Return to Computer Use and Organizational Practices of the firm

In this paper, we test the hypothesis that computer use will lead to productivity gains only if the firm uses an appropriate set of organizational practices. Detailed data on organizational practices and workers. compensation are obtained through a Canadian longitudinal linked employer-employee database called the Workplace and Employee Survey (WES). Linked data allow us to take into account both worker and firm unobserved heterogeneity through the estimation of a linear mixed model of wage determination. Our results suggest a small but positive computer-wage premium whose size is related to a set of organizational practices.Wage determination; Human capital; New technologies; Computers; Mixed models; Linked employer-employee data; Organizational Practices of the Firm.

The median of a jittered Poisson distribution

Let $N_\lambda$ and $U$ be two independent random variables respectively distributed as a Poisson distribution with parameter $\lambda >0$ and a uniform distribution on $(0,1)$. This paper establishes that the median, say $M$, of $N_\lambda+U$ is close to $\lambda +1/3$ and more precisely that $M-\lambda-1/3=o(\lambda^{-1})$ as $\lambda\to \infty$. This result is used to construt a very simple robust estimator of $\lambda$ which is consistent and asymptotically normal. Compared to known robust estimates, this one can still be used with large datasets ($n\simeq 10^9$)

The Returns to Computer Use Revisited, Again

Using North American data, we revisit the question first broached by Krueger (1993) and re-examined by DiNardo and Pischke (1997) of whether there exists a real wage differential associated with computer use. Employing a mixed effects model to correct for both worker and workplace unobserved heterogeneity using matched employer-employee panel data, we find that computer users enjoy an almost 4 per cent wage premium over non-users. Failure to correct for the worker selection effect leads to a more than twofold overestimate of this premium, as does failure to correct for workplace unobserved heterogeneity.Wage determination; computers; mixed models; linked employer-employee data

La justice des mineurs au Québec : 25 ans de transformations (1960-1985)

This paper provides an overview of some of the changes undergone by the juvenile justice system in Quebec since 1960, with a particular attention to the evolution of its legal framework. Major legislative changes have stressed children's rights and diversion. The underlying philosophy of the law has been changed extensively, particularly concerning young offenders. Statistics reveal that the number of court referrals has increased considerably over time, and that diversion policies have been unable to change this trend. Juvenile court dispositions seem to show a greater degree of intervention than before

La mobilité dans l’agglomération de Trois-Rivières

À partir d'un fichier de l'Hydro-Québec, renfermant des données sur les changements d'adresses dans l'agglomération de Trois-Rivières, d'avril 1974 à mars 1975, l'auteur a constitué une matrice des flux intersectoriels. Cette matrice a servi de base pour l'analyse de la mobilité résidentielle à l'intérieur de l'agglomération. Dans le présent article l'analyse est basée strictement sur les aires de départ et d'arrivée. Les résultats obtenus ont permis de mieux saisir les différentes tendances du processus de changement de résidence dans l'agglomération de Trois-Rivières dont l'aspect le plus spécifique concerne l'orientation des déplacements. Celle-ci est grandement influencée par la présence de la rivière St-Maurice au sein de l'agglomération. Enfin, on a démontré la richesse de l'information inhérente à la compilation de fichiers renfermant des données de changements d'adresses.Using data from Hydro-Québec files covering address changes within the Trois-Rivières agglomeration between April 1974 and March 1975, a matrix of intersectorial flows was compiled. This matrix served as the basis for analyzing residential mobility within the agglomeration. In this article the study is limited to zones of origin and destination. The results obtained allow a better comprehension of the process of residential locative changes in Trois-Rivières, of which the shape and direction displacement patterns are the most specific aspect. These are greatly influenced by the St-Maurice River which flows through the middle of the study area. Finally it is shown that the time and effort put into the compilation of a mobility matrix of the type described is of the utmost utility