Research for Sociology

In this research memorandum, we present the findings of one portion of CNA's Future Russian Navy project, which was requested by the Director of Naval Intelligence. We examine what Russians commonly call 'the human factor' in naval affairs, or the set of issues concerned with attracting and retaining personnel and creating conditions that enable and encourage them to perform their missions. We look at three aspects of the human factor in turn: personnel procurement policy, day-to-day military economics, and the navy's relationship with society and local civilian officials. We discuss how the former Soviet Union traditionally approached each challenge and why the old approaches are failing today. We also describe the way the navy is functioning today, living with the residue of the old system, and adapting to cope with the changed environment. We conclude with an assessment of possible remedies to the Navy's human factor problem, and a discussion of current and prospective trends.

This paper presents estimates of how labor demand was affected by changing production technology in five U.S. industries - steel, auto, aluminum, coal mining, and iron ore.

This paper examines the degree to which screening reduces unemployment and whether the screening procedures used are appropriately targeted on individuals who have little interest in returning to work. The primary focus is on the 'work test' which is a form of screening designed to determine if an otherwise qualified individual is actively seeking suitable work.

The government can not base the amount it pays its employees on the market value of the services it provides. Instead, it tries to set pay for each job at a level equal to pay for comparable work in private employment. Although a survey of pay for private sector workers is taken each year, there are indications that the survey is faulty and that government pay levels are too high. One indication is that quit rates are considerably lower in the government than in the private sector. Quit rates are a function of pay levels. The estimating equations in this study are derived from a simple model of labor market behavior.This model makes it clear that efficient behavior for the government does not imply either the same pay or total compensation as the private sector.