A Return of the Threshing Ring? Motivations, Benefits and Challenges of Machinery and Labor Sharing Arrangements

Cooperative approaches provide an alternative for small- and medium-sized producers to obtain the efficiencies of large farming operations and remain competitive in an increasingly concentrated agricultural industry. This article examines the motivation and effectiveness of equipment and labor sharing arrangements in the Midwestern US. Case study evidence shows that in addition to cost savings, access to skilled, seasonal labor is an important motivation for farm-level cooperation. Key factors identified for successful cooperative agreements include compatibility of operations and members' willingness to communicate and adapt. Sharing resources is found to improve farm profitability, efficiency and farmers' quality of life.machinery sharing; skilled farm labor; productivity; farm-level cooperations

Boss competence and worker well-being

Nearly all workers have a supervisor or ‘boss’. Yet little is known about how bosses influence the quality of employees’ lives. This study is a cautious attempt to provide new formal evidence. First, it is shown that a boss’s technical competence is the single strongest predictor of a worker’s job satisfaction. Second, it is demonstrated in longitudinal data -- after controlling for fixed effects -- that even if a worker stays in the same job and workplace a rise in the competence of a supervisor is associated with an improvement in the worker’s well-being. Third, a variety of robustness checks, including tentative instrumental-variable results, are reported. These findings, which draw on US and British data, contribute to an emerging literature on the role of expert leaders in organizations. Finally, the paper discusses potential weaknesses of existing evidence and necessary future research

Building Jobs in Iowa: New Deal Dams of the Wapsipinicon River Watershed in Northeast Iowa

https://ir.uiowa.edu/osa_pubs/1013/thumbnail.jp

Unraveling complexity in changing mental health care towards person-centered care

BackgroundMental health care (MHC) needs to shift towards person-centered care to better meet people’s individual needs. Open Dialogue (OD) is well-aligned with this perspective and brings it into practice. This study focuses on exploring the change process within a pilot project involving three MHC teams as they transition to a person-centered OD practice. Our aim is to identify and reflect on the challenges faced by MHC professionals in adopting person-centered care, and shedding light on the underlying complexity of these challenges. By gaining a better understanding of these obstacles, we hope to contribute to the adoption of the person-centered approach in MHC practice.MethodsOur research employed a qualitative design, involving a total of 14 semi-structured interviews with MHC professionals who were either trained in OD, OD trainees, or MHC professionals without OD training. To analyze the data, we utilized a hybrid approach that combined deductive – and inductive thematic analysis.ResultsWe identified four distinctive challenges: (1) understanding and knowledge transfer, (2) (inter)personal process, (3) emotional discomfort, and (4) the need for multi-stakeholder participation and support. In practice, these challenges intersect and the appearance of and relationships between these challenges are not linear or disentangleable.ConclusionUpon careful consideration of these interdependent challenges, it became evident that embedding a person-centered approach like OD brings about systemic change, leading to an unfamiliar situation X. The research findings indicated that understanding and conveying the concept of person-centered care in practical settings poses significant challenges. The field of knowledge management helps to capture the complexity of understanding and transferring this knowledge. The change process necessitates an (inter)personal process and elicits emotional discomfort, as person-centered OD practice confronts a deeply entrenched paradigm in MHC. Achieving a shared understanding of person-centered care requires dedicated time and attention, while introducing this approach prompts broader discussions on underlying values and human rights in MHC. Current implementation efforts may underestimate or overlook these underlying values, but initiating an open dialogue can serve as an initial step in addressing the complexities

Analytical Bethe Ansatz for A2n−1(2),Bn(1),Cn(1),Dn(1)A^{(2)}_{2n-1}, B^{(1)}_n, C^{(1)}_n, D^{(1)}_n quantum-algebra-invariant open spin chains

We determine the eigenvalues of the transfer matrices for integrable open quantum spin chains which are associated with the affine Lie algebras $A^{(2)}_{2n-1}, B^{(1)}_n, C^{(1)}_n, D^{(1)}_n$, and which have the quantum-algebra invariance U_q(C_n), U_q(B_n), U_q(C_n), U_q(D_n)$, respectively.Comment: 14 pages, latex, no figures (a character causing latex problem is removed

Do Women Ask?

Women typically earn less than men. The reasons are not fully understood. Previous studies argue that this may be because (i) women ‘don’t ask’ and (ii) the reason they fail to ask is out of concern for the quality of their relationships at work. This account is difficult to assess with standard labor-economics data sets. Hence we examine direct survey evidence. Using matched employer-employee data from 2013-14, the paper finds that the women-don’t-ask account is incorrect. Once an hours-of-work variable is included in ‘asking’ equations, hypotheses (i) and (ii) can be rejected. Women do ask. However, women do not get

Do Women Ask?

Females typically earn less than males. The reasons are not fully understood. This paper reexamines the idea that women ‘don’t ask’, which potentially assigns part of the responsibility for the gender pay gap on to female behavior. Such an account cannot readily be tested with standard data sets. This paper is the first to be able to use matched employer-employee data in which workers are questioned about their asking behaviour. It concludes that males and females ask equally often for promotions and raises. The paper’s empirical results suggest, however, that while women do now ask they ‘don’t get’

Quantum Group Invariant Supersymmetric t-J Model with periodic boundary conditions

An integrable version of the supersymmetric t-J model which is quantum group invariant as well as periodic is introduced and analysed in detail. The model is solved through the algebraic nested Bethe ansatz method.Comment: 11 pages, LaTe

Comparison of the ActiDes-Blue and CARELA HYDRO-DES technology for the sanitation of contaminated cooling water systems in dental units

Background: The hygienic-microbiological control of 6 dental units being in use for the past 16 years revealed a significantly increased microbial contamination of their cooling water system. In order to comply with the requirements of the drinking water directive (“Trinkwasserverordnung”), the commercially available production system ActiDes, producing on-site ActiDes-Blue which is based on hypochlorous acid (HOCl) and generated by anodic oxidation, was investigated