The Significance of Farm Size in the Evaluation of Labour Productivity in Agriculture

Abstract

The paper deal with the analysis of diff erence in labour productivity of farms categorised according to their size, to determine if the set subsidy system infl uences labour productivity in the size groups of the farms. The source of data for enterprises analysis was the fi rms database, which contains accounting data of 926 farms with at least one employee. The observed data were from the 6 year period (2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012). The farms were divided, according to their size into four categories defi ned by the European Commission: micro, small, medium and large enterprises. The analysis of the labour productivity I based on the added value and labour costs revealed that there are big diff erences of the labour productivity levels in particular size groups of farms. The further analysis revealed that an adjustment of the farm approach of the labour productivity, when the paid operation subsidies are added (labour productivity II), changes this conclusion and the diff erences between particular size groups of farms decreased. Using -convergence, it was proved that the relative variability of the labour productivity II values decreased signifi cantly in the case of the medium-sized farms. We can say that subsidies signifi cantly infl uence the labour productivity in farms. On one hand, there is decrease of diff erences between the level values of particular size groups of farms; on the other hand, there is no signifi cant decrease its variability (except the medium-sized farms).

Club convergence of labour productivity in agriculture: Evidence from EU countries

“…These factors describe the economic importance and structural features of agriculture, resources and quality-of-production factors and the relationships between them, as well as the level of development of the country and agriculture. The importance of structural conditions for the increase in labour productivity, especially those expressed in the structure of farms and the level of employment in this sector, are emphasised by Polyzos and Arabatzis (2006) and Novotná and Volek (2016). It is worth noting that the level of agricultural labour productivity is influenced not only by the size of the labour force but also by the quality of labour resources related to human capital, which can be approximated by the level of education of farm managers (Giannakis and Bruggeman 2018).…”

Dynamics in the Agricultural Sectors of the Baltic States: the Effects of the Common Agricultural Policy and Challenges for the Future

“…It is noted that value of agricultural output has been significantly increased in Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian farms, but despite these changes did not achieved those in the developed countries. Various studies have shown that the indicators can be defined as in various ways in assessing the impact of farm support programs and productivity as well (Novotna, 2016). As investment support in main new capital is one of the factors of competitiveness, and which may have a longer-term impact on productivity and resilience of farms in terms of competitive environment.…”

Assessment of Profitability and Break-Even Points in Suckler Cow Herds

“…In agreement with the study by Střeleček and Kollar (2002), it was determined that especially labour costs as the main item of fixed costs were reduced with increasing herd size. Similarly, the highest labour productivity was identified in large-sized farms in a study based on the accounting data of 926 Czech farms (Novotná and Volek, 2016). Increasing suckler herd size might therefore be of importance for achieving sufficient income and profitability (Gajos and Dymnicki, 2012).…”