APEC 5511: LABOR ECONOMICS Fall credits

Transcription

1 APEC 5511: LABOR ECONOMICS Fall credits Instructor: Professor Elizabeth ( Liz ) Davis edavis@apec.umn.edu Office Location: 317E Classroom Office Building Telephone: Office Hours: Tuesdays 11:30-12:00, Wednesdays 2:00-3:00, and by appointment is the best way to contact me. Course Description: This course examines the economics of labor markets, including theories of labor supply and labor demand, determination of wages, human capital theory, labor unions, and unemployment. Both theoretical models and empirical applications will be discussed. The course will consider policy applications including income tax and welfare policy, minimum wage laws, and wage subsidies. Course procedures and requirements: The course will be a combination of lecture and class discussion, with students leading some of the discussion. Students are expected to read the assignments ahead of class and be prepared to discuss the readings. Additional readings may be assigned and short in-class writing assignments may be given. Required Readings: Text: B. Kaufman and J. Hotchkiss (K&H) The Economics of Labor Markets, 6 th edition, Other readings: Readings for the course in addition to the text are on reserve in the Waite Library (on the second floor of the Classroom Office Building). Many of the articles are available on the web, either through (JSTOR) or at the site listed. Grading: Class participation 10% Midterm exam 20% Homework/problem sets 20% Paper 25% Final exam 25% Incompletes are rarely given and are only granted after the student and Professor Davis have agreed upon a timetable (in a written contract) for the completion of all coursework. Incompletes must be requested in advance. Exams: The midterm exam is worth 20% your course grade, and the final is 25%. The final exam will cover material from the entire semester. 1

2 Class participation accounts for 10 percent of your grade. Class participation includes asking and answering questions and demonstrating that you have done the reading and tried to understand the material. Attendance in class is expected, however if you must miss a class, please let me know by . Homeworks/problem sets: Homework assignments will consist of a combination of theoretical problem solving or short answer questions and empirical exercises to give you experience with the data, methods, and problems typically encountered by labor economists. There will be 3 or 4 problem sets during the semester. Paper: The paper is intended to provide an opportunity for you to explore a topic or issue in labor economics in greater detail. Papers should be between 8 and 12 pages in length (excluding references), double spaced, and must include complete references (including weblinks, if used). You may choose from a list of suggested topics or identify your own, subject to instructor approval. A brief description of your topic and paper outline is due Nov. 4. If you have questions about a possible paper topic, please talk with me before Nov. 4. The paper is due December 12. SCHOLASTIC DISHONESTY "The College of Liberal Arts defines scholastic dishonesty broadly as any act by a student that misrepresents the student's own academic work or that compromises the academic work of another. Examples include cheating on assignments or exams, plagiarizing (misrepresenting as one's own anything done by another), unauthorized collaboration on assignments or exams, or sabotaging another student's work." Academic dishonesty in any portion of the academic work for a course shall be grounds for awarding a grade of F or N for the entire course. If you have any concerns or questions about what constitutes scholastic dishonesty or plagiarism, please talk with me. Disabilities: Students with disabilities that affect their ability to participate fully in class or to meet all course requirements are encouraged to bring this to my attention so that appropriate accommodations can be arranged. Sexual Harassment: University policy prohibits sexual harassment as defined in the December 1998 policy statement, available at the Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action. Questions or concerns about sexual harassment should be directed to the Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action, located in 419 Morrill Hall. 2

3 ApEc 5511: LABOR ECONOMICS Course Outline and Reading Assignments Professor Davis Fall 2003 Department of Applied Economics Required Readings: Text: B. Kaufman and J. Hotchkiss (K&H) The Economics of Labor Markets, 6 th edition, Other readings: Additional required readings for the course on reserve in the Waite Library (on the second floor of the Classroom Office Building). Many of the articles are available on the web, either through (JSTOR) or at the site listed. NOTE: Students are expected to complete the readings prior to class. Sept. 2 Sept. 4 Sept. 9 Sept. 11 Sept. 16 Sept. 18 Sept. 23 Introduction to Labor Economics Overview of the Labor Market -- K&H, Ch T. McMenamin, R. Krantz, and T. Krolik., U.S. Labor Market in 2002: Continued Weakness, Monthly Labor Review, February 2003, pp Available on the web at Labor Demand: Marginal Productivity Theory -- K&H, Ch. 4, including Appendix 4A Labor Demand in the Long Run -- K&H, Ch. 5 and Appendix 5A (Skip pp ) Costs of Employment -- Oi, Walter, Labor as a Quasi-Fixed Factor J. of Political Economy Dec. 1962, pp (JSTOR) Labor Supply: Hours of Work and Labor Force Participation -- K&H, Ch.2 (skip pp for now), and Appendices 2B, 2C -- K&H, Ch.3, pp only and App. 3B Labor Supply: Household Models and Home Production -- K&H, Ch.3 (pp ) and App. 3B -- Mark Killingsworth, Labor Supply, Cambridge University Press, 1983, Ch. 2, pp only -- Chenu, A. and J. Robinson. Synchronicity in the work schedules of working couples. Monthly Labor Review, April

4 Sept. 25 Sept. 30 Oct 2 Oct. 7 Oct. 9 Oct.14 Oct. 16 Oct. 21 Estimation of Labor Supply Functions -- K&H, Appendix 2C -- Connelly, Rachel and Jean Kimmel, Marital Status and Full-time/Part- Time Work Status in Child Care Choices, Upjohn Institute working paper, Available on the web at Policy Impacts on Labor Supply: Welfare and Child Care Subsidies. --K&H, pp D. Blau and E. Tekin, The Determinants and Consequences of Child Care Subsidy Program Receipt by Low-Income Families, Joint Center for Poverty Research working paper, January Available on the web at: Labor Market Adjustment and Wage Determination -- K&H, Ch 6 -- Card, David, The Impact of the Mariel Boatlift on the Miami Labor Market, Industrial and Labor Relations Review, vol 43 (2, January 1990), pp (JSTOR) Labor Market Policies: Minimum Wages -- Kennan, John, The Elusive Effects of Minimum Wages, J. of Economic Literature, vol. 33 (December 1995), pp (JSTOR) --**OPTIONAL: Card, David and Krueger, Alan. Myth and Measurement: The New Economics of the Minimum Wage. Princeton: Princeton University Press, pp Human Capital Theory --K&H, Ch. 7, App. 7A Estimating Earnings Equations --K&H, App. 7B -- Rupert, Peter, Mark Schweitzer, Eric Severance-Lossin, and Erin Turner, Earnings, Education and Experience, Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland Economic Review, QIV, pp The link to this paper on the web is More on Earnings Equations -- Hersch, Joni and L. Stratton, Housework, Fixed Effects and Wages of Married Workers, J. of Human Resources v32 no.2, (Spring 1997) pp (JSTOR) -- P. Schumann, D. Ahlburg, and C. Mahoney. The Effects of Human Capital and Job Characteristics on Pay J. of Human Resources, v. 29 no.2 (Spring 1994), pp (JSTOR) MIDTERM EXAM 4

5 Oct. 23 Oct. 28 Oct. 30 Occupational Wage Differences and Compensating Differentials --K&H, Ch Brown, C., Equalizing Differences in the Labor Market Quarterly Journal of Economics, v. 94 no. 1 (Feb. 1980), pp (JSTOR) -- **OPTIONAL: Rankings of full-time occupations, by earnings, Alternative Models of Labor Markets: Labor Market Segmentation -- K&H, Ch 6, pp McConnell, C. and Brue, S., Critiques of Orthodox Wage Theory, Contemporary Labor Economics, McGraw-Hill, 1992, pp **OPTIONAL: Rebitzer, J.B., Radical Political Economy and the Economics of Labor Markets, J. of Economic Literature, vol. 31 (September 1993), pp (JSTOR) Alternative Models: Efficiency Wages and Internal Labor Markets -- K&H, pages and G. Akerlof and J. Yellen, Introduction, Efficiency Wage Models in the Labor Market, Cambridge University Press, 1986, pp Nov. 4 Paper topics/outlines due in class Alternative Models of the Labor Market: Behavioral Economics -- Howitt, P. Looking Inside the Labor Market: A Review Article, Journal of Economic Literature, vol. XL (March 2002): Kaufman, Bruce. Expanding the Behavioral Foundations of Labor Economics. Industrial and Labor Relations Review, April 1999 v52 i3 p361(3). Available online through Business Source Premier (UM Library e-journals). Nov. 6 Nov. 11 Nov. 13 NO CLASS Wage Structure and Wage Inequality --D. Acemoglu, Technical Change, Inequality, and the Labor Market, J. of Economic Literature, March Read only pages J. Bound and G. Johnson, Changes in the Structure of Wages During the 1980s: An Evaluation of Alternative Explanations, American Economic Review, vol 82 (3) June 1992, pp (JSTOR) Wage Inequality and Trade -- R. Freeman Are Your Wages Set in Beijing? J. of Economic Perspectives v.9 no.3 (Summer 1995), pp (JSTOR) --- A. Wood How Trade Hurt Unskilled Workers. J. of Economic Perspectives v.9 no.3 (Summer 1995), pp (JSTOR) 5

6 Nov. 18 Nov. 20 Nov. 25 Labor Market Discrimination --K&H, Ch.9, App. 9A -- S. Boraas and W. Rodgers III, How does gender play a role in the earnings gap? An update. Monthly Labor Review, March 2003, pp Online at -- F. Blau and L. Kahn, Gender Differences in Pay, J. of Economic Perspectives, v.14 no.4 (Fall 2000) pp (JSTOR) Labor Market Discrimination -- Durden, Garey C.; Gaynor, Patricia E. More on the cost of being other than white and male, American Journal of Economics & Sociology, Jan98, Vol. 57 Issue 1 (1998). Available online through Business Source Premier (UM Library e-journals). -- Heckman, James, Detecting Discrimination, J. of Economic Perspectives v.12 no.2 (Spring 1998) pp (JSTOR) Labor supply and demand in developing countries --D.A. Donahoe Measuring Women s Work in Developing Countries Population and Development Review v.25 no.3 (Sept. 1999) pp (JSTOR) -- K. Mammen and C. Paxson, Women s Work and Economic Development, J. of Economic Perspectives, v.14, no.1 (Fall 2000), pp (JSTOR) -- **OPTIONAL: D. Hamermesh. Labor Demand and the Economics of Development Labor Demand, Chapter 10, pp Nov. 27 Dec. 2 Dec. 4 Dec. 9 NO CLASS -- THANKSGIVING Labor policy in developing countries -- A. Harrison and E. Leamer, Labor Markets in Developing Countries: An Agenda for Research. Journal of Labor Economics, vol 15 (3, pt. 2, July 1997), pp. S1-S19. (JSTOR) -- A. Cox Edwards, Labor Market Regulation In Latin America: An Overview, ch. 5 in Labor Markets in Latin America, S. Edwards and N. Lustig (ed.), Washington, DC: Brookings Institution Press, pp Labor Unions and Collective Bargaining -- K&H, Ch.10 (skim), Ch. 11 The Economic Impact of Unions -- D. Belman, J. Heywood, and J. Lund, Public Sector Earnings and the Extent of Unionization. Industrial and Labor Relations Review, vol 50 (4, July 1997), pp (JSTOR). 6

7 Dec. 11 Dec. 12 Dec. 17 Unemployment -- K&H, Ch S. Nickell, Unemployment and Labor Market Rigidities: Europe versus North America, J. of Economic Perspectives, v.11 no.3, Summer 1997, pp (JSTOR) Papers due (turn in at my office, 317E Classroom Office Building) Final Exam, 10:30-12:30 in Room B35, Classroom Office Building 7