Do Higher Wages Pay for Themselves? An Intra-firm Test of the Effect of Wages on Employee Performance

Conference: AAA 2015 Management Accounting Section (MAS) Meeting, AAA 2015 Annual meeting, Volume: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2482829This study uses field data from 490 hotels in a single lodging chain to investigate three questions related to the efficiency-wage hypothesis. (1) Does paying workers higher relative wages ex ante result in better ex post actual performance, either by motivating workers to exert greater effort or by attracting higher quality workers? (2) Is the magnitude of the relation between performance and wages the same when workers are overpaid versus underpaid? (3) Do the overall benefits of paying higher wages outweigh the costs? The data enable us to perform powerful tests of wageperformance relations because exogenous factors that likely affect employee behavior are standardized across hotels. Our results suggest that actual performance (measured by customer satisfaction, revenues, and profit) is increasing in the relative wage, and that higher performance is the result, and not the cause, of higher wages. We find that the magnitude of the wageperformance relation is at least as large for workers who are overpaid compared to those who are underpaid. This result, which differs from the results of experimental studies, suggests that overpaid workers do not rationalize away wage premiums. Finally, our results indicate that increases in wages do, in fact, pay for themselves. A $1,000 increase in the general manager’s relative wage results in a$1,080 increase in profit for the mean hotel. This research contributes to a series of studies that investigates the extent to which wages influence performance (e.g., Levine, 1992; Fehr and Falk, 1999; Hannan, Kagal, and Moser, 2002; Hannan, 2005), and whether the marginal benefit of wage increases justifies their costs (Levin, 1993)

Performance-Based Compensation in Member-Owned Firms: An Examination of Medical Group Practices

We examine the importance of agency considerations for the mix of salary and performance-based compensation in member-owned medical practices. Performance-based pay increases with the informativeness of clinical productivity measures, and declines with greater reimbursement from capitation contracts. Inexperienced physicians receive more compensation from salary, but compensation mix does not change as physicians near retirement. Larger practices and practices using outside management companies place more weight on performance-based compensation. However, when more physicians in the group practice the same specialty, less emphasis is placed on performance-based compensation. Finally, the presence of an executive partner has no influence on compensation mix

Mortality and pulmonary complications in patients undergoing surgery with perioperative SARS-CoV-2 infection: an international cohort study

Background: The impact of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) on postoperative recovery needs to be understood to inform clinical decision making during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. This study reports 30-day mortality and pulmonary complication rates in patients with perioperative SARS-CoV-2 infection. Methods: This international, multicentre, cohort study at 235 hospitals in 24 countries included all patients undergoing surgery who had SARS-CoV-2 infection confirmed within 7 days before or 30 days after surgery. The primary outcome measure was 30-day postoperative mortality and was assessed in all enrolled patients. The main secondary outcome measure was pulmonary complications, defined as pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome, or unexpected postoperative ventilation. Findings: This analysis includes 1128 patients who had surgery between Jan 1 and March 31, 2020, of whom 835 (74·0%) had emergency surgery and 280 (24·8%) had elective surgery. SARS-CoV-2 infection was confirmed preoperatively in 294 (26·1%) patients. 30-day mortality was 23·8% (268 of 1128). Pulmonary complications occurred in 577 (51·2%) of 1128 patients; 30-day mortality in these patients was 38·0% (219 of 577), accounting for 81·7% (219 of 268) of all deaths. In adjusted analyses, 30-day mortality was associated with male sex (odds ratio 1·75 [95% CI 1·28–2·40], p\textless0·0001), age 70 years or older versus younger than 70 years (2·30 [1·65–3·22], p\textless0·0001), American Society of Anesthesiologists grades 3–5 versus grades 1–2 (2·35 [1·57–3·53], p\textless0·0001), malignant versus benign or obstetric diagnosis (1·55 [1·01–2·39], p=0·046), emergency versus elective surgery (1·67 [1·06–2·63], p=0·026), and major versus minor surgery (1·52 [1·01–2·31], p=0·047). Interpretation: Postoperative pulmonary complications occur in half of patients with perioperative SARS-CoV-2 infection and are associated with high mortality. Thresholds for surgery during the COVID-19 pandemic should be higher than during normal practice, particularly in men aged 70 years and older. Consideration should be given for postponing non-urgent procedures and promoting non-operative treatment to delay or avoid the need for surgery. Funding: National Institute for Health Research (NIHR), Association of Coloproctology of Great Britain and Ireland, Bowel and Cancer Research, Bowel Disease Research Foundation, Association of Upper Gastrointestinal Surgeons, British Association of Surgical Oncology, British Gynaecological Cancer Society, European Society of Coloproctology, NIHR Academy, Sarcoma UK, Vascular Society for Great Britain and Ireland, and Yorkshire Cancer Research

A search for the dimuon decay of the Standard Model Higgs boson with the ATLAS detector

A search for the dimuon decay of the Standard Model (SM) Higgs boson is performed using data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb(-1) collected with the ATLAS detector in Run 2 pp collisions at root s = 13 TeV at the Large Hadron Collider. The observed (expected) significance over the background-only hypothesis for a Higgs boson with a mass of 125.09 GeV is 2.0 sigma (1.7 sigma). The observed upper limit on the cross section times branching ratio for pp -> H -> mu mu is 2.2 times the SM prediction at 95% confidence level, while the expected limit on a H -> mu mu signal assuming the absence (presence) of a SM signal is 1.1(2.0). The best-fit value of the signal strength parameter, defined as the ratio of the observed signal yield to the one expected in the SM, is mu = 1.2 +/- 0.6. (C) 2020 The Author(s). Published by Elsevier B.V

Measurement of hadronic event shapes in high-p T multijet final states at √s = 13 TeV with the ATLAS detector

A measurement of event-shape variables in proton-proton collisions at large momentum transfer is presented using data collected at s = 13 TeV with the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider. Six event-shape variables calculated using hadronic jets are studied in inclusive multijet events using data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb−1. Measurements are performed in bins of jet multiplicity and in different ranges of the scalar sum of the transverse momenta of the two leading jets, reaching scales beyond 2 TeV. These measurements are compared with predictions from Monte Carlo event generators containing leading-order or next-to-leading order matrix elements matched to parton showers simulated to leading-logarithm accuracy. At low jet multiplicities, shape discrepancies between the measurements and the Monte Carlo predictions are observed. At high jet multiplicities, the shapes are better described but discrepancies in the normalisation are observed. [Figure not available: see fulltext.

Alignment of the ATLAS Inner Detector in Run 2

The performance of the ATLAS Inner Detector alignment has been studied using pp collision data at v s = 13 TeV collected by the ATLAS experiment during Run 2 (2015-2018) of the Large Hadron Collider (LHC). The goal of the detector alignment is to determine the detector geometry as accurately as possible and correct for time-dependent movements. The Inner Detector alignment is based on the minimization of track-hit residuals in a sequence of hierarchical levels, from global mechanical assembly structures to local sensors. Subsequent levels have increasing numbers of degrees of freedom; in total there are almost 750,000. The alignment determines detector geometry on both short and long timescales, where short timescales describe movementswithin anLHCfill. The performance and possible track parameter biases originating from systematic detector deformations are evaluated. Momentum biases are studied using resonances decaying to muons or to electrons. The residual sagitta bias and momentum scale bias after alignment are reduced to less than similar to 0.1 TeV-1 and 0.9 x 10(-3), respectively. Impact parameter biases are also evaluated using tracks within jets

The ATLAS fast tracKer system

The ATLAS Fast TracKer (FTK) was designed to provide full tracking for the ATLAS high-level trigger by using pattern recognition based on Associative Memory (AM) chips and fitting in high-speed field programmable gate arrays. The tracks found by the FTK are based on inputs from all modules of the pixel and silicon microstrip trackers. The as-built FTK system and components are described, as is the online software used to control them while running in the ATLAS data acquisition system. Also described is the simulation of the FTK hardware and the optimization of the AM pattern banks. An optimization for long-lived particles with large impact parameter values is included. A test of the FTK system with the data playback facility that allowed the FTK to be commissioned during the shutdown between Run 2 and Run 3 of the LHC is reported. The resulting tracks from part of the FTK system covering a limited η-ϕ region of the detector are compared with the output from the FTK simulation. It is shown that FTK performance is in good agreement with the simulation. © The ATLAS collaboratio

Measurements of inclusive and differential cross-sections of combined t t ¯ γ and tWγ production in the eμ channel at 13 TeV with the ATLAS detector

Abstract: Inclusive and differential cross-sections for the production of top quarks in association with a photon are measured with proton-proton collision data corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 139 fb−1. The data were collected by the ATLAS detector at the LHC during Run 2 between 2015 and 2018 at a centre-of-mass energy of 13 TeV. The measurements are performed in a fiducial volume defined at parton level. Events with exactly one photon, one electron and one muon of opposite sign, and at least two jets, of which at least one is b-tagged, are selected. The fiducial cross-section is measured to be 39.6−2.3+2.7 fb. Differential cross-sections as functions of several observables are compared with state-of-the-art Monte Carlo simulations and next-to-leading-order theoretical calculations. These include cross-sections as functions of photon kinematic variables, angular variables related to the photon and the leptons, and angular separations between the two leptons in the event. All measurements are in agreement with the predictions from the Standard Model

Search for Higgs boson decays into two new low-mass spin-0 particles in the 4b channel with the ATLAS detector using pp collisions at √s = 13 TeV

This paper describes a search for beyond the Standard Model decays of the Higgs boson into a pair of new spin-0 particles subsequently decaying into b -quark pairs, H → a a → ( b ¯ b ) ( b ¯ b ) , using proton-proton collision data collected by the ATLAS detector at the Large Hadron Collider at center-of-mass energy √ s = 13     TeV . This search focuses on the range 15     GeV ≤ m a ≤ 30     GeV , where the decay products are collimated; it is complementary to a previous search in the same final state targeting the range 20     GeV ≤ m a ≤ 60     GeV , where the decay products are well separated. A novel strategy for the identification of the a → b ¯ b decays is deployed to enhance the efficiency for topologies with small separation angles. The search is performed with 36     fb − 1 of integrated luminosity collected in 2015 and 2016 and sets upper limits on the production cross section of H → a a → ( b ¯ b ) ( b ¯ b ) , where the Higgs boson is produced in association with a Z boson

Search for quantum black hole production in lepton + jet final states using proton-proton collisions at √s = 13 TeV with the ATLAS detector

A search for quantum black holes in electron + jet and muon + jet invariant mass spectra is performed with 140     fb − 1 of data collected by the ATLAS detector in proton-proton collisions at √ s = 13     TeV at the Large Hadron Collider. The observed invariant mass spectrum of lepton + jet pairs is consistent with Standard Model expectations. Upper limits are set at 95% confidence level on the production cross section times branching fractions for quantum black holes decaying into a lepton and a quark in a search region with invariant mass above 2.0 TeV. The resulting quantum black hole lower mass threshold limit is 9.2 TeV in the Arkani-Hamed-Dimopoulos-Dvali model, and 6.8 TeV in the Randall-Sundrum model