An optimized model for substitution of expatriate workforce in a Gulf-Council country: the Kuwaiti case

"This article is based on data from a research project carried out during 1992-1994 to achieve a replacement mechanism and a model for the substitution of expatriate labour by Kuwaiti nationals. Since Kuwait can readily enforce its Kuwaitization policy in the public sector, the presented model aims at reducing the share of non-Kuwaitis in that sector over five years. Published data on distribution of the workforce in the public sector by nationality indicate that the non-Kuwaiti share of the total workforce is 38 per cent. The majority of [migrant] workers are unskilled or semi-skilled and engaged in production, commerce and services. Sex ratios are unbalanced and workers exhibit a high rate of literacy...." (SUMMARY IN FRE AND SPA)     

A labor of love: The impact of same-sex marriage on labor supply

Review of Economics of the Household - We study how the average labor supply of gay men and lesbian women responds to the legalization of same-sex marriage in the United States. We exploit...     

Foreign workers in Kuwait: implications for the Kuwaiti labor force

An analysis of the foreign population in Kuwait shows that foreign nationals make up 60 percent of the population and 78 percent of the labor force in Kuwait. The implications of these figures for the Kuwaiti labor force are discussed by analyzing the occupational structures of Kuwaitis and non-Kuwaitis. "Structural analysis of the labor force indicates that 62 percent of Kuwaiti males are concentrated in administrative and service occupations while their percentage in sales and production work has declined during 1970-80. This demonstrates the need for reorienting educational/training programs and changing Kuwaiti attitudes towards manual work to ensure the realization of the 'Kuwaitization' process, and balance the nationals with foreign nationals." mortality has stabilized at relatively high levels and there is resistance to family planning. The author concludes that the main cause of the stalling of the demographic transition process is to be found in the role of the state and the dynamics of the social structure and that "demographic trends will depend more on the changes in social structure, land reforms, and response of the formal governing system to the needs of the underprivileged sections of the society, rather than on the health and family planning policies."     

The impact of labor shortage on the employee commitment

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this article is to demonstrate the impact of the shortage of labor on individuals’ workplace attitudes, strangely their commitment. It is beneficial for organizations to develop their management strategies in view of employees’ loyalty attitudes. As a conceptual paper, the article contains a theoretical deduction. The characteristics of the labor market (macro level), the organizational needs and responses (meso level), and the set of the employees’ commitment (micro level) are linked to a theoretical process. According to our results, the average levels of the different dimensions of employee commitment will be changed in the future. The levels of continuance commitment and professional commitment will be higher, while the levels of deliberate commitment and affective commitment will be lower in the employee commitment profiles. By increasing continuance commitment and professional commitment, the toolkit of the HR strategy needs to be transformed to make it more relevant external motivation tools and training-development solutions. Meanwhile, it is important to note that the interactions among the employees will be less frequent and they will have less affection for their workplace. Labor shortage transforms individuals’ workplace attitudes. Understanding of employees’ decisions to maintain their organizational membership is supported by the relationships found in this research.     

The impact of labor migration on the Jordanian economy

"This article considers the effects of labor migration on the economy of the East Bank of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan. The article is presented in two sections. The first attempts to quantify the external migrant flows which impinge on the Jordanian labor market. The second section presents a theoretical model of the macroeconomic impact on output and employment of flows of migrants and migrants' remittances and an empirical analysis of the effects on the agricultural and construction sectors."     

Altruism from the house: the impact of home equity on charitable giving

This paper exploits the dramatic increase in house prices in early 2000 and the panel nature of the data to investigate the effect of home equity on charitable giving. Using the Panel Study of Income Dynamics from 2001 to 2007, we find that a 10% increase in home equity increases a household??s contributions to charity by almost 1%. This is in contrast to the effect of non-housing wealth, which we estimate to be one tenth the magnitude. Our results are consistent with the consumption literature that reports a distinct effect of housing wealth that is significantly larger than that of financial wealth.     

The impact of organized labor on public employment: A comparative analysis

This paper examines the political economy of public employment, specifically the impact of labor unions on public employment across 20 OECD nations during the 1965–1983 period. A theoretical paradigm based on exchange theory is used to explain the rationale for organized labor’s role in public employment. A model is then presented and tested to explain variation in public employment levels across the 20 nations. The results of the analyses support the central hypothesis that labor union power is positively correlated with public employment. Following the data analysis, the conclusions and implications of the findings are discussed as they pertain to the political economy in advanced industrial democracies.     

The impact of labor unions on the passage of economic legislation

This paper examines the political power of labor unions. A model of the decision of an interest group to contribute to a political campaign is developed and tested. The empirical evidence indicates that interest groups, and unions in particular, use political contributions in a systematic and coordinated manner. Unions give money to candidates with relatively little seniority (who might otherwise not be elected) and to candidates from districts with about the average number of union members. Such candidates might otherwise not vote as the union would desire. The influence of campaign contributions and of union membership on the voting of congressmen on issues of interest to unions is also investigated. Union membership is sometimes significant and campaign contributions are always significant in explaining voting on minimum wages, wageprice controls, benefits for strikers, and OSHA and CETA appropriations. The indirect economic effects of labor unions — those effects which occur because unions influence legislation — may be as important as the direct effects which occur through collective bargaining.     

The impact of the social environment on nursing home residents

This study contrasted the experienced quality of life of residents living on one of two nursing home units: a unit for those considered socially intact and a unit combining residents who had moderately impaired cognition or physical function with those requiring skilled nursing or therapy. Qualitative interviews were held with residents of both units. The findings indicate that the social environment of each of the units played a fundamental role in the residents' quality of life. The social environment affected the residents' conceptions of self, their interactions with other residents and their interactions with the nursing staff. The article suggests the processes behind the social environment of each floor that may have resulted in different perceptions of the quality of life.     

Real estate in the home country: Why Polish migrants keep properties in Poland

Real estate is often the most visible contribution that emigrants add to their home country's landscape. Such properties serve different functions, from rental investments, through migrant families' homes, to holiday homes or empty spaces. Economists often view real estate through financial lens, frowning upon vacant houses. I argue that keeping vacant houses is often caused by social and emotional factors rather than financial ones. This article uses data from 120 qualitative interviews with Polish EU migrants and juxtaposes them with the typology of remittance houses proposed by Boccagni and Erdal. The data, combined with the theoretical perspective of Neoclassical Economics, New Economics of Labour Migration, and Grzymała-Kazłowska's concept of social anchoring, allow me to improve the typology. The updated typology systematises the functions of and reasons why migrants keep properties in their home countries and provides a sound frame for future research and policymaking.     

The influence of legal status on the labor market impact of immigration

This article explores US labor market changes that would take place as a result of an amnesty that would regularize the status of undocumented workers without changing the total size of the alien workforce. The theoretical analysis suggests that the influence of legal status on market wage rates and on minimum wage enforcement is weak and that to the extent that there is an effect, it depends on particular institutional arrangements. Although data are not adequate for a definite measurement of these effects, those data that are available support this conclusion. It appears that the presence of undocumented as opposed to resident aliens can weaken union organizing efforts.     

Free agents’ impact on the labor market for baseball players

This paper evaluates the 1976 free agent rule’s impact on the labor market for baseball players. Free agency has specific consequences for monopsonistic exploitation and racial discrimination in salary determination. It reduces monopsonistic exploitation for all players and increases salary opportunities for black and Latino players. However, this change in a player’s status vis-à-vis a team has generated salary disparities among players based, not on race, but bargaining position. I would like to thank Linda Kammann, Mary O’Brien, and Benjamin Preston for their research assistance. Also I wish to thank John Siegfried and an anonymous referee for their comments. I remain solely responsible for the contents of this paper.     

New working conditions and consequences on activity of home healthcare workers

Home healthcare is steadily growing in Europe. There are a number of reasons for this development: aging population, rising hospital costs, preference to stay in one's own home. Nevertheless, it has been known that home healthcare workers are frequently exposed to a variety of potentially serious occupational hazards. Furthermore, emotional labor is frequently high in this profession. This paper describes an ergonomic study conducted at a home healthcare service. The research focuses on analyzing working conditions of home healthcare aides and nurses, as well as the impacts of their work in terms of job satisfaction, well-being, emotions at work, relationships with the others and occupational stress. The study show that employee strategies are specifically centered around preserving the relationship between patients and workers and coping with the job demands. This paper also shows that home healthcare workers express emotions and conceal them from others. Finally, recommendations discussed with the manager and workers to improve working conditions in this sector led to practical proposals: for example, implementing certain equipment items better suited to difficult care, encouraging assistance between healthcare workers when operations require this through adequate organizational measures, extending work emotion-focused discussion groups with management involvement.     

Managing a depressed and suicidal loved one at home: impact on the family

This qualitative study examined the process families use to care for a depressed and suicidal family member at home. The grounded theory method was used for data collection and analysis. Seventeen family members were interviewed. The data revealed the basic social process of Maintaining Vigilance Through Managing, which depicts an ongoing, cyclical process that begins at a point of not knowing. Family members then move on to identifying, then gaining awareness, followed by knowing or understanding. This allows them to take action, then to proceed to watching and waiting. They then return to gaining awareness armed with new knowledge or understanding. It is at this point that the process becomes cyclical. It varies in intensity over time, depending on the level of depression and the risk for suicide. To preserve the integrity of these families, nurses must help develop strategies to guide them through this process as they care for their depressed and suicidal loved one.     

Structural changes in the receiving country and future labor migration--the case of Kuwait

This article describes changes in the volume, age and sex composition, retention, productivity, types of occupation, and economic sector of the labor force in Kuwait. The focus is on the structural changes in the indigenous labor force. Data were obtained from censuses and labor force surveys during 1965-93. Policies after the 1990 invasion pertained primarily to security of public employment sector among natives. Over 98% of private sector employment is among non-Kuwaitis. Government programs support high fertility. Female illiteracy has declined, and the proportion of women with a higher education has increased. Natives comprised 20.4% of the total labor force in 1993. About 90% of native males work in the public sector. 45% of total male employment is in the production sector. Around 50% of non-Kuwaiti males have been employed in production work over the decades. Over 90% of Kuwaiti females in 1993 worked in professional or clerical work. Over 50% of total female labor force participation is in the service sector. Concentration in the public sector increased for Kuwaitis and declined for non-Kuwaitis. Labor force participation declined with increasing age. Retirement benefits encouraged early retirement. The private sector is experiencing the departure of long-term migrants and more rapid turnover of labor. Hours of work are longer in the private sector. Kuwait is still dependent on foreign workers in the production and service industries. It is likely that native male workers will replace foreign workers in professional work and administrative/clerical work. Policies that will assure future reliance on imported labor include the assurance of government jobs for Kuwaitis, retirement rules, and the profitability of the trade in labor.