Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Abstract: Existing studies on maternal employment following childbirth identify the significant effects of human capital, family structure, and employment characteristics. However, few studies examine the relationship between access to family friendly workplace policies and women’s employment behaviors. Using data from two cohorts of women from the National Longitudinal Survey, this analysis evaluates the impact of access to a wide range of workplace benefits on new mothers’ employment decisions in order to determine whether some policies are more effective at retaining women in the labor force following childbirth. Results indicate that the number and type of fringe benefits play an important role in women’s employment behaviors following childbirth. However, family friendly policies, such as maternity leave and flexible hours, are less important than medical insurance and financial benefits. Access to medical insurance impacts both the likelihood of working after childbirth and also, among employed women, the likelihood of working full-time. Furthermore, in all the specifications of the model, access to medical insurance proves to be a better indicator of employment following childbirth than any other single benefit or any other operationalization of benefits. Policy implications are discussed.

Publication Type: Symposium Paper
Abstract: Today the Rowley decision is still the centerpiece of IDEIA and its protection of the education rights of students with special needs. The concept of FAPE, however, carries a more academic-centered meaning involving substantive requirements that address the central core of what students know and should be able to do. This involves administering the same achievement tests to students with special needs as those without such needs. Not all state education agencies or local education agencies have adapted well to these changes. Even today interpretations of the standards-based movement as legislated in NCLB and IDEIA yield the conclusion that accountability does not necessarily translate into providing special needs students with an education that enables them to maximize their potential. This presentation will explore the import of Rowley and the impact of the NCLB and IDEIA on the concept of “some benefit.” Integrated in the analysis will be interpretations of FAPE where the existing case law can be used to divide states promoting: 1) meaningful benefit [Polk]; some or adequate benefit [School Board]; a mixed benefit [Alex R.]; or 4) new decisions emphasizing maximum benefit.[Ottawa] The paper will also discuss a very recent executive decision of the Office of Civil Rights declaring that school personnel school may not deny the participation of a qualified disabled student in an accelerated class or program (and must supply needed aids and services) and may not condition enrollment in an accelerated class or program on the forfeiture of special education or related aids and services.[United States] The capstone of the presentation will be an explication of the legislation, regulations, and case law explaining why school personnel and the colleges and universities involved in licensure programs should seriously consider incorporating high academic standards into programs for special needs students.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: This paper argues that governments formed from post-election coalitions (majority coalitiotn governments in PR systems) and pre-election coalitions (majority parties in SMD systems) aggregate the interests of voters in systematically different ways. We show that the multiple policy dimensional space that emerges from PR rules motivate parties in the government coalition to logroll projects among themselves without internalizing the costs of those projects in the same way that a majoritarian party would be forced to do. The size of government should therefore tend to be larger in PR systems. We further show that, although centrifugal electoral incentives dominate in PR systems, some incentives towards coalescence across groups and across parties exist through the greater likelihood that large parties have in becoming a member of a minimal winning coalition of parties.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: Texas is unique among American state governments in its approach to human resources (HR). Specifically, the state has no central HR (or “personnel”) office and no comprehensive set of centrally prescribed HR policies and procedures. Instead, the HR function is almost completely decentralized, giving state agencies considerable latitude in designing and implementing their respective HR programs. Given that contemporary calls for HR reform emphasize decentralization, Texas represents an excellent case study for understanding the practical implications of a decentralized approach to HR. The paper examines findings from a recent (2002) survey of Texas’ state agency HR directors. The HR directors were asked to indicate their level of agreement or disagreement with a series of statements related to HR centralization-decentralization. Generally, results suggest that respondents do not see the putative benefits of a centralized HR model. However, contingency table and regression analyses reveal important relationships between respondents’ demographic characteristics and opinion. Respondents from small state agencies, those who perceive that they do not have requisite HR expertise, and those with lower levels of educational attainment hold significantly different opinions on the benefits of centralized HR.

Publication Type: Conference Paper/Unpublished Manuscript
Review Method: Peer Reviewed
Abstract: Scholars and observers alike agree that the European Union (EU) has weakened national parliaments (NP). We posit that such a view, while generally accurate, ignores ways in which the EU has helped NP in their function as regulators of society. We identify two key mechanisms: precedent setting and policy transfer. First, the EU has produced laws on topics considered beyond the traditional remit of NP. The EU’s intervention has justified the production of unprecedented domestic laws that go well beyond the incorporation of EU principles. This has expanded the legislative reach of NP. We consider the experiences of Italy and the Netherlands in the area of antitrust. Second, the EU has fostered an environment conducive to cross-national lesson drawing. The resulting knowledge has helped the design of more effective domestic legislative frameworks. This has confirmed the viability of NP as regulatory institutions. We examine the Open Method of Coordination and its application to the areas of employment and social inclusion. We conclude with a discussion of parliaments in future member states and in Mercosur.