Using the Survey of Doctoral Recipients, the magnitude and consequences of job mismatch are estim... more Using the Survey of Doctoral Recipients, the magnitude and consequences of job mismatch are estimated for Ph.D.s in science. Approximately one-sixth of academics and nearly one-half of nonacademics report some degree of mismatch. The influence of job mismatch is estimated for three job outcomes: earnings, job satisfaction and turnover. Surprisingly large and robust influences emerge. Mismatch is associated with substantially lower earnings, lower job satisfaction and a higher rate of turnover. These results persist across a variety of specifications and hold for both academics and nonacademics. Estimates of the determinants of mismatch indicate that older workers and those in rapidly changing disciplines are more likely to be mismatched and there is a suggestion that women are more likely to be mismatched.
Using German establishment data, this paper examines the relationship between product market comp... more Using German establishment data, this paper examines the relationship between product market competition and the extent of employer provided training. We demonstrate that high product market competition is associated with increased training except when the competition is so severe as to threaten liquidation to a firm. We take this as evidence of an inverted U-shaped relationship. We also make clear that while this relationship is very evident for the service sector it is largely missing for manufacturing where we confirm earlier results of no relationship.
This series presents research findings based either directly on data from the German Socio-Econom... more This series presents research findings based either directly on data from the German Socio-Economic Panel Study (SOEP) or using SOEP data as part of an internationally comparable data set (e.g. CNEF, ECHP, LIS, LWS, CHER/PACO). SOEP is a truly multidisciplinary household panel study covering a wide range of social and behavioral sciences:
We study the link between performance pay and alcohol use in Germany, a country with mandated hea... more We study the link between performance pay and alcohol use in Germany, a country with mandated health insurance. Previous research from the US argues that alcohol use as a form of "self-medication" may be a natural response to the stress and uncertainty of performance pay when many workers do not have access to health insurance. We find that the likelihood of consuming each of four types of alcohol (beer, wine, spirits, and mixed drinks) is higher for those receiving performance pay even controlling for a long list of economic, social and personality characteristics and in sensible IV estimates. We also show that the total number of types of alcohol consumed is larger for those receiving performance pay. We conclude that even in the face of mandated health insurance, the link found in the US persists in Germany.
In this paper we exploit the longitudinal element of the 1990 and 1998 Workplace Employee Relatio... more In this paper we exploit the longitudinal element of the 1990 and 1998 Workplace Employee Relations Surveys for Britain to investigate the effect of unionism on establishment closings. Contrary to both recent U.S. research and British work using information from the earlier workplace surveys, we find a robust positive association between two measures of unionism -union recognition f or collective bargaining purposes and union coverage -and plant closings. This association survives the incorporation of very detailed industry controls but is driven by plants that are parts of multi-establishment enterprises. There appears to be little or no statistically significant association for single plant enterprises. In explaining our findings, we address their consistency with the widely perceived reduction in the "disadvantages of [British] unionism" in recent years.
This series presents research findings based either directly on data from the German Socio-Econom... more This series presents research findings based either directly on data from the German Socio-Economic Panel Study (SOEP) or using SOEP data as part of an internationally comparable data set (e.g. CNEF, ECHP, LIS, LWS, CHER/PACO). SOEP is a truly multidisciplinary household panel study covering a wide range of social and behavioral sciences:
Die Beschäftigung und Neueinstellung älterer Arbeitnehmer in Deutschland: Eine vergleichende Pers... more Die Beschäftigung und Neueinstellung älterer Arbeitnehmer in Deutschland: Eine vergleichende Perspektive Zusammenfassung Der vorliegende Beitrag gibt einen Überblick über den Arbeitsmarkt für ältere Arbeitnehmer in Deutschland. Der besondere Fokus liegt dabei auf einer international vergleichenden Perspektive sowie auf den Bedingungen, die die Entscheidungen von Arbeitgebern beeinflussen, ältere Arbeitnehmer zu beschäftigen und neu einzustellen. Ausgangspunkt der Überlegungen ist, dass Ältere, die arbeitslos werden, nach wie vor geringe Chancen haben, eine neue Stelle zu finden. Naheliegende Erklärungen könnten sein, dass dies mit einer geringeren Produktivität oder auch mit Diskriminierung zusammenhängt. Vorliegende empirische Studien liefern hier jedoch eher gemischte Ergebnisse. Eine alternative Erklärung besteht darin, dass vielmehr die Anreize, die Arbeitgeber einsetzen, um Mitarbeiter zur Leistungserbringungen zu motivieren, eine wichtige Rolle spielen.
Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, Oct 1, 2017
This work contributes to the literature demonstrating an important role for psychological traits ... more This work contributes to the literature demonstrating an important role for psychological traits in labor market decisions. We show that West German workers with an internal locus of control sort into jobs with performance appraisals. Appraisals provide workers who believe they control their environment a tool to demonstrate their value and achieve their goals. We confirm that workers who are risk tolerant also sort into jobs with performance appraisals but explain why the influence of the locus of control and risk tolerance should not be additive. We demonstrate this by estimating a routinely large and significantly negative interaction in our sorting equations. We also show that important patterns of sorting are revealed only when taking into account the interaction of locus of control and risk tolerance.
This paper focuses on the German labor market for older workers. It does so in comparison with ot... more This paper focuses on the German labor market for older workers. It does so in comparison with other countries and with a unique focus on the role of employer incentives for retaining and hiring older workers. It argues that while employment of older German workers has improved due to changes in government policy, the labor market for older workers remains characterized by far less mobility and opportunity. While we recognize the potential explanations of reduced productivity and age discrimination, we review evidence pointing to the importance of life-cycle contracts . These contracts can be efficient but typically imply that older workers will have difficulty being re-hired into career jobs after separation. We suggest that attempts to reduce or eliminate such life-cycle contracts are likely to be counter-productive but suggest how other countries, particularly Japan, have dealt with this issue.
We examine the hypothesis that flexible work organization involves greater skill requirements and... more We examine the hypothesis that flexible work organization involves greater skill requirements and, hence, an increased likelihood of receiving employer provided training. Using unique linked employer-employee data from Germany, we confirm that employees are more likely to receive training when their jobs are characterized by greater decision-making autonomy and task variety, two essential elements of flexibility. Critically, the training associated with workplace flexibility does not simply reflect technology. Skill-biased organizational change plays its own role. Moreover, we show that the training associated with workplace flexibility is disproportionately oriented toward employees with a greater formal education. Our results also provide modest evidence of an age bias of workplace flexibility. However, the link between workplace flexibility and training does not appear to differ by gender.
This paper investigates the influence of performance related pay on several dimensions of job sat... more This paper investigates the influence of performance related pay on several dimensions of job satisfaction. In cross-sectional estimates, performance related pay is associated with increased overall satisfaction, satisfaction with pay, satisfaction with job security and satisfaction with hours. It appears to be negatively associated with satisfaction with the work itself. Yet, after accounting for worker fixed-effects, the positive associations remain and the negative association vanishes. These results appear robust to a variety of alternative specifications and support the notion that performance pay allows increased opportunities for worker optimization and do not generally demotivate workers or crowd out intrinsic motivation.
Using the Survey of Doctoral Recipients, the magnitude and consequences of job mismatch are estim... more Using the Survey of Doctoral Recipients, the magnitude and consequences of job mismatch are estimated for Ph.D.s in science. Approximately one-sixth of academics and nearly one-half of nonacademics report some degree of mismatch. The influence of job mismatch is estimated for three job outcomes: earnings, job satisfaction and turnover. Surprisingly large and robust influences emerge. Mismatch is associated with substantially lower earnings, lower job satisfaction and a higher rate of turnover. These results persist across a variety of specifications and hold for both academics and nonacademics. Estimates of the determinants of mismatch indicate that older workers and those in rapidly changing disciplines are more likely to be mismatched and there is a suggestion that women are more likely to be mismatched.
Using German establishment data, this paper examines the relationship between product market comp... more Using German establishment data, this paper examines the relationship between product market competition and the extent of employer provided training. We demonstrate that high product market competition is associated with increased training except when the competition is so severe as to threaten liquidation to a firm. We take this as evidence of an inverted U-shaped relationship. We also make clear that while this relationship is very evident for the service sector it is largely missing for manufacturing where we confirm earlier results of no relationship.
This series presents research findings based either directly on data from the German Socio-Econom... more This series presents research findings based either directly on data from the German Socio-Economic Panel Study (SOEP) or using SOEP data as part of an internationally comparable data set (e.g. CNEF, ECHP, LIS, LWS, CHER/PACO). SOEP is a truly multidisciplinary household panel study covering a wide range of social and behavioral sciences:
We study the link between performance pay and alcohol use in Germany, a country with mandated hea... more We study the link between performance pay and alcohol use in Germany, a country with mandated health insurance. Previous research from the US argues that alcohol use as a form of "self-medication" may be a natural response to the stress and uncertainty of performance pay when many workers do not have access to health insurance. We find that the likelihood of consuming each of four types of alcohol (beer, wine, spirits, and mixed drinks) is higher for those receiving performance pay even controlling for a long list of economic, social and personality characteristics and in sensible IV estimates. We also show that the total number of types of alcohol consumed is larger for those receiving performance pay. We conclude that even in the face of mandated health insurance, the link found in the US persists in Germany.
In this paper we exploit the longitudinal element of the 1990 and 1998 Workplace Employee Relatio... more In this paper we exploit the longitudinal element of the 1990 and 1998 Workplace Employee Relations Surveys for Britain to investigate the effect of unionism on establishment closings. Contrary to both recent U.S. research and British work using information from the earlier workplace surveys, we find a robust positive association between two measures of unionism -union recognition f or collective bargaining purposes and union coverage -and plant closings. This association survives the incorporation of very detailed industry controls but is driven by plants that are parts of multi-establishment enterprises. There appears to be little or no statistically significant association for single plant enterprises. In explaining our findings, we address their consistency with the widely perceived reduction in the "disadvantages of [British] unionism" in recent years.
This series presents research findings based either directly on data from the German Socio-Econom... more This series presents research findings based either directly on data from the German Socio-Economic Panel Study (SOEP) or using SOEP data as part of an internationally comparable data set (e.g. CNEF, ECHP, LIS, LWS, CHER/PACO). SOEP is a truly multidisciplinary household panel study covering a wide range of social and behavioral sciences:
Die Beschäftigung und Neueinstellung älterer Arbeitnehmer in Deutschland: Eine vergleichende Pers... more Die Beschäftigung und Neueinstellung älterer Arbeitnehmer in Deutschland: Eine vergleichende Perspektive Zusammenfassung Der vorliegende Beitrag gibt einen Überblick über den Arbeitsmarkt für ältere Arbeitnehmer in Deutschland. Der besondere Fokus liegt dabei auf einer international vergleichenden Perspektive sowie auf den Bedingungen, die die Entscheidungen von Arbeitgebern beeinflussen, ältere Arbeitnehmer zu beschäftigen und neu einzustellen. Ausgangspunkt der Überlegungen ist, dass Ältere, die arbeitslos werden, nach wie vor geringe Chancen haben, eine neue Stelle zu finden. Naheliegende Erklärungen könnten sein, dass dies mit einer geringeren Produktivität oder auch mit Diskriminierung zusammenhängt. Vorliegende empirische Studien liefern hier jedoch eher gemischte Ergebnisse. Eine alternative Erklärung besteht darin, dass vielmehr die Anreize, die Arbeitgeber einsetzen, um Mitarbeiter zur Leistungserbringungen zu motivieren, eine wichtige Rolle spielen.
Journal of Economic Behavior and Organization, Oct 1, 2017
This work contributes to the literature demonstrating an important role for psychological traits ... more This work contributes to the literature demonstrating an important role for psychological traits in labor market decisions. We show that West German workers with an internal locus of control sort into jobs with performance appraisals. Appraisals provide workers who believe they control their environment a tool to demonstrate their value and achieve their goals. We confirm that workers who are risk tolerant also sort into jobs with performance appraisals but explain why the influence of the locus of control and risk tolerance should not be additive. We demonstrate this by estimating a routinely large and significantly negative interaction in our sorting equations. We also show that important patterns of sorting are revealed only when taking into account the interaction of locus of control and risk tolerance.
This paper focuses on the German labor market for older workers. It does so in comparison with ot... more This paper focuses on the German labor market for older workers. It does so in comparison with other countries and with a unique focus on the role of employer incentives for retaining and hiring older workers. It argues that while employment of older German workers has improved due to changes in government policy, the labor market for older workers remains characterized by far less mobility and opportunity. While we recognize the potential explanations of reduced productivity and age discrimination, we review evidence pointing to the importance of life-cycle contracts . These contracts can be efficient but typically imply that older workers will have difficulty being re-hired into career jobs after separation. We suggest that attempts to reduce or eliminate such life-cycle contracts are likely to be counter-productive but suggest how other countries, particularly Japan, have dealt with this issue.
We examine the hypothesis that flexible work organization involves greater skill requirements and... more We examine the hypothesis that flexible work organization involves greater skill requirements and, hence, an increased likelihood of receiving employer provided training. Using unique linked employer-employee data from Germany, we confirm that employees are more likely to receive training when their jobs are characterized by greater decision-making autonomy and task variety, two essential elements of flexibility. Critically, the training associated with workplace flexibility does not simply reflect technology. Skill-biased organizational change plays its own role. Moreover, we show that the training associated with workplace flexibility is disproportionately oriented toward employees with a greater formal education. Our results also provide modest evidence of an age bias of workplace flexibility. However, the link between workplace flexibility and training does not appear to differ by gender.
This paper investigates the influence of performance related pay on several dimensions of job sat... more This paper investigates the influence of performance related pay on several dimensions of job satisfaction. In cross-sectional estimates, performance related pay is associated with increased overall satisfaction, satisfaction with pay, satisfaction with job security and satisfaction with hours. It appears to be negatively associated with satisfaction with the work itself. Yet, after accounting for worker fixed-effects, the positive associations remain and the negative association vanishes. These results appear robust to a variety of alternative specifications and support the notion that performance pay allows increased opportunities for worker optimization and do not generally demotivate workers or crowd out intrinsic motivation.
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Papers by John Heywood