Publications

September 2016
Article

When 3+1>4: Gift Structure and Reciprocity in the Field

By: Duncan S. Gilchrist, Michael Luca and Deepak Malhotra

Do higher wages elicit reciprocity and lead to increased productivity? In a field experiment with 266 employees, we find that paying higher wages, per se, does not have a discernible effect on productivity (in a context with no future employment opportunities).... View Details

Keywords: Wages; Performance Productivity

June 2003 (Revised December 2003)
Case

Social Partnership

By: Huw Pill and Julian Coulter

Discusses the tripartite social partnership among employers, unions, and government that was geared toward maintaining international competitiveness through wage moderation within the European monetary system from the late 1980s. View Details

Keywords: Wages; Competition; Partners and Partnerships; Labor and Management Relations; Business and Government Relations; Europe

2025
Working Paper

Private Equity and Workers: Modeling and Measuring Monopsony, Implicit Contracts, and Efficient Reallocation

By: Kyle Herkenhoff, Josh Lerner, Gordon M. Phillips, Francisca Rebelo and Benjamin Sampson

We measure the real effects of private equity buyouts on worker outcomes by building a new database that links transactions to matched employer-employee data in the United States. To guide our empirical analysis, we derive testable implications from three theories in... View Details

Keywords: Monopsony; Market Power; Productivity; Private Equity; Employment; Wages; Employees

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February 2003
Supplement

Steel Cash

By: William E. Fruhan Jr. and Katherine A. Codega

Spreadsheet to (9-203-042). Test the impact of changes in wage rates on the value of debt and equity securities. Download only. View Details

Keywords: Change; Equity; Debt Securities; Wages

22 Jan 2013
First Look

First Look: Jan. 22

competition and stability in the long-term, outside the period that may be observed empirically. We employ both conceptions in this paper. Download the paper: http://ssrn.com/abstract=2199055 Prominent Job Advertisements, Group Learning and View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

04 Mar 2015
What Do You Think?

Can a Laissez-Faire Approach Fix Labor Market Inequality?

regarding wages ." Gerald Nanninga concluded that, "The problem with universally mandated rules of business (be it wages, hours, or whatever) is that it limits strategic options At least with the laissez faire approach, there is... View Details

Keywords: by James Heskett; Retail

2021
Article

Cluster Presence and Economic Performance: A New Look Based on European Data

By: Christian H.M. Ketels and Sergiy Protsiv

This paper takes a fresh empirical look at how cluster presence matters for economic performance. It analyses a new data set developed for the European Cluster Observatory to assess the impact of clusters on industry-level wages and regional prosperity. It is found... View Details

Keywords: Cluster; Economic Geography; Prosperity; Economic Performance; Wages; Economy; Europe

February 2010
Article

The Optimal Taxation of Height: A Case Study of Utilitarian Income Redistribution

By: N. Gregory Mankiw and Matthew C. Weinzierl

Should the income tax include a credit for short taxpayers and a surcharge for tall ones? The standard Utilitarian framework for tax analysis answers this question in the affirmative. Moreover, a plausible parameterization using data on height and wages implies a... View Details

Keywords: Taxation; Wages; Personal Characteristics

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24 Oct 2013
Working Paper Summaries

When $3+$1 > $4: The Effect of Gift Salience on Employee Effort in an Online Labor Market

Keywords: by Duncan Gilchrist, Michael Luca & Deepak Malhotra

30 Aug 2020
Working Paper Summaries

Consumers Punish Firms that Cut Employee Pay in Response to COVID-19

Keywords: by Bhavya Mohan, Serena Hagerty, and Michael Norton

December 2001 (Revised February 2003)
Case

Netherlands:The, A "Third Way?"

By: Bruce R. Scott and Jamie Matthews

The economic success of The Netherlands in the 1960s can be attributed to Dutch wages that were kept substantially below those in neighboring countries. But increased pressures in the 1970s led to a wage explosion, which in turn pushed unemployment and disguised... View Details

Keywords: Wages; History; Policy; Problems and Challenges; Macroeconomics; Economic Systems; Employment; Performance Productivity; Jobs and Positions; Economic Growth; Netherlands

November 2023
Case

UST's Adoption of Open Talent

By: Christopher Stanton and Kristen Senz

This case details the 2020 launch and subsequent scaling of UST’s Open Talent initiative, a program to integrate freelancers from digital platforms into its workforce. The case highlights how the shifting post-pandemic world, including layoffs, wage inflation, and... View Details

Keywords: Talent and Talent Management; Employment; Working Conditions; Organizational Change and Adaptation

Winter 2024
Article

Is Pay Transparency Good?

By: Zoë B. Cullen

Countries around the world are enacting pay transparency policies to combat pay discrimination. Since 2000, 71 percent of OECD countries have done so. Most are enacting transparency horizontally, revealing pay between coworkers doing similar work within a firm. While... View Details

Keywords: Policy; Wages; Knowledge Sharing; Job Design and Levels; Negotiation; Performance Productivity; Compensation and Benefits; Motivation and Incentives

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11 Sep 2012
First Look

First Look: September 11

story-one located far from the factory floor. Can Wages Buy Honesty? The Relationship Between Relative Wages and Employee Theft Authors:Tatiana Sandino and C. X. Chen Publication:Journal of Accounting... View Details

Keywords: Sean Silverthorne

December 2010 (Revised May 2011)
Case

Cola Wars Continue: Coke and Pepsi in 2010

By: David B. Yoffie and Renee Kim

Examines the industry structure and competitive strategy of Coca-Cola and Pepsi over 100 years of rivalry. The most intense battles of the cola wars were fought over the $74 billion CSD industry in the United States, where the average American consumes 46 gallons of... View Details

Keywords: Profit; Growth and Development Strategy; Industry Structures; Competitive Strategy; Food and Beverage Industry; United States

March 1995 (Revised April 1995)
Case

UAL Corporation

By: Stuart C. Gilson and Jeremy Cott

In the largest attempted employee-buyout in history, a large U.S. commercial airline seeks substantial wage concessions from its employees in return for 53% stake in the airline's commmon stock and guaranteed seats on the board of directors. Management must convince... View Details

Keywords: Restructuring; Corporate Governance; Labor; Wages; Management Teams; Employee Ownership; Business and Shareholder Relations; Strategy; Value; United States

09 Jan 2014
Working Paper Summaries

Economic Transition and Private-Sector Labor Demand: Evidence from Urban China

Keywords: by Lakshmi Iyer, Xin Meng, Nancy Qian & Xiaoxue Zhao

October 2002 (Revised June 2003)
Case

Restructuring the U.S. Steel Industry

By: William E. Fruhan Jr.

Focuses on the competitive decline of the integrated steel producers in the United States from 1970 to 2002. Issues include: Should the U.S. government impose tariffs to try to protect the industry? What should labor unions do, if anything, to protect jobs and wage... View Details

Keywords: Restructuring; Jobs and Positions; Labor Unions; Wages; Business and Government Relations; Integration; Steel Industry; United States

Article

The Re-Industrialization of the United States?

By: Willy C. Shih

Talk of "re-industrialization" in the United States has been supported by a seeming resurgence in manufacturing, but this is driven more by the end of labor arbitrage and increasing coordination costs of offshore manufacturing. Aggressive restructurings and significant... View Details