Do employer preferences contribute to sticky floors?

We investigate the importance of employer preferences in explaining Sticky Floors, the pattern that women are, compared to men, less likely to start to climb the job ladder. To this end we perform a randomised field experiment in the Belgian labour market and test whether hiring discrimination based on gender is heterogeneous by whether or not jobs imply a promotion (in comparison with employees’ current position). We find that women get 33% less interview invitations when they apply for jobs implying a first promotion in functional level. On the other hand, their hiring chances are not significantly affected by the job authority level of the job

Me, myself, and I: self-citation rates are higher in individualist cultures than in collectivist cultures

Citing your own work when publishing a paper may be seen as a way of promoting yourself in academia, as how frequently a paper is cited is often viewed as a measure of its importance. Previous studies have shown that male authors are more likely than their female counterparts to cite themselves, arguably one of the reasons men continue to dominate the academic profession. Reporting on recent research, Nick Deschacht finds that authors from western, individualist cultures are more likely to use many self-citations than authors from more collectivist cultures. Findings demonstrate the need for academic institutions to be aware of the cultural and gendered nature of self- promoting behaviour when making hiring and promotion decisions

Diffusion et migration de l'eau polluée le long des plages belges: nouvelle expérience avec rejet de 100 kg de rhodamine B: conclusions préliminaires

A solution of one hundred kilograms of B rhodamine was introduced in a sewer which discharges into the sea. The dispersion of the discharge was observed and located by means of 4 optical theodolites and by air photographs. Water samples were collected in the coloured plume and on its boundaries during a whole tidal cycle. They were analysed by spectrofluorimetry. The results demonstrate the complexity of the factors that affect water movements. The drift seems to be mainly due to the wind. The predominating winds contribute to maintain the waste water closely to the water line over a distance of several miles

Subsidized Household Services and Informal Employment: The Belgian Service Voucher Policy

Labour markets for personal and household services (PHS) are rife with informal employment. Some policies aim to combat informality in PHS with subsidized service vouchers, but their effects are poorly documented. This contribution evaluates the Belgian service vouchers (1) documenting their formalization effectiveness, and (2) accounting for the persistence of informal employment. To this end, we exploit several types of data and methods. A first analysis, based on Eurobarometer data, brings in evidence that informal PHS purchased were approximately halved under the policy introduced in 2001. Second, a discrete choice experiment shows that households prefer formal employment, including those that currently employ informally. Third, a survey in the Brussels metropolitan area shows that the persistence of informal employment lies in the relationship of informal employers with their domestic, from whom they are not willing to part. They nevertheless intend to switch to formal employment in the case of turnover. One thus expects partially delayed effects of formalization policies in general, and of the service voucher system in particular. Overall, these results are in line with Portes' claim that informality is facilitated by strong social relationships, and by differences in price and transaction costs

Spatial mismatch, education and language skills in the Brussels metropolis : an analysis = Mauvais appariement spatial, niveau de scolarité et connaissances linguistiques dans la métropole bruxelloise : une analyse = Ruimtelijke mismatch, scholing en talenkennis in de Brusselse metropool : een analyse

Spatial mismatch, where job seekers do not live where jobs can be found, can be an important barrier on the labour market, especially for vulnerable groups. In this study we look at the role that spatial mismatch plays in the Brussels metropolis. Using an improved benchmark, the distance-weighted spatial mismatch index, that also considers location-driven mismatch, we compare the spatial mismatch between the high- and low-skilled labour market and the labour market for the low-skilled with and without language skills. In the largest possible definition of the Brussels metropolis, results show a spatial mismatch of up to 50 % larger for the low-skilled, in comparison with the high-skilled. For the low-skilled without language skills, the spatial mismatch is 115 % higher than for the low-skilled with language skills. This difference is mainly due to a relative surplus of low-skilled job seekers (without language skills) in the Brussels Capital Region and a relative shortage in the first belt of municipalities around the Region