Regional labor markets during deregulation in Indonesia : have the Outer Islands been left behind?

Indonesia's labor markets, especially on the island of Java, have been transformed in the past 30 years, especially since liberalization picked up speed in the mid-1980's. The author explores the regional dimensions of that transformation. In some other countries, when labor markets changed, disparities among regions occurred. In Indonesia, when the employment structure changed markedly, real wages rose not only in Java-Bali, but also in most Outer Island provinces. Wages have grown more rapidly in Java-Bali, but labor in the Outer Island provinces has enjoyed large gains, the result of the rapid economic growth that came during deregulation. Among Outer Island provinces, Northern Sumatra and the poorer Eastern Island provinces have experienced substantial growth, while the Kalimantan provinces have lagged in manufacturing employment and wages. Labor market outcomes have also been less favorable in land-abundant provinces that received many assisted migrants during Indonesia's earlier oil boom. The author concludes that export-led industrialization concentrated in Java-Bali has helped change the labor market and income growth outside Java-Bali also. Improved wages and the shift of labor out of agriculture also partly reflect the government's continuing support for infrastructure and human resource development in the Outer Island provinces.Public Health Promotion,Banks&Banking Reform,Environmental Economics&Policies,Health Monitoring&Evaluation,Labor Policies,Health Monitoring&Evaluation,Governance Indicators,Achieving Shared Growth,Banks&Banking Reform,Environmental Economics&Policies

Corporate Real Estate Research within the Academy

This study discusses the uniqueness and importance of corporate real estate asset management and distinguishes it from third party real estate investment management. A decline in corporate real estate research within the academy from 1995 through 1998 is documented and contrasted with the increasing research activity and interest in this area since 1995 by both consultants and trade associations. Reasons to account for this mismatch are canvassed from within the academy and offered herein. Finally, important questions about the future direction of corporate real estate research are posed.

Lessons from the Past and Future Directions for Corporate Real Estate Research

This study seeks to answer several questions about corporate real estate research. The first, Where should corporate real estate research be focused in the future? is addressed by a proposed alternative corporate real estate research framework that differs from what has been followed in the past. A second question that follows from the first is then addressed: Given such an alternative research framework, what types of corporate real estate issues merit research consideration? Finally, a third closely related question is then examined: Which research methodologies, databases and statistical tools are likely to prove useful to academic researchers seeking promotion and tenure, as well as corporate executives and others interested in better understanding the impacts of corporate real estate decisions?

Legislating for labour protection: betting on the weak or the strong?

This paper approaches the subject of labour standards from the standpoint of domestic labour market circumstances rather than international norms. The paper assesses government approaches to improving standards in the context of Indonesia’s daunting ‘employment challenge’, and the capacity of institutions to implement reform since the fall of Soeharto. The discussion of recent reforms is divided into two parts: the affirmation of basic rights and freedoms, and legislation for the protection ‘Survival’ and ‘Security’ Rights. We find that while the protection of labour freedoms is long overdue, there is mounting evidence that regulation of setting labour standards in the modern sector benefits the few with ‘better’ jobs. It penalises many less fortunate Indonesians in the informal sector and agriculture, and also younger, new job seekers. Owing to a significant improvement in Basic and Civil Rights, the compliance regime in relation to labour standards has altered dramatically in recent years. This has closed the gap between rhetoric and reality: between formal ratification and the actual impact of labour regulations on labour costs, while giving no obvious boost to productivity. It is of concern especially in those internationally labour-intensive industries such as textiles footwear and clothing TCF, where Indonesia has had a comparative advantage in the past

Toxic workplaces impact health professionals

Demand for resilience leaves them feeling a failure for not being able to cope, writes Chris Mannin

Devising a Corporate Facility Location Strategy to Maximize Shareholder Wealth

Location decisions should consider all related impacts upon a firm’s shareholder wealth. Overall, firm cost savings available at alternative locations need to be carefully examined in addition to a location’s impact on corporate sales revenues. This article reviews relevant literature, discusses recent location decision considerations for several companies and empirically tests a model seeking to measure the impact corporate relocation decisions have upon shareholder wealth. In addition, a classification and listing of corporate location considerations is put forth to supplement the anecdotal illustrations discussed herein. Together these represent a "primer" for professionals and executives involved in corporate facility location decisions.

Minimum wages and poverty in a developing country: simulations from Indonesia’s household survey

This study focuses on the efficiency of minimum wage policy for poverty reduction, taking Indonesia as a case study. A simulation approach assesses who benefits and who pays for minimum wage increases. On the benefits side, the rise in minimum wages boosts incomes in households with low wage workers. However, increases in wage costs are passed on through higher consumer prices. As a result, three out of four poor households lose in net terms, even when we assume no job losses. The findings suggest that minimum wages are unlikely to be an effective antipoverty instrument, at least for Indonesia

The Ultraviolet Attenuation Law in Backlit Spiral Galaxies

(Abridged) The effective extinction law (attenuation behavior) in galaxies in the emitted ultraviolet is well known only for actively star-forming objects and combines effects of the grain properties, fine structure in the dust distribution, and relative distributions of stars and dust. We use GALEX, XMM Optical Monitor, and HST data to explore the UV attenuation in the outer parts of spiral disks which are backlit by other UV-bright galaxies, starting with candidates provided by Galaxy Zoo participants. Our analysis incorporates galaxy symmetry, using non-overlapping regions of each galaxy to derive error estimates on the attenuation measurements. The entire sample has an attenuation law close to the Calzetti et al. (1994) form; the UV slope for the overall sample is substantially shallower than found by Wild et al. (2011), a reasonable match to the more distant galaxies in our sample but not to the weighted combination including NGC 2207. The nearby, bright spiral NGC 2207 alone gives accuracy almost equal to the rest of our sample, and its outer arms have a very low level of foreground starlight. This "grey" law can be produced from the distribution of dust alone, without a necessary contribution from differential escape of stars from dense clouds. The extrapolation needed to compare attenution between backlit galaxies at moderate redshifts, and local systems from SDSS data, is mild enough to allow use of galaxy overlaps to trace the cosmic history of dust. For NGC 2207, the covering factor of clouds with small optical attenuation becomes a dominant factor farther into the ultraviolet, which opens the possibility that widespread diffuse dust dominates over dust in star-forming regions deep into the ultraviolet. Comparison with published radiative-transfer models indicates that the role of dust clumping dominates over differences in grain populations, at this spatial resolution.Comment: In press, Astronomical Journa

Attitudes Towards Vaccination Among Medical Students: A Two-Site Study

Introduction: Mandatory immunization for school age children in the 20th Century led to a substantial decline in infectious disease. All US states allow medical exemptions from immunizations with 49 permitting additional religious exemptions and 19 permitting additional philosophical exemptions. Vaccine exemptions have lead to an increase in the incidence of disease outbreaks. Healthcare providers play a critical role in educating parents about the benefits and risks of immunizations. This project compares student attitudes and knowledge regarding vaccination at medical schools in two distinct states: one with no additional exemptions (West Virginia) and one with both additional exemptions (Vermont).https://scholarworks.uvm.edu/comphp_gallery/1218/thumbnail.jp