Victor Montuenga - Academia.edu (original) (raw)
Papers by Victor Montuenga
We present evidence for the motherhood wage penalty in Spain as a representative Southern Europea... more We present evidence for the motherhood wage penalty in Spain as a representative Southern European Mediterranean country. We use the the European Community Household Panel (ECHP, 1994(ECHP, -2001 to estimate, from both pool and fixed-effects methods, a wage equation in terms of observed variables and other nonobserved individual characteristics. The empirical results confirm that there is clear evidence of a wage penalty for Spanish working-women with children. Specifically, the fact that there is a birth in the family during the current year means that the woman loses 9% of her wage. We also find that, having one child living in the household means a significant loss in wages of 6%, having two children, almost 14% and having three or more, more than 15%.
EU countries, distinguishing between wage earners and the self-employed. These returns are estima... more EU countries, distinguishing between wage earners and the self-employed. These returns are estimated by using a comparable data set coming from the European Community Household Panel during the period 1994-2000. To correct for the ability bias and recover the education coefficients, an Efficient Generalized Instrumental Variable technique is applied. Although the results differ across countries, two common features can be observed. First, the earnings-experience profiles indicate certain traits of competitiveness in the labor markets and, secondly, the returns to education show that signaling plays a relevant role in the earnings of workers.
The aim of this paper is to provide new estimates for the wageproductivity relationship among the... more The aim of this paper is to provide new estimates for the wageproductivity relationship among the Spanish manufacturing industries. We start describing some indicators about wage dispersion in the manufacturing industries across Spanish regions. Then we estimate a wage-setting specification in order to identify the wage-productivity relationship. Our results show substantial inter-industry differences in the Spanish regions that may be explained by the national wage bargaining mechanism.
Resumen En las últimas décadas, la existencia de diferencias significativas y persistentes en las... more Resumen En las últimas décadas, la existencia de diferencias significativas y persistentes en las tasas de paro regionales ha fomentado un renovado interés por el estudio de las características del mercado de trabajo en el ámbito regional. El objetivo de este trabajo es mostrar hasta qué punto el mecanismo de determinación salarial en la industria española es rígido y homogéneo en el ámbito sectorial y cuál puede ser la repercusión de este hecho en la evolución del empleo regional. Para ello, estimamos una ecuación de determinación salarial a escala regional con datos industriales, cuyos resultados confirman las apreciables diferencias sectoriales detectadas en el ámbito nacional en la relación entre salario y productividad. Sin embargo, para cada sector el comportamiento entre regiones es bastante homogéneo, lo que podría explicarse por un sistema de negociación colectiva en el que predomina el convenio sectorial frente al de empresa. Estas apreciables diferencias entre sectores de actividad pueden ser en gran medida la explicación última de la evolución reciente de los mercados de trabajo regionales.
ABSTRACT The aim of the article is to provide new evidence concerning the effect of public capita... more ABSTRACT The aim of the article is to provide new evidence concerning the effect of public capital on productivity growth in Spain. To this end, the article follows the growth accounting approach, which, in addition to measuring both the direct and indirect effects of public capital on the total factor productivity, allows for assessing whether there is a distinctive impact of public capital across economic sectors. The results lead to three main conclusions: (1) Public capital has a strong influence on growth when we use data from the whole economy; (2) this influence varies across sectors, being more relevant in the exposed sectors (industry) than in sheltered sectors (agriculture, construction, and services); and (3) irrespective of the definition used for public capital, these basic results remain unchanged. (JEL "C30", "E62", "H54", "O47", "O52") Copyright 2003 Western Economic Association International.
In this paper, we test the hypothesis of a wage curve against a Phillips curve for Spain within a... more In this paper, we test the hypothesis of a wage curve against a Phillips curve for Spain within a framework which allows for these both and more general alternatives.
In this paper we analyse wage flexibility in Spain and its regional differences, departing from t... more In this paper we analyse wage flexibility in Spain and its regional differences, departing from the estimation of wage curves. Using data from the Wage Structure Survey, we proceed to estimate regional wage equations, relating the observed wage received by workers to a group of personal and job characteristics, as well as to the unemployment rate. This analysis allows us to test for the existence of regional differences in the degree of wage flexibility, which may have an important influence in the evolution of regional unemployment, given its impact on the ability of the local labour market to absorb negative shocks. Estimated results indicate that regions suffering from higher unemployment rates exhibit lower wage flexibility. Collective bargaining reforms should pursue greater wage flexibility, especially in regions with high rates of joblessness.
De la observación de los salarios industriales en los últimos años, se desprende que ha aumentado... more De la observación de los salarios industriales en los últimos años, se desprende que ha aumentado de un modo no despreciable la dispersión de los salarios sectoriales en la industria española. La explicación de este hecho y su relación con el mecanismo de determinación salarial prevaleciente en la industria española es el objetivo de este trabajo. A partir de una ecuación salarial que incorpora variables específicas para recoger parte de las propuestas de la teorías no competitivas del mercado de trabajo, se identifican algunas de las anomalías empíricas del planteamiento competitivo, se sugiere una interpretación plausible sobre su origen y se valora su repercusión sobre el nivel de empleo.
Feminist Economics, 2011
This article analyses the intrahousehold allocation of time in households headed by heterosexual ... more This article analyses the intrahousehold allocation of time in households headed by heterosexual couples to show gender differences in childcare in Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain. Using data for the five sample countries from the European Community Household Panel (ECHP; 1994–2001) and the framework of a general efficiency approach, each parent's hours spent on childcare are regressed against individual and household characteristics. Empirical results show a clear inequality in childcare between fathers and mothers, with this disparity being more evident in Mediterranean countries. Panel data estimates reveal that, in general, caring tasks are mainly influenced by the presence of young children in the household, by the total nonlabor income, and by the ratio of mothers' nonlabor income to family's nonlabor income, with this latter variable exhibiting different behavior across genders and across countries.
Economics of Education Review, 2009
This is a response to [Jordahl, H., Poutvaara, P., & Tuomala, J. (2009). Comment on education ret... more This is a response to [Jordahl, H., Poutvaara, P., & Tuomala, J. (2009). Comment on education returns of wage earners and self-employed workers. Economics of Education Review 28]. We acknowledge that econometrics have improved since the time our original paper was written, so that the choice of accurate instruments is now more deeply founded. However, in this note, we argue that the differences in the estimates obtained by Jordahl et al. (2009) has been generated not only because the “sensibility of HT estimators to the choice of instrumental variables”, but also to the estimation metholology followed by them, in which rarely changing variables are considered to be time-varying.
This paper analyses the intra-household allocation of time to show gender differences in childcar... more This paper analyses the intra-household allocation of time to show gender differences in childcare. In the framework of a general efficiency approach, hours spent on childcare by each parent are regressed against individual and household characteristics, for five samples (Denmark, France, Germany, Italy and Spain), with data being drawn from the European Community Household Panel-ECHP (1994. Empirical results show a clear inequality in childcare between fathers and mothers, with this being more evident in Mediterranean countries. Panel data estimates reveal that, in general, caring tasks are mainly influenced by the presence of young children in the household, by the total non-labor income, and by the ratio of mothers' non-labor income to family's non-labor income, with this latter variable exhibiting a different behavior across genders and across countries.
Regional Studies, 2007
Bande R., Fernández M. and Montuenga VM (2007) Regional disparities in the unemployment rate: the... more Bande R., Fernández M. and Montuenga VM (2007) Regional disparities in the unemployment rate: the role of the wage-setting mechanism in Spain, 198792, Regional Studies 41,. The aim of this paper is to show how regional unemployment disparities in ...
International Advances in Economic Research, 2002
This paper studies the convergence of inflation rates over the period of 1983–93 for some countri... more This paper studies the convergence of inflation rates over the period of 1983–93 for some countries within the European Monetary System. Three different price indices are considered for consumer goods, services, and industrial products. This study focuses on the difference between core and peripheral countries for measuring convergence speed. By using β- and σ-convergence tools, as previously identified in studies on output growth convergence, it was found that the convergence process did not evolve equally whether considered through price indices, time, or countries.
Day Care & Early Education, 2009
We present evidence for the motherhood wage penalty in Spain as a representative Southern Europea... more We present evidence for the motherhood wage penalty in Spain as a representative Southern European Mediterranean country. We used the European Community Household Panel (ECHP 1994–2001) to estimate, from both pool and fixed-effects methods, a wage equation in terms of observed variables and other non-observed individual characteristics. The empirical results confirm that there is clear evidence of a wage penalty for Spanish working-women with children. Specifically, the fact that there was a birth in the family during the current year means that the woman lost 9% of her wage. We also found that, having one child living in the household means a significant loss in wages of 6%, having two children, almost a 14% loss, and having three or more children, in a more than 15% loss.
Applied Economics, 2010
This paper analyses the intra-family distribution of paid-work time in five European countries (F... more This paper analyses the intra-family distribution of paid-work time in five European countries (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK).
Labour Economics, 2005
The existence and persistence of regional disparities in the unemployment rate is a common proble... more The existence and persistence of regional disparities in the unemployment rate is a common problem of many European economies. However, in Spain, this situation exhibits a characteristic feature: a strong positive relationship with the business cycle. The analysis in this paper investigates the relationship between this distinguishing feature of the Spanish economy and changes in the regional wage-setting mechanism, and how this relationship has influenced the aggregate Spanish labour market performance in the recent past. The empirical finding of an important regional imitation effect in wage bargaining may explain both the persistence of disparities, and the positive relationship between regional unemployment dispersion and the business cycle. This result has a direct implication for employment policies, which must take into account the regional dimension of the unemployment problem.
Regional Studies, 2003
GARCíA-MAINAR I. and MONTUENGA-GÓMEZ V. M. (2003) The Spanish wage curve: 1994–1996, Reg. Studies... more GARCíA-MAINAR I. and MONTUENGA-GÓMEZ V. M. (2003) The Spanish wage curve: 1994–1996, Reg. Studies 37, 929– 945. In this paper, we estimate a wage curve for Spain using data from the European Community Household Panel, which provides microinformation for the period 1994–96. By refining the unemployment rate measure, we find an unemployment elasticity of wages not very far from that encountered in other developed countries. We argue that these results correspond to a disequilibrium representation of the regional unemployment structure, in which unemployment differentials tend to persist over time.GARCíA-MAINAR I. et M ONTUENGA-GÓMEZ V. M. (2003) La courbe des salaires en Espagne de 1994 à 1996, Reg. Studies 37, 929–945. A partir des données provenant du European Community Household Panel (échantillon permanent auprès des ménages dans la Communauté éuropéenne), cet article cherche à estimer une courbe des salaires pour l'Espagne qui fournit des renseignements microéconomiques sur la période qui va de 1994 à 1996. En raffinant la mesure du taux de chômage, il s'avère une élasticité des salaires par rapport au chômage qui s'approche de celle observée dans d'autres pays dé veloppés. On affirme que ces résultats constituent une représentation du déséquilibre quant à la structure régionale du chômage, où les écarts du chômage ont tendance à persister sur le temps. GARCíA-MAINAR I. und MONTUENGA- GÓMEZ V. M. (2003) Die spanische Lohnkurve im Zeitraum 1994–1996, Reg. Studies 37, 929– 945. In diesem Aufsatz wird mit Hilfe des Haushaltsausschusses der europäischen Gemeinschaft eine Lohnkurve für Spanien berechnet, die Mikroinformation für den Zeitraum 1994–1996 liefert. Durch Verfeinerung des Begriffes Erwerbslosenrate wird eine Erwerbslosigkeitselastizität von Löhnen festgestellt, die nicht sehr weit hinter der anderer Industrieländer zurücksteht. Die Autoren stellen die Behauptung auf, daß dies Ergebnisse einer unterschiedlich gewichteten Darstellung der regionalen Erwerbslosigkeitsstruktur entsprechen, in der Unterschiede meist lange fortbestehen.
Page 1. 11 Regional Wage Flexibility: the Wage Curve in Five EU Countries Victor ~ontuenga',... more Page 1. 11 Regional Wage Flexibility: the Wage Curve in Five EU Countries Victor ~ontuenga', Inmaculada Garcia2 and Melchor Fernhdez3 ... Page 2. 246 Victor Montuenga, Inmaculada Garcia and Melchor Femhdez In Chap. ...
We present evidence for the motherhood wage penalty in Spain as a representative Southern Europea... more We present evidence for the motherhood wage penalty in Spain as a representative Southern European Mediterranean country. We use the the European Community Household Panel (ECHP, 1994(ECHP, -2001 to estimate, from both pool and fixed-effects methods, a wage equation in terms of observed variables and other nonobserved individual characteristics. The empirical results confirm that there is clear evidence of a wage penalty for Spanish working-women with children. Specifically, the fact that there is a birth in the family during the current year means that the woman loses 9% of her wage. We also find that, having one child living in the household means a significant loss in wages of 6%, having two children, almost 14% and having three or more, more than 15%.
EU countries, distinguishing between wage earners and the self-employed. These returns are estima... more EU countries, distinguishing between wage earners and the self-employed. These returns are estimated by using a comparable data set coming from the European Community Household Panel during the period 1994-2000. To correct for the ability bias and recover the education coefficients, an Efficient Generalized Instrumental Variable technique is applied. Although the results differ across countries, two common features can be observed. First, the earnings-experience profiles indicate certain traits of competitiveness in the labor markets and, secondly, the returns to education show that signaling plays a relevant role in the earnings of workers.
The aim of this paper is to provide new estimates for the wageproductivity relationship among the... more The aim of this paper is to provide new estimates for the wageproductivity relationship among the Spanish manufacturing industries. We start describing some indicators about wage dispersion in the manufacturing industries across Spanish regions. Then we estimate a wage-setting specification in order to identify the wage-productivity relationship. Our results show substantial inter-industry differences in the Spanish regions that may be explained by the national wage bargaining mechanism.
Resumen En las últimas décadas, la existencia de diferencias significativas y persistentes en las... more Resumen En las últimas décadas, la existencia de diferencias significativas y persistentes en las tasas de paro regionales ha fomentado un renovado interés por el estudio de las características del mercado de trabajo en el ámbito regional. El objetivo de este trabajo es mostrar hasta qué punto el mecanismo de determinación salarial en la industria española es rígido y homogéneo en el ámbito sectorial y cuál puede ser la repercusión de este hecho en la evolución del empleo regional. Para ello, estimamos una ecuación de determinación salarial a escala regional con datos industriales, cuyos resultados confirman las apreciables diferencias sectoriales detectadas en el ámbito nacional en la relación entre salario y productividad. Sin embargo, para cada sector el comportamiento entre regiones es bastante homogéneo, lo que podría explicarse por un sistema de negociación colectiva en el que predomina el convenio sectorial frente al de empresa. Estas apreciables diferencias entre sectores de actividad pueden ser en gran medida la explicación última de la evolución reciente de los mercados de trabajo regionales.
ABSTRACT The aim of the article is to provide new evidence concerning the effect of public capita... more ABSTRACT The aim of the article is to provide new evidence concerning the effect of public capital on productivity growth in Spain. To this end, the article follows the growth accounting approach, which, in addition to measuring both the direct and indirect effects of public capital on the total factor productivity, allows for assessing whether there is a distinctive impact of public capital across economic sectors. The results lead to three main conclusions: (1) Public capital has a strong influence on growth when we use data from the whole economy; (2) this influence varies across sectors, being more relevant in the exposed sectors (industry) than in sheltered sectors (agriculture, construction, and services); and (3) irrespective of the definition used for public capital, these basic results remain unchanged. (JEL "C30", "E62", "H54", "O47", "O52") Copyright 2003 Western Economic Association International.
In this paper, we test the hypothesis of a wage curve against a Phillips curve for Spain within a... more In this paper, we test the hypothesis of a wage curve against a Phillips curve for Spain within a framework which allows for these both and more general alternatives.
In this paper we analyse wage flexibility in Spain and its regional differences, departing from t... more In this paper we analyse wage flexibility in Spain and its regional differences, departing from the estimation of wage curves. Using data from the Wage Structure Survey, we proceed to estimate regional wage equations, relating the observed wage received by workers to a group of personal and job characteristics, as well as to the unemployment rate. This analysis allows us to test for the existence of regional differences in the degree of wage flexibility, which may have an important influence in the evolution of regional unemployment, given its impact on the ability of the local labour market to absorb negative shocks. Estimated results indicate that regions suffering from higher unemployment rates exhibit lower wage flexibility. Collective bargaining reforms should pursue greater wage flexibility, especially in regions with high rates of joblessness.
De la observación de los salarios industriales en los últimos años, se desprende que ha aumentado... more De la observación de los salarios industriales en los últimos años, se desprende que ha aumentado de un modo no despreciable la dispersión de los salarios sectoriales en la industria española. La explicación de este hecho y su relación con el mecanismo de determinación salarial prevaleciente en la industria española es el objetivo de este trabajo. A partir de una ecuación salarial que incorpora variables específicas para recoger parte de las propuestas de la teorías no competitivas del mercado de trabajo, se identifican algunas de las anomalías empíricas del planteamiento competitivo, se sugiere una interpretación plausible sobre su origen y se valora su repercusión sobre el nivel de empleo.
Feminist Economics, 2011
This article analyses the intrahousehold allocation of time in households headed by heterosexual ... more This article analyses the intrahousehold allocation of time in households headed by heterosexual couples to show gender differences in childcare in Denmark, France, Germany, Italy, and Spain. Using data for the five sample countries from the European Community Household Panel (ECHP; 1994–2001) and the framework of a general efficiency approach, each parent's hours spent on childcare are regressed against individual and household characteristics. Empirical results show a clear inequality in childcare between fathers and mothers, with this disparity being more evident in Mediterranean countries. Panel data estimates reveal that, in general, caring tasks are mainly influenced by the presence of young children in the household, by the total nonlabor income, and by the ratio of mothers' nonlabor income to family's nonlabor income, with this latter variable exhibiting different behavior across genders and across countries.
Economics of Education Review, 2009
This is a response to [Jordahl, H., Poutvaara, P., & Tuomala, J. (2009). Comment on education ret... more This is a response to [Jordahl, H., Poutvaara, P., & Tuomala, J. (2009). Comment on education returns of wage earners and self-employed workers. Economics of Education Review 28]. We acknowledge that econometrics have improved since the time our original paper was written, so that the choice of accurate instruments is now more deeply founded. However, in this note, we argue that the differences in the estimates obtained by Jordahl et al. (2009) has been generated not only because the “sensibility of HT estimators to the choice of instrumental variables”, but also to the estimation metholology followed by them, in which rarely changing variables are considered to be time-varying.
This paper analyses the intra-household allocation of time to show gender differences in childcar... more This paper analyses the intra-household allocation of time to show gender differences in childcare. In the framework of a general efficiency approach, hours spent on childcare by each parent are regressed against individual and household characteristics, for five samples (Denmark, France, Germany, Italy and Spain), with data being drawn from the European Community Household Panel-ECHP (1994. Empirical results show a clear inequality in childcare between fathers and mothers, with this being more evident in Mediterranean countries. Panel data estimates reveal that, in general, caring tasks are mainly influenced by the presence of young children in the household, by the total non-labor income, and by the ratio of mothers' non-labor income to family's non-labor income, with this latter variable exhibiting a different behavior across genders and across countries.
Regional Studies, 2007
Bande R., Fernández M. and Montuenga VM (2007) Regional disparities in the unemployment rate: the... more Bande R., Fernández M. and Montuenga VM (2007) Regional disparities in the unemployment rate: the role of the wage-setting mechanism in Spain, 198792, Regional Studies 41,. The aim of this paper is to show how regional unemployment disparities in ...
International Advances in Economic Research, 2002
This paper studies the convergence of inflation rates over the period of 1983–93 for some countri... more This paper studies the convergence of inflation rates over the period of 1983–93 for some countries within the European Monetary System. Three different price indices are considered for consumer goods, services, and industrial products. This study focuses on the difference between core and peripheral countries for measuring convergence speed. By using β- and σ-convergence tools, as previously identified in studies on output growth convergence, it was found that the convergence process did not evolve equally whether considered through price indices, time, or countries.
Day Care & Early Education, 2009
We present evidence for the motherhood wage penalty in Spain as a representative Southern Europea... more We present evidence for the motherhood wage penalty in Spain as a representative Southern European Mediterranean country. We used the European Community Household Panel (ECHP 1994–2001) to estimate, from both pool and fixed-effects methods, a wage equation in terms of observed variables and other non-observed individual characteristics. The empirical results confirm that there is clear evidence of a wage penalty for Spanish working-women with children. Specifically, the fact that there was a birth in the family during the current year means that the woman lost 9% of her wage. We also found that, having one child living in the household means a significant loss in wages of 6%, having two children, almost a 14% loss, and having three or more children, in a more than 15% loss.
Applied Economics, 2010
This paper analyses the intra-family distribution of paid-work time in five European countries (F... more This paper analyses the intra-family distribution of paid-work time in five European countries (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK).
Labour Economics, 2005
The existence and persistence of regional disparities in the unemployment rate is a common proble... more The existence and persistence of regional disparities in the unemployment rate is a common problem of many European economies. However, in Spain, this situation exhibits a characteristic feature: a strong positive relationship with the business cycle. The analysis in this paper investigates the relationship between this distinguishing feature of the Spanish economy and changes in the regional wage-setting mechanism, and how this relationship has influenced the aggregate Spanish labour market performance in the recent past. The empirical finding of an important regional imitation effect in wage bargaining may explain both the persistence of disparities, and the positive relationship between regional unemployment dispersion and the business cycle. This result has a direct implication for employment policies, which must take into account the regional dimension of the unemployment problem.
Regional Studies, 2003
GARCíA-MAINAR I. and MONTUENGA-GÓMEZ V. M. (2003) The Spanish wage curve: 1994–1996, Reg. Studies... more GARCíA-MAINAR I. and MONTUENGA-GÓMEZ V. M. (2003) The Spanish wage curve: 1994–1996, Reg. Studies 37, 929– 945. In this paper, we estimate a wage curve for Spain using data from the European Community Household Panel, which provides microinformation for the period 1994–96. By refining the unemployment rate measure, we find an unemployment elasticity of wages not very far from that encountered in other developed countries. We argue that these results correspond to a disequilibrium representation of the regional unemployment structure, in which unemployment differentials tend to persist over time.GARCíA-MAINAR I. et M ONTUENGA-GÓMEZ V. M. (2003) La courbe des salaires en Espagne de 1994 à 1996, Reg. Studies 37, 929–945. A partir des données provenant du European Community Household Panel (échantillon permanent auprès des ménages dans la Communauté éuropéenne), cet article cherche à estimer une courbe des salaires pour l'Espagne qui fournit des renseignements microéconomiques sur la période qui va de 1994 à 1996. En raffinant la mesure du taux de chômage, il s'avère une élasticité des salaires par rapport au chômage qui s'approche de celle observée dans d'autres pays dé veloppés. On affirme que ces résultats constituent une représentation du déséquilibre quant à la structure régionale du chômage, où les écarts du chômage ont tendance à persister sur le temps. GARCíA-MAINAR I. und MONTUENGA- GÓMEZ V. M. (2003) Die spanische Lohnkurve im Zeitraum 1994–1996, Reg. Studies 37, 929– 945. In diesem Aufsatz wird mit Hilfe des Haushaltsausschusses der europäischen Gemeinschaft eine Lohnkurve für Spanien berechnet, die Mikroinformation für den Zeitraum 1994–1996 liefert. Durch Verfeinerung des Begriffes Erwerbslosenrate wird eine Erwerbslosigkeitselastizität von Löhnen festgestellt, die nicht sehr weit hinter der anderer Industrieländer zurücksteht. Die Autoren stellen die Behauptung auf, daß dies Ergebnisse einer unterschiedlich gewichteten Darstellung der regionalen Erwerbslosigkeitsstruktur entsprechen, in der Unterschiede meist lange fortbestehen.
Page 1. 11 Regional Wage Flexibility: the Wage Curve in Five EU Countries Victor ~ontuenga',... more Page 1. 11 Regional Wage Flexibility: the Wage Curve in Five EU Countries Victor ~ontuenga', Inmaculada Garcia2 and Melchor Fernhdez3 ... Page 2. 246 Victor Montuenga, Inmaculada Garcia and Melchor Femhdez In Chap. ...