A MACROECONOMIC PERSPECTIVE ON SKILL SHORTAGES AND THE SKILL PREMIUM IN NEW ZEALAND *

Qualification and occupation-based measures of skilled labour are constructed to explain the skill premium - the wage of skilled labour relative to unskilled labour in New Zealand. The data exhibit a more rapid growth in the supply of skilled labour than the skill premium, and a very large increase in the real minimum wage over the period from 1986 to 2005. We estimate the rate of increase in the relative demand for skills and the elasticity of substitution. The data are consistent with skill shortages and a skill-bias technical change. We examine the effects of the minimum wage, capital complementarity, and the exchange rate on the skill premium. We also test whether the demand for skills and the elasticity of substitution varied across industries and over time. Copyright 2008 The Authors.

A framework for monitoring and assisting seniors with memory disabilities

Population aging brings increased social problems. Solutions for this new reality must be devised. Providing care services at home may benefit patients, health service providers, and social security systems and needs to be seen as a possible solution for those social problems. By maintaining the patient at home, in his or her own environment, care services costs can be diminished and, at the same time, the comfort and well-being of the person in need are significantly increased. To pursue this goal, we explore the advantagesThe work of Davide Carneiro is supported by a doctoral grant by the Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT, Portuguese Foundation for Science and Technology; SFRH/ BD/64890/2009). The work of Angelo Costa is supported by a research grant by the FCT within the project PTDC/JUR/71354/2006 and PEst-OE/EEI/UI0752/201