operating environments could mean that there is still a lack of completeness and transparency from the companies’ reports, which could be as a result of a lack of firmer guidelines by the JSE SRI Index guidelines on reporting of such issues.     

社会组织创新研究述评

公民社会部门的出现是20世纪最重要的社会创新,是一场深刻的“全球结社革命”。社会组织研究国外源远流长,著述丰硕,影响深远;国内在社会管理体制创新的推动下,社会组织创新日渐吸引眼球。整体来看,研究的学科、研究的领域、研究的成员在不断增多,研究趋势渐从社会组织管理创新的思想观念、创新路径、管理体制、困境与出路等方面,逐渐转向推进社会管理创新的政治和社会层面,以期促进各种认同的和谐共生关系的形成。     

Applying Z-score model to distinguish insolvent construction companies in China

Fierce competition in the construction industry in China in recent years has brought many challenges to construction contractors. It is important that any potential company insolvency be recognized at the earliest opportunity. Using financial ratios and the Altman Z-score modelling methodology, an insolvency warning model is developed in order to evaluate the performance of construction contractors in China. The model derived from this study has consistent predictability based on a three-year window of data. It combines seven financial ratios, covering a company’s finance of operation, profitability, solvency and cash flow. A single performance index is derived to differentiate whether a company has good financial standing or exhibits characteristics of insolvent companies. A mechanism to detect insolvent contractors is proposed for sustaining corporate development in construction. It is recommended for a contractor to develop a complete precaution system of financial crisis and have a regular checking of the key financial ratios as well as operation status so as to avoid insolvency.     

Using a community-created multisite evaluation to promote evaluation use across a sector

Multisite evaluation has been cited as a strategy for building knowledge about a program's success and enhancing evaluation capacity and evaluation use. Even so, the extent to which data from these efforts are made available to individual project participants varies. This article describes a community-created multisite evaluation that was designed to overcome this limitation. Based on the negotiated centralized evaluation model and implemented within the context of a community of practice, the EvalFest community-created multisite evaluation has used shared measures to collect data from 30,000 participants from partner sites across the community over three years. This article describes the design characteristics of the community-created multisite approach, and presents results related to partners’ evaluation use that demonstrate the early success of this method. We conclude by considering how this strategy might be applied to other sectors.     

上海新金融发展的总体思路研究

近年来,随着经济体制改革的不断深化,我国的金融机构从一元化到多元化,金融机构之间、金融机构与实体经济部门之间的合作日益明显,合作创新的金融工具不断涌现。我国金融创新系统逐渐由独立创新阶段向合作创新阶段转化。为了避免金融创新系统陷入低效锁定的状态,我国在建设和发展金融创新系统时应考虑以下问题:注重新金融系统的整体科学设计,强调政府主导的强制性创新与微观创新主体主导的诱致性创新的结合,重视新金融系统的环境建设。     

An exploratory study on the conditions of health, safety and environmental affairs of very small and small-size enterprises in Brazil

This paper focuses on the reality of very small and small enterprises (VSSEs) in Brazil, concerning health and safety management of their workers. These companies tend to operate in a few administrative levels. The owners' health and safety culture is fundamental for the implementation of preventive measures. The VSSEs end up adopting merely reactive and under-the-law actions. In order to understand such reality, a questionnaire was elaborated especially for the research made. Fifty-five very small and small enterprises of the industrial, commercial and service sectors were selected. The research confirmed the reactive attitude shown by the VSSEs, thus demonstrating that none of the companies involved presented policies of safety and health. Even though not holding policies, programs or scopes of their activities, 22% of them revealed to have a clear definition of the responsibilities of their high level administration. Nevertheless, 10% had financial resources allocated to this sector. Such companies do not count on a frequent safety and health support. The ignorance on it leads them to take a reactive action. This study reaches its objective on contributing to the debate, besides indicating that the way to improvement is on the strict cooperation between governments, companies, workers and society.     

基于应用导向一体化项目教学的研究与实践——以电气自动化技术专业为例

基于应用导向一体化项目教学的研究与实践,按照以应用为导向,结合地方经济,建设符合地方经济特色的专业和课程体系,课程建设以一体化项目教学为核心,搭建一体化课程教学平台;按照加强创新意识和创新能力培养的思路,改革课程体系和教学内容,构建一种以学生为本、以能力培养为取向、以探究为特征的教学模式、创建创新素质培养平台,拓宽创新培养渠道,在教学内容、教学方法、教学场所、教学过程、教学评价中实现一体,为高技能创新人才培养提供实践平台。     

以城市全面创新推动上海“十二五”转型发展

本文主要研究“十二五”时期上海发展面临的背景和要求,提出阶段性特征、发展主线和关键抓手。从国际来看,全球经济和发展格局加速调整,中国地位快速崛起,提高了上海集聚全球资源的能力;从国内来看,经济向内转和自主创新模式初现,要求上海加速发展方式转变;从上海自身来看,“十二五”期间上海进入“四个中心”建设和发展方式转变的关键突破期,是集聚全球资源和区域联动发展的历史机遇期,也是社会转型和城市软环境提升的重要实现期。要实现转型发展,必须推动城市全面创新——思想创新、模式创新、制度创新、载体创新、社会创新和文化创新,凸显战略转型、求新求变和思想大解放的要求。     

生产性服务业发展的体制性障碍研究

生产性服务业在创新模式和创新产品的市场检验方面与制造业都有显著不同,为了实现生产性服务业的创新功能,这类服务业逐渐演化出一套高效率的组织模式,表现为弹性化、网络化和扁平化的明显特征。因此,生产性服务业对政府行政管理体制具有特殊要求。针对我国政府对行业管理的特征及其对生产性服务业创新抑制的体制性障碍,提出政策建议。     

Health Insurance and Worker Retention in the Construction Industry

Using samples of blue collar construction workers from the 1996 and 2001 SIPP, a shared frailty survival model shows that controlling for wages, occupational and demographic factors, both portable union and nonportable nonunion employer-provided health insurance increase the probability of worker retention within the construction industry. Portable union health insurance increases the probability of worker-industry retention by 30 to 41% compared to 13 to 18% for nonunion employer-provided insurance. Our research suggests that by encouraging industry retention, health insurance preserves and encourages the accumulation of human capital in a turbulent industry with high firm-and-industry-labor turnover and also may reduce worker disabilities by immediately treating medical problems. Furthermore, in the union sector of construction where health insurance is portable across signatory contractors, the problem of job-lock inefficiencies is reduced.     

OFFSHORING PRODUCTION: A SIMPLE MODEL OF WAGES,PRODUCTIVITY, AND GROWTH

We examine the relationship between offshoring and the labor market in an occupational choice model of trade and endogenous growth where workers are employed on the basis of their individual skill levels. Trade liberalization leads to offshoring and reduces employment in the manufacturing sector. Displaced workers move into traditional and innovation sectors according to their skill levels, shaping real wages and aggregate productivity in the manufacturing sector. The paper aims to show how inter‐sectoral labor market adjustments, highlighted by skill heterogeneity, could be a possible explanation for the simultaneous rise in productivity and reduction in real wages that have coincided with the sharp escalation of offshoring activities in the U.S. manufacturing sector since 2004. (JEL F16, F23, J24)     

Measuring the innovation ability of Taiwan's food industry using DEA

The ability of companies to meet consumer expectations depends greatly on their ability to innovate and deliver new products at competitive prices. This research study is designed to determine the key innovation factors of Taiwan's food industry and draws on a questionnaire to collect data about its innovativeness. Data Envelopment Analysis (DEA) revealed the most and the least innovative products among our sample group. Strategies of how to improve the products’ innovativeness are proposed. Our study contributes to the food industry in Taiwan by determining a set of factors for innovativeness, presenting outstanding examples from the researched industry that can be used as a benchmark by other food companies or as a reference for other industries in other countries. Finally, innovativeness improvement strategies for Taiwan's food industry are proposed, taking company size into consideration.