Ownership concentration,contestability, family firms,and capital structure

This study analyses the distribution of power among the several blockholders of a firm and the identity of those blockholders as a determinant of firm leverage. Using a sample of 694 firms from 12 Western European countries, our results support a negative relationship between ownership concentration in the hands of the main blockholder and firm leverage. Moreover, we detect that the presence of a second and third large shareholder (beyond the first blockholder) has a significant positive effect on the leverage ratio. In addition, the results show that contestability in family firms plays a more relevant role. Finally, we show that family firms do have significant impact on firm leverage level, and this impact varies depending on the legal framework and institutional environment. In our main sample the results show family firms negatively affect market leverage, supporting the theory that family firms are more averse to an increase in the debt level due to the risk of bankruptcy and financial distress as a result of having an under-diversified portfolio. In contrast, the opposite effect is found in the sample that excludes the United Kingdom. This last result cannot be explained by agency theory, given that family businesses are those that suffer less from Type I agency problems. This result suggests either some difficulty in financing their investments by issuing new equity or the need to use debt as a signal of the quality of its investments. Our results prove to be stable against a battery of robustness tests.     

Determining anthropometric variables as a tool in the preparation of furniture and designs of interior spaces: the case of children 6 to 11 years old of Vicosa, State of Minas Gerais, Brazil

The adequacy of facilities and the individual securities in their different age groups is importance to ensure greater functionality to them, allowing full development of daily activities. For this to occur more efficiently it is necessary the use of ergonomics which can ensure more comfort and safety for end users of products and spaces. The present study aimed to measure body dimensions of a representative sample of children aged 6 to 11 years old, children of graduate and pos graduate students, faculty and staff of the Federal University of Vicosa and also residents of the city of Vicosa, State of Minas Gerais, Brazil, coming from different municipalities of State of Minas Gerais, to organize a database that will provide the furniture industry, anthropometric variables more appropriate to design products for both the leisure activities, and for the school sector. To realize this research we used the methodology proposed by the authors Panero and Zelnik, based on samples distributed in six age groups, and providing a measurement of 10 variables. By applying the methodology to the field was possible to compare the observed data, with the tables of the aforementioned authors. The main results revealed a significant variation of the 10 variables analyzed, and it is believed that this variation could lead to possible flaws in the designs of products that use the data from these authors. The completion of the study provided data on Vicosa considered more appropriate for the design of products and environments for the population of the study, considering age and region, of Brazil (State of Minas Gerais) and it is believed that the future may expand to the Brazilian population, with the progress of study of this nature.     

Complexity properties of complementary prisms

The complementary prism \(G\bar{G}\) of a graph G arises from the disjoint union of the graph G and its complement \(\bar{G}\) by adding the edges of a perfect matching joining pairs of corresponding vertices of G and \(\bar{G}\). Haynes, Henning, Slater, and van der Merwe introduced the complementary prism and as a variation of the well-known prism. We study algorithmic/complexity properties of complementary prisms with respect to cliques, independent sets, k-domination, and especially \(P_3\)-convexity. We establish hardness results and identify some efficiently solvable cases.     

The Portuguese Disinflation Process: Analysis of Some Costs and Benefits

This study aims to analyse the Portuguese economic policy of disinflation through a nominal stabilization policy of the Portuguese escudo. We study the pegging of the Portuguese escudo to the deutschmark knowing the reputation of the Bundesbank for its anti-inflationary record. The acceptance of German monetary policy allowed the Portuguese economy to achieve its primary goal of price stability. The nominal stability policy of the escudo may serve as an example for other small economies that may be presently involved in the European integration process such as the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Poland and Slovenia.

The Effect of Networks on the Selection of Migrants and Destinations: Colombians in Galicia (Spain)

This article presents findings from a research project on Colombian transnational migration to a secondary and peripheral region of Spain. The transnational character of our object of study means that our methodology is mainly of an anthropological nature. But our analysis is also guided by demographic data and theories, so it can be considered a sample of work in the new field of anthropological demography. The article’s main purpose is to explore migration network effects on inflows, given the weakness of other pull factors. We believe that local or regional levels of analysis might reveal other aspects about migration determinants that get lost at the national level. Moreover, the links between migrant networks and the size of immigration flows should be more evident at the regional level of analysis. Both statistical data analysis and ethnographic evidence point to the same conclusion: network dynamics do not sufficiently explain inflows behaviour, nor migration strategies and Colombians migrants’ interaction in destination. Instead, we can infer the importance of powerful push factors, and of migration history and social change in the country of origin. A transnational mother profile plays a relevant role in the analysis of this case and of cumulative causation theory. Gathered testimonies and observed evolution of Colombian migration to Spain and Galicia suggest the activation of feminised networks and the inhibition of family reunification.     

Increased of Brazilian productivity in the slaughterhouse sector: a review

Due to Brazil is a tropical country has activities in occupational exposure to cold restricted to few sectors especially the meatpacking industry. Taking into account that the country in 2010, was again the largest exporter of poultry meat in the world and consequently employing a large number of workers for their slaughter and processing. The search for greater productivity can result in an increase in work rate, as indicated in this sector as monotonous, repetitive and uncomfortable. According the Programa de Frigorífico it was found that within six years, about 20% of the six thousand workers in a slaughterhouse in southern Brazil, received welfare benefits due to musculoskeletal diseases. Adding to this, the lack of parameters for the Brazilian standardization concerning occupational activities carried out in cold. Although several epidemiological studies point to the cold as a risk factor for occurrence or aggravation of musculoskeletal disorders, research in this field is still limited and often contradictory conclusions. This article aims to review developments concerning the poultry industry and the fridge in Brazil, as well as raising the question about the increased productivity of the slaughterhouse, since it has already shown a high prevalence of musculoskeletal disorders related to work.     

Influence of habitat type and distance from source area on bird taxonomic and functional diversity in a Neotropical megacity

The Neotropical region has been subjected to massive urbanization, which poses high risks for some global biodiversity hotspots and losses of ecosystem functions and services. In this study, we investigate how distance from large patches of native forests (source areas) and vegetation (green)/and infrastructure (gray) characteristics affect bird species richness and functional diversity in São Paulo megacity, southeastern Brazil. We analyzed the effects of source areas and green/gray characteristics on species richness and functional diversity (richness, evenness, and divergence) indices. We detected 231 bird species, and our data confirmed our predictions: (1) bird species richness in urbanized habitats was found to be (~?50–85%) lower than in source habitats; (2) species richness and trait composition significantly decreased as the distance from the source area increased, while functional richness was not affected by this metric; and (3) shrub and herbaceous covers and maximum height of trees were positively correlated with species richness and unique functional traits regarding habitat, diet, foraging and nesting strata and dispersal ability of birds in the forest-urban matrix. The number of buildings was negatively correlated with bird species richness and functional richness. Maximum height of buildings caused dramatic declines in functional evenness. Functional divergence was notably lower in sites with high shrub cover. Our study stresses the complexity of vegetation embedded in large Neotropical urban settlements and the need to maintain large protected areas surrounding megacities to mitigate the impacts of urbanization on birds.

     

An overview of occupational accidents notification systems within the enlarged EU

This paper describes a comparative analysis of the official forms used for reporting occupational accidents within the EU-27 member states. The comparison is based on two analysis grids (coding schedule) created to that effect, which incorporate a set of evaluation criteria and an interpretation key. The results obtained in the analysis allowed for attention to be drawn to the relevant attributes of such forms in terms of their content and format/structure. It also revealed the main similarities and differences between each country, providing a complete assessment of the 27 member states. The discussion gives account of the level of implementation of the "new" Eurostat variables within the European Statistics of Accidents at Work (ESAW). Furthermore, the study shows that certain formats (structure of information fields) appear to facilitate completeness of the information collected. It has also demonstrated that the European harmonisation process is still far from completion, although the newcomer states seem to be adjusting quickly to the process. The findings of this study may bring useful insights to national authorities and European policy-makers, or to employers/enterprises wishing to implement their internal procedures aligned with the ESAW methodology. The scientific community is another interest group, whose research relies on official statistics, preferably comparable across all countries.