Exploitation in Contemporary Capitalism: An Empirical Analysis of the Case of Taiwan

Abstract

Using data for manufacturing firms in Taiwan, we developed a measure of exploitation and analyzed its prevalence in the labor force. Our results indicated that almost two-thirds of the firms in our sample exploit at least some of their workers. For these firms, the average profit rate is 34 percent, but three-fourths of this figure derives from the expropriated wages of their workers. Female and blue-collar workers are the largest groups that are underpaid relative to their productivity (that is, exploited). Managers, professionals, and workers with seniority are not exploited by our definition because our data showed that these groups are paid according to the market value of their productivity, at least on average. Our analysis demonstrates the feasibility of the empirical investigation of exploitation, which should be further considered in future research.     

Funding Civil Society? Bilateral Government Support for Development NGOs

Research on the determinants of foreign aid tends to focus on the relationship between donor country priorities and recipient state characteristics, but donors also make decisions about which organizations and programs within countries will receive assistance. Although NGOs increasingly have been recipients of foreign aid, few data are available to investigate which organizations within a given country receive that funding. Donors may prioritize structural characteristics of NGOs or their local ties—or they may seek a combination that blends concern about efficiency and accountability with an interest in developing national civil society. We use original data from Cambodia to explore whether aid is likely to go to managerial organizations (professionalized NGOs and NGOs that utilize modern management tools) or to organizations that are embedded in the domestic context. We argue that managerialism provides legitimacy for NGOs by signaling capacity and accountability to donors, increasing the likelihood of government funding. We argue that local embeddedness also confers legitimacy by aligning community ties and networks to rights-based development, increasing the likelihood of government funding. We find general support for the managerialism argument, but donor agencies do not prioritize direct funding for “indigenous” NGOs—not even among those with high levels of managerialism.     

中国西部地区的优势与薄弱所在

西部大开发,是中国国民经济建设生产力宏观布局的战略性转移,是以江泽民同志为首的党中央根据邓小平同志关于我国现代化建设两个大局的战略思想,高瞻远瞩、统揽全局、面向新世纪作出的重大决策,是党中央把东部沿海地区的发展与中部、西部地区的开发结合起来,相互支持、相互促进,实现中国关于国民经济建设的重点逐步由东向西转移,其旨在于达到东部、中部、西部三个地区共同繁荣.这一决策既重大又英明,既现实又深远,既为西部地区带来了千载难逢的历史机遇,又是对西部地区经济跨入新世纪新技术产业化的挑战,作为西部地区应抓住机遇、利用机遇,发展自己.     

Does Remittance Outflow Stimulate or Retard Economic Growth?

This article evaluates the association between remittance outflow (RMO) and economic growth in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. The results of this evaluation indicate that RMO Granger creates gross domestic product (GDP) per capita in three countries, namely, Bahrain, Oman and Saudi Arabia. Similarly, the results for causality from GDP per capita to RMO are significant for four countries, namely, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia. The findings differ from those of the household consumption model, stating that higher RMO will decrease economic activity. GDP per capita is the main determinant of RMO, suggesting that economic growth promises and encourages continuous RMO and vice versa. The adverse impact of RMO can be minimized by encouraging the local population to be productive in the private sector, as local productivity will reduce the huge influx of foreign workers and provide valuable local investment opportunities to lessen the amount being remitted.     

The Economic Assimilation of African Immigrants in the United States

This article examines the puzzle that the earnings of African immigrants do not match their high qualifications in terms of educational attainment. We apply cohort analysis to compare the economic assimilation patterns of black African immigrants with that of black non‐African immigrants. We find results that are consistent with the idea that the lower earnings of African immigrants are due to greater difficulty with skill transferability. Africans face substantially lower earnings at entry than black natives and black non‐African immigrants, although they close a substantial part of the initial earnings gap over time. Moreover, the earnings gap at entry has narrowed for recent cohorts; and Africans who migrate during childhood and those with no college education face no disadvantage. We also find similar patterns of assimilation in labour supply and participation in welfare programmes, which indicate that Africans face greater challenges at entry but assimilate at a faster rate.     

百般风情中国

盘扣或称盘钮,是传统中国服装使用的一种纽扣,用来固定衣襟或作为装饰。盘扣虽小,却包含了中华民族的独特的文化内涵。近几年,盘扣作为一种传统的服饰手段又风靡一时,依然以极强的生命力丰富和美化着人们的生活。     

中国女性60年的发型变迁

60年光阴荏苒,中国女性的发式变化越来越丰富,从建国之初流行的简单发式到如今兼容并包、变化多样,与世界时尚同步的各种美丽发发型,     

Working mothers’ decisions on childcare: the case of Spain

This paper aims to analyze household decisions regarding the childcare of young children. We present two specifications. The first one assumes a sequential decision process. Firstly, parents choose between paid or unpaid care and, secondly, those who opt for paid childcare must decide whether to take their children to a nursery or pre-school or employ somebody to care for them. The second specification is a multinomial Logit in which it is assumed that parents choose from three alternatives: unpaid care, paid care by a nanny, and center-based care. We apply our models to a sample of working mothers with children under three. The database used is the 2008–2010 Spanish Survey of Quality of Working Life (Encuesta de Calidad de Vida en el Trabajo). The results are in line with previous work: Parental education, family composition, income and the characteristics of the mother’s job are important factors in determining the type of childcare chosen for under-three-year-olds.     

存在领导者的自组织群组评价技术及应用

针对传统群组评价中存在的主客观约束问题和领导者的“超权威”效应,本文提出了一种存在领导者的自组织群组评价技术.首先,群组专家进行选择性评价,以克服客体不同质对主体造成的认知困境;其次,根据评价的信度与效度修正专家意见,并通过自回归函数进行迭代,使其与领导者意见达成一致,以避免因时间限制或专家不愿修改意见而对评价活动产生影响,另外,根据加权后的一致性意见进行评价,能兼顾领导者的权威性与群组成员表达的充分性;最后,给出了应用实例.结果表明本文方法简单、可操作,更有利于大规模群组评价活动的开展.