Firm heterogeneity and wages under different bargaining regimes : does a centralised union care for low-productivity firms?

This paper studies the relationship between wages and the degree of firm heterogeneity in a given industry under different wage setting structures. To derive testable hypotheses, we set up a theoretical model that analyses the sensitivity of wages to the variability in productivity conditions in a unionsised oligopoly framework. The model distinguishes centralised and decentralised wage determination. The theoretical results predict wages to be negatively associated with the degree of firm heterogeneity under centralised wage-setting, as unions internalise negative externalities of a wage increase for low-productivity firms. We test this prediction using a linked employeremployee panel data set from the German mining and manufacturing sector. Consistent with our hypotheses, the empirical results suggest that under industry-level bargaining workers in more heterogeneous sectors receive lower wages than workers in more homogeneous sectors. In contrast, the degree of firm heterogeneity is found to have no negative impact on wages in uncovered firms and under firm-level contracts

Quantum Theory and Time Asymmetry

The relation between quantum measurement and thermodynamically irreversible processes is investigated. The reduction of the state vector is fundamentally asymmetric in time and shows an observer-relatedness which may explain the double interpretation of the state vector as a representation of physical states as well as of information about them. The concept of relevance being used in all statistical theories of irreversible thermodynamics is shown to be based on the same observer-relatedness. Quantum theories of irreversible processes implicitly use an objectivized process of state vector reduction. The conditions for the reduction are discussed, and I speculate that the final (subjective) observer system might even be carried by a spacetime point.Comment: Latex version of a paper published in 1979 (with minor revisions), 18 page

Beyond the mean gender wage gap : decomposition of differences in wage distributions using quantile regression

Using linked employer-employee data, this study measures and decomposes the differences in the earnings distribution between male and female employees in Germany. I extend the traditional decomposition to disentangle the effect of human capital characteristics and the effect of firm characteristics in explaining the gender wage gap. Furthermore, I implement the decomposition across the whole wage distribution with the method proposed by Machado and Mata (2005). Thereby, I take into account the dependence between the human capital endowment of individuals and workplace characteristics. The selection of women into less successful and productive firms explains a sizeable part of the gap. This selection is more pronounced in the lower part of the wage distribution than in the upper tail. In addition, women also benefit from the success of firms by rent-sharing to a lesser extent than their male colleagues. This is the source of the largest part of the pay gap. Gender differences in human capital endowment as well s differences in returns to human capital are less responsible for the wage differential

Should low-wage workers care about where they work? : Assessing the impact of employer characteristics on low-wage mobility

This paper studies the importance of employer-specific determinants in escaping low earnings in Germany. To address the initial conditions problem and the endogeneity of employer retention, we model (intra-firm) low-pay transitions using a multivariate Probit model that accounts for selection into low-wage employment and non-random employer drop-out. Using data from the LIAB Linked Employer–Employee panel, our results indicate that for male workers from the service sector the probability of escaping low-pay increases with employer size. This contrasts with female workers from the service sector, who rather benefit from collective bargaining coverage and local works councils. These findings are consistent with internal labour markets being an important ingredient of male within-firm wage growth, whereas the removal of asymmetric information appears to be more relevant in explaining female workers’ wage transitions