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The standard wage decomposition methodology produces arbitrary results when attempting to estimate the separate contributions of sets of dummy variables to the unexplained portion of the wage decomposition: the estimates are not invariant with respect to the choice of reference groups. However, the estimated separate contributions of sets of dummy variables to the explained portion and the overall decomposition are shown not to be dependent upon the choice of left-out reference groups. A similar identification problem applies to continuous variables, although this may not be as likely to cause problems in practice.

The association between daily mortality and respirable particulate pollution (PM10) in Utah County was assessed from April 1985 through December 1989. Poisson regression analysis was used to regress daily death counts on PM10 pollution levels, controlling for variability in the weather. A significant positive association between nonaccidental mortality and PM10 pollution was observed. The strongest association was with 5-d moving average PM10 levels, including the concurrent day and the preceding 4 d. An increase in 5-d moving average PM10 levels, equal to 100 micrograms/m3, was associated with an estimated increase in deaths per day equal to 16%. The association with mortality and PM10 was largest for respiratory disease deaths, next largest for cardiovascular deaths, and smallest for all other deaths. Mean PM10 concentrations during the study period equaled 47 micrograms/m3. The maximum 24-h and 5-d moving average PM10 levels equaled 365 and 297 micrograms/m3, respectively. Relatively low levels of sulfur dioxide, aerosol acidity, and ozone suggested an independent association between mortality and PM10. The relative risk of death increased monotonically with PM10, and the relationship was observed at PM10 levels that were well below the current National Ambient Air Quality Standard of 150 micrograms/m3.

European population genetic substructure was examined in a diverse set of >1,000 individuals of European descent, each genotyped with >300 K SNPs. Both STRUCTURE and principal component analyses (PCA) showed the largest division/principal component (PC) differentiated northern from southern European ancestry. A second PC further separated Italian, Spanish, and Greek individuals from those of Ashkenazi Jewish ancestry as well as distinguishing among northern European populations. In separate analyses of northern European participants other substructure relationships were discerned showing a west to east gradient. Application of this substructure information was critical in examining a real dataset in whole genome association (WGA) analyses for rheumatoid arthritis in European Americans to reduce false positive signals. In addition, two sets of European substructure ancestry informative markers (ESAIMs) were identified that provide substantial substructure information. The results provide further insight into European population genetic substructure and show that this information can be used for improving error rates in association testing of candidate genes and in replication studies of WGA scans.

A genome-wide association screen for primary biliary cirrhosis risk alleles was performed in an Italian cohort. The results from the Italian cohort replicated IL12A and IL12RB associations, and a combined meta-analysis using a Canadian dataset identified newly associated loci at SPIB (P = 7.9 × 10–11, odds ratio (OR) = 1.46), IRF5-TNPO3 (P = 2.8 × 10–10, OR = 1.63) and 17q12-21 (P = 1.7 × 10–10, OR = 1.38).

In the context of certain models, it is possible to infer the elasticity of labor supply to the firm from the elasticity of the quit rate with respect to the wage. We use this strategy to estimate the elasticity of labor supply for men and women workers at a chain of grocery stores, identifying separation elasticities from differences in wages and separation rates across different job titles within the firm. We estimate that women have lower elasticities, so a Robinson-style monopsony model can explain reasonably well the lower relative pay of women in the retail grocery industry. (c) 2010 by The University of Chicago.

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Standard-Nutzungsbedingungen:Die Dokumente auf EconStor dürfen zu eigenen wissenschaftlichen Zwecken und zum Privatgebrauch gespeichert und kopiert werden.Sie dürfen die Dokumente nicht für öffentliche oder kommerzielle Zwecke vervielfältigen, öffentlich ausstellen, öffentlich zugänglich machen, vertreiben oder anderweitig nutzen.Sofern die Verfasser die Dokumente unter Open-Content-Lizenzen (insbesondere CC-Lizenzen) zur Verfügung gestellt haben sollten, gelten abweichend von diesen Nutzungsbedingungen die in der dort genannten Lizenz gewährten Nutzungsrechte. www.econstor.eu The Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA) in Bonn is a local and virtual international research center and a place of communication between science, politics and business. IZA is an independent nonprofit organization supported by Deutsche Post Foundation. The center is associated with the University of Bonn and offers a stimulating research environment through its international network, workshops and conferences, data service, project support, research visits and doctoral program. IZA engages in (i) original and internationally competitive research in all fields of labor economics, (ii) development of policy concepts, and (iii) dissemination of research results and concepts to the interested public. Terms of use: Documents in D I S C U S S I O N P A P E R S E R I E SIZA Discussion Papers often represent preliminary work and are circulated to encourage discussion. Citation of such a paper should account for its provisional character. A revised version may be available directly from the author. In the context of certain dynamic models, it is possible to infer the elasticity of labor supply to the firm from the elasticity of the quit rate with respect to the wage. Using this property, we estimate the average labor supply elasticity to public school districts in Missouri. We take advantage of the plausibly exogenous variation in pre-negotiated district salary schedules to instrument for actual salary. Instrumental variables estimates lead to a labor supply elasticity estimate of about 3.7, suggesting the presence of significant market power for school districts, especially over more experienced teachers. The presence of monopsony power in this labor market may be partially explained by institutional features of the teacher labor market. JEL Classification:J42, J63