Language as Both Human Capital and Ethnicity1

In this study, we estimate earnings differentials for knowledge of thirteen minority languages in Canada's three largest urban area. We find that conditional on knowledge of a majority language, knowledge of a minority language is associated with lower earnings. However, the negative differential diminishes for those languages with large local populations. This suggests a positive human capital effect which is for the most part swamped by a negative factor. We argue that this factor is a reflection of ethnicity operating either through ethnolinguistic labor market enclaves or labor market discrimination against minorities.     

Which Child Immigrants Face Earnings Disparity? Age‐at‐immigration,Ethnic Minority Status and Labour Market Attainment in Canada

Using Canadian Census microdata from 1990 to 2005, we investigate the earnings attainment of immigrants to Canada in 6 age‐at‐arrival cohorts. In comparison to past work we extend our understanding regarding three dimensions of the age at immigration debate: we explore heterogeneity across fine grained age‐at‐arrival cohorts, over a fifteen‐year period and across different ethnic groups. We find that white immigrants and female immigrants arriving in Canada prior to age 18 face little earnings disparity. In contrast, visible minority male immigrants face significant earnings disparity regardless of their age‐at‐migration, and additionally this disparity increases sharply with age‐at‐migration. We find a break in earnings attainment at an age‐of‐arrival of 17, with immigrants arriving after this age performing much worse than those arriving at this age or earlier. The patterns observed are found for visible minority immigrants as a whole, and for Chinese, South Asian and African/Black origin immigrants examined separately.     

Causal Flow between Human Well-being and per Capita Real Gross Domestic Product

Whether a country should try to improve human well-being of the masses or should concentrate solely on economic upliftment of the country is an alarming question in development economics. Survey of literature evidences a number of views in this respect. Present study uses the lagged dependent variable model to address the question. It attempts to find causal priority between human well-being and per capita gross real product (an indicator of economic achievement of a country). In this context it uses three core indicators of human well-being life expectancy at birth, infant survival rate and adult as well as three broad income groups: high, middle and low.     

EXAMINING THE EXTERNALITY OF UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE ON CHILDREN'S EDUCATIONAL ACHIEVEMENT

I exploit differences in the generosity of unemployment insurance (UI) benefits across states and over time to investigate the link between UI and children's academic achievement. Estimates show that a 1% increase in maximum weekly UI benefits reduces the probability that a child repeats a grade by around 0.03 percentage points. The effect is concentrated among children of low‐ and middle‐income families. This paper's findings, which are the first in the literature to show evidence of a positive effect of UI on children's educational outcomes, provide insight into the role of UI in the human capital accumulation of children. (JEL I20, I38, J65)     

English and discourses of commodification among tourism workers in the Himalayas

In this article, I investigate commodification discourses and ideologies of English from the perspective of Nepali tourism workers. Drawing data from interviews with porters and trekking guides in Nepal, I argue that English is not seen as merely a transactional means to convey meaning; it works in combination with the traditional form of labor and care in the local economy, establishing itself as a powerful tool to establish closer interpersonal relationships, enhance such interpersonal relationships for economic gains and commodify local identities and cultures in the tourism market. The interview and ethnographic details show that language learners are agentive and capable of making sense of their actions by positioning themselves variously in terms of ethnicity, economic class and job category. These workers think that tourists' linguistic and financial resources are the empowering tools that enable them to travel to locations that they want. They also want to empower themselves with English skills and translocal imaginaries to travel and see the world beyond their immediate reach. Repertoires in English are considered as instruments to mediate their imaginaries and the foreign worlds they want to be part of.     

Making quality a fundamental part of strategy

All that is known about strategy and strategic planning indicates that quality is a major factor in gaining competitive advantage. It is cost effective, profitable, promotes corporate longevity and builds an important company value system. The authors argue that is too important a factor to be left solely to quality control personnel or planners and is a fundamental part of the chief executive's responsibility for the development of strategy.     

Measuring the Well-Beings of the Developing Countries: Achievement and Improvement Indices

The paradigm of development in the recent days has been shifted from Per Capita Gross National Product (PCGNP) to Human Well-being. It has also been admitted broadly that PCGNP does not automatically transformed into human well-being. It has thus become common practice to use a range of socio-economic variables for measuring the human Well-being (quality of life) in a country. In order to measure the well-being of about 70 developing countries, this study widens the scope of the Physical Quality of Life Index (PQLI) introduced by Morris, by incorporating a number of social aspects of life. On the basis of these indicators, the achievements in the quality of life of these countries are analyzed in this study. An attempt is also made to compare the decadal improvements in their performances in respect of the quality of life over a period of 1960 to 1990. The study also attempts to analyze the relations between achievements and improvements of quality of life and achievements and improvements in terms of PCRGDP of the countries.     

On the total sojourn time of particles in semi-markov compartmental system with branching particles

We consider a semi-Markov compartroental system with branching particles, Me study the total sojourn time of all the particles and obtain the asymptotic behaviour of its mean. We also discuss some special systems.