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November 1, 2004 - Holiday Closure, 2004 (No. 2)
Editor: Terence K. Huwe
Contributors: Elizabeth del Rocío Camacho, Janice Kimball
IIR NEWS AND EVENTS
IIR Faculty Seminars
IIR Holiday Reception
Arin Dube Publishes Study on the Evolution of
Jobs
Haas Economist Alex Mas Explores Effects of Worker
Treatment on Product Quality
Economics 251
CPER: New Pocket Guides, New Journal Issue
Professional Presentations by CPER Editors
Center for the Study of Child Care Employment
(CSCCE) Policy Brief Released
The IIR Library Participates in 2.4 Million dollar
California Digital Library Research Project
IIR Librarian Lectures in London about California
Library Services
California Labor History Map Now for Sale
Librarians Association of the University of California
hosted at Berkeley
Library Collection News
Yujing Cheng joins the Labor Center staff
Labor Center Advisory Board Meeting: November
9, 2004
CAMPUS NEWS & EVENTS
Slavery Expert to Deliver Jefferson Memorial
Lecture Agriculture and Resource Economics
Lecture Bancroft Library Lecture
Center for Health Research Lecture
Center for Latin American Studies News and Events
Haas School of Business, Claussen Center Event
Human Rights Center’s Summer Human Rights
Fellowship Conference
BEYOND
THE CAMPUS
Commonwealth Club Lecture Series
World Affairs Council Lecture Series
Quick Links to Campus News
The Campus News Center:
http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/
The Campus Calendar:
http://www.berkeley.edu/calendar/
IIR NEWS AND EVENTS
IIR Faculty Seminars
Monday, November 8, 2004, 12 to 1 pm
Arindrajit Dube, Ken Jacobs and Carol Zabin,
CLRE and IIR, UCB
“The Hidden Public Costs of Low-Wage Jobs in California”
This study examines the extent to which publicly-funded safety
net programs are becoming an ongoing wage supplement for low-wage
workers, rather than emergency assistance for those who find
themselves unable to work. The data set combines administrative
data on enrollments and costs of the ten largest statewide programs
with detailed demographic and
employment characteristics of program participants in the Current
Population Survey. Of $21.2 billion of public assistance provided
to low-income Calfiornia families in 2002, 48 percent-- or $10.1
billion-- went to families in which at least one member worked
at least forty-five weeks per year. A simulated increase in
the state minimum wage to $8 would reduce taxpayer costs by
$2.7 billion.
http://www.irle.berkeley.edu/events/fall04/seminars/index.html
Monday, November 22, 2004, 12 to 1 pm
Professor David Lee, Economics Department,
UCB
“Economic Impacts of Unionization on Private Sector
Employers, 1984-2001”
Using multiple establishment-level data sets that represent
establishments that faced organizing drives in the U.S. during
1984-1999, this paper uses a regression discontinuity design
to estimate the impact of unionization on business survival,
employment, output, productivity, and wages. Essentially, outcomes
for employers where unions barely won the election (e.g. by
one vote) are compared to those where the unions barely lost.
The analysis finds small impacts on all outcomes that we examine;
estimates for wages are close to zero. The evidence suggests
that at least in recent decades the legal mandate that requires
the employer to bargain with a certified union has had little
economic impact on employers, because unions have been somewhat
unsuccessful at securing significant wage gains.
This paper is scheduled to appear in the Quarterly Journal of
Economics.
Professor Lee is also the author of “Inequality in the
United States during the 1980s: Rising Dispersion or Falling
Minimum Wage?” Quarterly Journal of Economics, 1999.
http://www.irle.berkeley.edu/events/fall04/seminars/index.html
IIR Holiday Reception
Wednesday, December 15, 2004 between 3-5pm for IIR’s annual
Holiday Reception.
http://www.irle.berkeley.edu/events/fall04/holiday/index.html
Arin Dube Publishes New Study on the Evolution of Jobs
IIR Researcher Arin Dube has published a new paper titled, ”Are
Jobs Getting Worse? The Evolving Distribution of Wages and Job
Composition Over the 2001 to 2004 Period.”
The paper was posted on October 14, 2004, and includes an Executive
Summary
The full report is available on the IIR Web at
http://www.irle.berkeley.edu/research/jobquality.pdf
Haas Economist Explores Effects of Worker Treatment
on Product Quality
(Originally released by the Haas News Center)
Employees who are disgruntled over wages can harm firms financially
and may even pose a threat to public safety if their irritation
translates into poor workmanship and defective products, says
Haas School Assistant Professor Alexandre Mas. Mas, who bases
his work on several years of research into labor unrest and
worker performance, joined the Haas Economic Analysis and Policy
group this fall.
The case of Bridgestone/Firestone, which refused to negotiate
flexibly with its workers’ union in several plants between
1994 and 1996, was particularly dramatic, Mas discovered. By
analyzing consumer complaints, claims for compensation for property
damage or personal injuries, and engineering test data, Mas
and co-author Alan Krueger determined that the
quality of the tires produced in one of the plants involved
in the labor dispute was significantly lower than that of tires
produced in plants unaffected by the strife. Mas teased out
similar dynamics in cases of arbitration between police unions
and city governments in New Jersey.
"When arbitrators
voted against union contracts in favor of those proposed by
the city, arrest rates declined by 10 percent, meaning that
police were not working as hard," he says. "Such conditions
can have a significant impact on crime."
Finally, Mas studied the effect of ongoing contract disputes
between the United Auto Workers union and Caterpillar, the world's
largest manufacturer of construction machinery, between 1991
and 1998. To quantify how worker discontent arising from the
situation may have affected
performance, he examined resale prices of Caterpillar equipment
during this period and found that equipment produced in the
US during the labor dispute sold at auction for 4 percent less
than equipment produced prior to 1991 and after 1998 -- even
though similar non-American models did not experience this change
in prices.
Mas earned his Ph.D. and MA in economics from Princeton University,
and his BA in economics and mathematics from Macalester College.
Economics 251
Thursday, November 4, 2-4 p.m., 608-7 Evans
Damon Clark, UC Berkeley
"Choice, Competition and School Performance: Evidence from
the UK"
Calfornia Public Employee Relations NEWS (CPER)
New Pocket Guide Published
CPER issued a new title this summer, the twelfth in series:
“Pocket Guide to K-12 Certificated Employee Classification
and Dismissal”
The author is former CPER associate editor Dale Brodsky. The
complete list of pocket guides in is on the CPER website.
New Editions
CPER also just published the 12th edition of the “Pocket
Guide to theMeyer-Milias-Brown Act.” The act governs labor-management
relationships in California local government.
In November, CPER will go to press with our third edition of
the “Pocket Guide to Public Sector Arbitration: California,”
and the staff is currently in the final editing stage of the
second edition of the “Pocket Guide to Workplace Rights
of Public Employees.”
CPER Journal
Subscribers to CPER now can access the journal online in edition
to receiving a copy in the mail. We are negotiating to put our
yearly indexes online.
The most recent issue, No. 168 (October 2004), includes the
following main articles:
DOL Regulations Update: Several Changes Affect Public Employment,
by attorney Brian Walter, a partner with the law firm of Liebert
Cassidy Whitmore
‘Don’t Mess With PERB’:
Public Testimony Resoundingly Reject Plans to Alter PERB, by
CPER Editor Carol Vendrillo
U.C. Faculty Seek Buffer From Federal Encroachments on Free
Speech and Academic Freedom, by CPER Associate Editor Katherine
Thomson
Presentations by CPER Staff
In October, Carol Vendrillo did a presentation
for the Labor Arbitration Institute, in San Francisco
In November, Katherine Thomson will represent
CPER at CALPELRA (California Public Employers Labor Relations
Association) Annual Training Conference, in Monterey.
Carol Vendrillo is presenting an update on
public sector labor and employment law, at the State Bar of
California Labor and Employment Law Section’s annual program,
in Anaheim.
Center for the Study of Child Care Employment (CSCCE)
The latest policy brief from the Center for the Study of Child
Care Employment -- part of a series on workforce development
for Preschool For All in California -- is now available at
http://www.irle.berkeley.edu/cscce/pdf/credentialing.pdf
“Teacher Credentialing in Early Care and Education: Prospects
for Universal Preschool in California, and Lessons from Other
States,” examines the history and current status of preschool
teacher certification in California; explores the landscape
of Pre-K certification in other states; and identifies options
and issues as California moves forward in planning for Preschool
for All. Research included a survey of teacher requirements
and certification in all states that have a publicly funded
preschool program. Of the 15 states whose programs currently
serve 10 percent or more of their four-year-old child populations,
all but California, Colorado and Georgia have set the BA degree
plus certification as their standard for preschool head teachers.
IIR Library Participates in 2.4 Million dollar California
Digital Library Event
OAKLAND, Calif. The Library of Congress announced today (Thursday)
that it has awarded a $2.4 million grant to the University of
California’s California Digital Library to develop Web
archiving tools that will be used by libraries to capture, curate
and preserve collections of Web-based government and political
information.
The IIR Library will lead efforts to preserve collections of
labor information that are born digital on the Web and are at
risk of disappearing before they are archived by any institution.
http://www.cdlib.org/news/press_releases/award_announcement_final_20040930.doc
IIR Librarian Lectures in London about California Library
Services
Terry Huwe made a presentation at Internet Librarian International
in London, on digital library development at the University
of California. The presentation was titled “Digital Library
Strategies in the Late-Adopting Institution."
California Labor History Map Now for Sale
The California Labor History Map is now for sale. Terry Huwe
represented The IIR Library and University of California in
the development of this document by serving on the Advisory
Board (with Kent Wong, from the UCLA Labor Center). A copy of
the California History Labor Map is now obtainable from the
California Department of Education. The cost is $5, plus a $1
handling fee.
To order a copy, call (800) 995-4099. San Francisco State also
hosts the related website at:
http://calpedia.sfsu.edu/calabor/.
Librarians Association of the University of California
hosted at Berkeley
The Librarians Association of the University of California Fall
Assembly will be held on November, 4, 2004 at the International
House. Terry Huwe is 2004-2005 President of the Association,
which has a formal charge to advise the University on matters
of library policy. This event will include presentations by
members of the Academic Senate, and all are
welcome. For more information, take a look at
http://library.berkeley.edu/LAUC/fallassembly04/
and http://www.ucop.edu/lauc
Library Collection News
In response to the University’s coordinated response to
print collection management, the IIR Library staff will begin
reviewing the overall collection and evaluating its unique strengths.
Terry will publish news on this initiative on the Library’s
Web and to the institutors list. Materials that will be withdrawn
from the Library will be announced in advance, giving faculty
and students a chance to comment on the process.
New Staff at the Labor Center
Yujing Cheng will be the new Administrative Assistant II for
the Labor Center. Mr. Cheng will be
filling the open position that was previously held by Kamal
Sidhu.
Yujing's primary focus will be to help us complete work on our
new data base program and provide general office support to
CLRE. He has previous campus experiences having worked
The Labor Center Advisory Board will be meeting on November,
9, 2004 at IIR.
CAMPUS NEWS AND EVENTS
Slavery Expert to Deliver Jefferson Memorial Lecture
On Wednesday, Nov. 3, David Brion Davis Pulitzer prixe winner
and one of the world’s foremost historians of slavery
will present the annual Jefferson Memorial Lecture, titled “Exodus,
Black Colonization, and Promised Lands.”
The full story is online at
http://www.berkeley.edu/news/berkeleyan/2004/10/27_davis.shtml
Agriculture and Resource Economics
Roger von Haefen will present a lectures at ARE on December
3, 2004.
For further information check the Web at http://are.berkeley.edu
There is another lecture with speaker to be announced, which
will be held on November 19, 2004
Bancroft Library Lecture Series
Roundtable: Guardians of the Golden Gate: John Birge Sawyer,
Angel Island, and the Great Immigrant Smuggling Scandal
The diaries of John Birge Sawyer, immigration inspector on Angel
Island, are the focal point for an exploration of Chinese immigration
to California.
Robert E. Barde, Deputy Director, Institute of Business and
Economic Research, Haas Business School
Thursday, November 18
Lewis-Latimer Room, Faculty Club
12:00 noon
Contact for more information: 643-2275, or dkessler@library.berkeley.edu
Center for Health Research
Health Services and Policy Research Seminar Series:
'The U.S. Medicare Program: Changes and Challenges'
Speaker: Murray Ross, PhD (Director, Health Policy Analysis
and Research;
Kaiser Permanente Institute for Health Policy, Oakland)
Tuesday, November 23, 2004, 714-C University Hall
For Further Information: 643-7211, CHR_UCB@berkeley.edu
Center for Latin American Studies News and Events
Suzana Sawyer
“Suing ChevronTexaco: Citizenship,
Contamination and Capitalism in the
Ecuadorian Amazon”
Suzana Sawyer is Associate Professor in the Department of Anthropology
at UC Davis. Her current research focuses on conflict over oil
operations in Ecuador. Her new research examines the lawsuit
against Texaco, focusing specifically on what it tells us about
shifting regimes of citizenship, sovereignty and law.
Teresa Caldeira
“Democratizing the Neoliberal City”
Teresa Caldeira is Associate Professor of Anthropology at the
UC Irvine. She is the author of City of Walls: Crime, Segregation,
and Citizenship in São Paulo (2001).
Monday, November 8, 5:00 pm
Room 112, Wurster Hall
Rigoberta Menchú
“The Legacy of War in Guatemala: Continuous Human Rights
Abuses”
Rigoberta Menchú received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1992
for her work on indigenous people’s rights.
Friday, November 19, 5:00 pm
Room 155, Dwinelle Hall
Haas School of Business
Clausen Center Hosts Events Exploring “Microcredit”
For Further Information, check the Haas News Center at http://haas.berkeley.edu.
Human Rights Center’s Summer Human Rights Fellowship
Conference
This is an opportunity for members of the campus community to
learn about the Human Rights Center's annual summer human rights
fellowships for students and to learn about the diverse human
rights research and advocacy work of current summer fellows.
This event is free and open to the public.
Heyns Room, The Faculty Club, November 4, 2004
Contact: 642-0965, hrc@globetrotter.berkeley.edu
BEYOND THE CAMPUS
Commonwealth Club Lecture Series
H.E. Vaclav Klaus
Czech Republic & the European Union: Marriage of Convenience
November 8, 2004, Monday
Program starts 6:pm, check in starting at 5:15pm. Fairmont Hotel,
Gold Room, 950 Mason St. (at California) San Francisco. $15.00
for members, $30.00 for Non-members
Co-sponsored by the World Affairs Council of Northern California.
U.S. Health Care in Crisis
Donald Barlett, Investigative Journalist, Co-author, Critical
Condition
James Steele, Investigative Journalist, Co-author, Critical
Condition
Additional Panelists TBA November 16, 2004 Tuesday
5:30pm Reception, 6:pm Program, 7:pm Reception, Club Office,
595 Market Street, 2nd Floor, San Francisco. Free for Members
and Non-members
Co-sponsored by California Health Care Foundation & Books
Inc.
World Affairs Council Lecture Series
Thursday, Oct-28-2004
Opening the Door to Japan: Exploring the Automotive/IT Market
Masaaki Kanda, Governor of Aichi Prefecture Yoshihiro Yasui,
President of Brother Industries, Ltd Clifford Somerville, Vice
President of Dura Automotive Systems Max Rogers, Global Director
of Sales and Marketing, Delphi Corporation
Seating is limited reserve a place for yourself and a guest
at http://www.jetrosf.org
as soon as possible.
Check In: 1:30 PM, Seminar: 2:00 PM, Networking Reception: 4:00
PM.
Free Program
Location: The Ritz Carlton, San Francisco, 600 Stockton Street
(3 blocks north of Union Square)
Thursday, November 4, 2004
Winning the Oil Endgame: Innovation for Profits, Jobs, and Security
Amory B. Lovins, Chief Executive Officer, Rocky Mountain Institute
Check In: 11:30 AM, Program 12:00 PM,
Members: Free, Nonmembers: $12, Students with ID: $5
Location: At the Council, 312 Sutter Street, 2nd floor Conference
Room, San Francisco
Monday, November15, 2004
Agriculture and Foreign Trade Agreements in the Americas
Anuradha Mittal, Executive Director, Oakland Institute; former
Co-Director, Institute for Food and Development Policy Tim Josling,
Professor Emeritus, Food Research Institute, Stanford University;
Judith Redmond, President, Community Alliance with Family Farmers,
Davis,
California
Check In: 5:30 PM, Program 6:00 PM,
Members: Free, Nonmembers: $12, Students with ID: $5
Location: At the Council, 312 Sutter Street, 5th floor, San
Francisco
How to Subscribe
Send a message to thuwe@library.berkeley.edu
expressing an interest in receiving this as an email publication.
You may also wish to subscribe to our general community email
listserv, available to all interested friends of IRLE. This list
is called iirucbnews@lists.berkeley.edu.
Please indicate if you wish to be added to that list in your
message.
Tell Us About Your
Events
If you know of an event that you’d like to share with
the IRLE community, send a brief description (and Web link) to
Terry Huwe (thuwe@library.berkeley.edu).
The newsletter will appear biweekly.
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