Ioannis Theodossiou

Measuring the Utility Cost of Temporary Employment Contracts Before Adaptation: A Conjoint Analysis Approach

This study attempts to estimate the ‘utility cost’ of temporary employment contracts purged of the psychological effects of adaptation. A conjoint analysis experiment is used that examines the ex-ante contract preferences of a unique sample of low-skilled employees from 7 European countries. It is shown that permanent contract holders request a significant wage premium to move to a temporary job. In contrast, temporary workers are indifferent between permanent and temporary contracts, ceteris paribus. The evidence suggests that individuals have a psychological immune system which neutralises events that challenge their sense of well-being, such as job insecurity. The methodology developed in this paper can provide policymakers with an alternative and relatively inexpensive method of quantifying the transitional loss (or gain) in welfare that individuals might experience in response to changing labour market policies.

The effects of low-pay and unemployment on psychological well-being: A logistic regression approach

The paper explores the relationship between unemployment and mental distress. The analysis draws upon data from the 1992 British Household Panel Study (BHPS). Six different measures of mental distress are used. Controlling for a number of individual characteristics, unemployed individuals are found to suffer significantly higher odds of experiencing a marked rise in anxiety, depression and loss of confidence and a reduction in self-esteem and the level of general happiness even compared with individuals in low-paid employment. This finding highlights the involuntary nature of unemployment. The results also suggest that all six measures of psychological well-being are lower in middle age compared with younger and older age groups. In addition, women appear to be less affected by unemployment than men.

Some are punished and some are rewarded: a study of the impact of performance pay on job satisfaction

Purpose – To investigate whether significant differences exist in job satisfaction (JS) between individuals receiving performance‐related pay (PRP) and those on alternative compensation plans.Design/methodology/approach – Using data from four waves (1998‐2001) of the British Household Panel Survey (BHPS), a Heckman‐type econometric procedure is applied that corrects for both self‐selection of individuals into their preferred compensation scheme and the endogeneity of wages in a JS framework.Findings – It is found that while the predicted JS of workers receiving PRP is lower on average compared to those on other pay schemes, PRP exerts a positive effect on the mean JS of (very) high‐paid workers. A potential explanation for this pattern could be that for lower‐paid employees PRP is perceived to be controlling, whereas higher‐paid workers derive a utility benefit from what they view as supportive reward schemes.Research limitations/implications – As the study utilises data from the UK only, its results cann...

Are Recessions Harmful to Health After All?: Evidence from the European Union

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to investigate the effects of national unemployment rates on overall age and cause-specific mortality rates in a panel sample of 13 European Union countries. Design/methodology/approach - A fixed-effects model is used to control for unobserved time-invariant characteristics within countries. In addition, controls such as lifestyle risk factors, urbanisation and medical intervention indicators, for potential confounders are used. Findings - Contrary to some recent evidence this study shows that there is a strong, positive relationship between adverse economic conditions and mortality. This is in contrast to findings about the US case. Originality/value - This paper revisits the issue of the unemployment-mortality relationship by utilising fixed effect models with controls for various indicators that are expected to affect mortality, in contrast to previous studies.

Earnings Mobility, Family Income and Low Pay

For policy purposes it is important to establish both the nature of the low-paid workforce at any point in time and ability to obtain better paid jobs through mobility within the earnings distribution over time. In particular, two important issues are the extent to which low pay is a transient phenomenon for any particular worker and the extent to which low pay is associated with low family incomes and therefore poverty. We attempt to examine both aspects making use of the first three waves of the British Household Panel Survey (BHPS).

Job satisfaction and Target Earnings

The starting point of this paper is the idea that individuals are characterized by hierarchical behaviour. This idea, which is quite popular in other social sciences, implies that the individual sets priority targets which are ordered in terms of urgency or importance. The paper tests the hypothesis in the context of a utility-from-work framework. In particular, the paper uses data on a random sample of British workers who report levels of satisfaction from their work. The empirical results indicate the presence of hierarchical behaviour. In particular, workers earning below the target level get more satisfaction than those earning above the target level.

The Economics of Health and Safety at Work: An Interdiciplinary Review of the Theory and Policy

This paper engages in an interdisciplinary survey of the current state of knowledge related to the theory, determinants and consequences of occupational safety and health (OSH). It first describes the fundamental theoretical construct of compensating wage differentials, which is used by economists to understand the optimal provision of OSH in a perfectly competitive labour market. The plethora of incentives faced by workers and firms in job and insurance markets that determine the ultimate level of OSH are discussed in detail. The extensive empirical evidence from the hedonic wage and stated choice approaches used to assess the value of OSH is reviewed. The causes of inefficiency and inequity in the market for OSH, such as externalities, moral hazard in compensation insurance, systematic biases in individual risk perception/well‐being and labour market segregation are subsequently examined. The implications of government intervention and regulation for tackling the aforementioned inefficiencies in OSH are then considered. Finally, the survey identifies areas of future research interests and suggests indicators and priorities for policy initiatives that can improve the health and safety of workers in modern job markets.

An overview of commercial fishers’ attitudes towards marine protected areas

Marine protected areas (MPAs) are attracting widespread attention worldwide as a tool for fishery management and marine ecosystem conservation. The establishment of MPAs has increased greatly in recent years mostly due to international commitments to the establishment of a global network of MPAs by 2012. MPAs have the potential to strongly affect the fishing industry, and their success depends, at least partly, on fishers’ attitudes towards this management measure. However, research on MPAs tends to focus on the ecological and conservation aspects of this management approach and not on its human dimensions. Studies in attitudes, perceptions, beliefs and preferences related to MPA issues have been identified as priority social science topics in need of research. We present a ‘rapid review’, conducted systematically, of the literature published up to September 2009 and aimed at identifying the most investigated topics related to commercial fishers’ attitudes towards MPAs, describing the main findings from these studies, and analysing the implications for management. Most published work focuses on fishers’ attitudes towards issues of governance, conservation of biodiversity and the environment, and the impact of MPAs on fishing activity. Despite the recent increase in the literature on the human dimensions of MPAs, the present review reveals that little of this literature originates from empirical studies. Hence, given the forthcoming increase in the implementation of MPAs in the near future, research on fishers’ attitudes towards these management measures is critically needed.

Low Pay and Earnings Mobility in Europe

The widening earnings dispersion which is developing in European labour markets has had the inevitable consequence of worsening the position of the poorer members of society. This book identifies those individual characteristics which affect upward mobility either by increasing or decreasing the probability of individual workers improving their chances of earning higher wages. The authors, including some of the leading labour economists in Europe, offer a comprehensive European perspective covering a total of thirteen countries. They shed new light on the way in which labour market incentives and institutions affect both the incidence and duration of low-paid employment.

Factors Affecting the Job-to-joblessness Turnover and Gender

This paper explores gender differences with respect to the factors affecting the job-to-joblessness turnover. It casts light on the characteristics of those men and women who experience the highest propensity of their job ending in joblessness, taking into account the reasons for the job loss. The findings highlight the determinants of gender differences in labour turnover patterns.