How US wages effect post-socialist European stock markets: an empirical study

Following the famous tapering speech of Bernanke on 2013, US non-farm payroll data became the leading indicator for the monetary policy of Fed. After midst of 2014 Fed shifted its attention to average hourly wage increases which was regarded as the determinant of inflation. As inflation is closely linked with possible increments of Fed funds rate, investors began to follow US wages more closely. We investigate the impact of US wages especially through concentrating on some Post-Socialist European stock markets. As US wages are found to Granger cause these stock exchanges, interestingly with domestic wages, a similar causation relation could not be achieved. This brings out the question whether wages are indeed an indicator for stock markets or not.

Household Interview Duration Analysis in CAPI Survey Management

This article provides evidence-based guidance for practical survey work, namely choosing interviewers and their workload. Analyzing a survey of 3,568 households obtained through computer assisted personal interviews (CAPI), we find that interviewers learn considerably while the survey progresses. Time requirements for fieldwork increase concavely with sample size. This allows using larger samples with a given budget than would be expected in planning such projects with simplistic cost estimates. We find a decrease of interview duration of almost 50%, which translates into a significant increase of the average hourly wage the interviewers receive. These learning effects cease after around 20 interviews. Based on our results, we recommend targeting interviewer training by age and technology-affinity of interviewers for CAPI surveys.

Wages, Hours, and Overtime Premia: Evidence from the British Labor Market

Unlike the United States, Britain has no national laws regulating overtime hour assignment or compensation. Using individual-level data on male non-managerial workers from the 1998 British New Earnings Survey, the authors investigate relationships among the standard hourly wage rate, hourly earnings (including overtime), the overtime premium, and the length of overtime hours. They find that when overtime is accounted for, average hourly wage earnings are fairly uniform across firms in a given industry, because firms paying below-market-level straight-time wages tend to award above-market-level overtime premiums, and, conversely, firms paying above-market-level straight-time wages provide below-market-level overtime premiums.

Estimating the Cost of Informal Caregiving for Elderly Patients With Cancer

PURPOSE: As the United States population ages, the increasing prevalence of cancer is likely to result in higher direct medical and nonmedical costs. Although estimates of the associated direct medical costs exist, very little information is available regarding the prevalence, time, and cost associated with informal caregiving for elderly cancer patients. MATERIALS AND METHODS: To estimate these costs, we used data from the first wave (1993) of the Asset and Health Dynamics (AHEAD) Study, a nationally representative longitudinal survey of people aged 70 or older. Using a multivariable, two-part regression model to control for differences in health and functional status, social support, and sociodemographics, we estimated the probability of receiving informal care, the average weekly number of caregiving hours, and the average annual caregiving cost per case (assuming an average hourly wage of $8.17) for subjects who reported no history of cancer (NC), having a diagnosis of cancer but not receiving treatment for their cancer in the last year (CNT), and having a diagnosis of cancer and receiving treatment in the last year (CT). RESULTS: Of the 7,443 subjects surveyed, 6,422 (86%) reported NC, 718 (10%) reported CNT, and 303 (4%) reported CT. Whereas the adjusted probability of informal caregiving for those respondents reporting NC and CNT was 26%, it was 34% for those reporting CT (P < .05). Those subjects reporting CT received an average of 10.0 hours of informal caregiving per week, as compared with 6.9 and 6.8 hours for those who reported NC and CNT, respectively (P < .05). Accordingly, cancer treatment was associated with an incremental increase of 3.1 hours per week, which translates into an additional average yearly cost of $1,200 per patient and just over $1 billion nationally. CONCLUSION: Informal caregiving costs are substantial and should be considered when estimating the cost of cancer treatment in the elderly.