The Relationship Between Productivity and the Formal Education of the Labor Force in Manufacturing Industries.

N

127

United Nations Industrial Development Organization, Vienna (Austria).
Carnegie Corp. of New York, NY.
Ford Foundation, New York, NY.

Occas-Pap-Educ-Dev-5

Academic Achievement; Career Development; Educational Demand; Educational Development; Educational Economics; Educational Planning; Educational Status Comparison; Industrial Structure; Industrial Training; International Studies; Labor Force; Manufacturing Industry; Predictor Variables; Productivity; Statistical Data

On an international comparison basis, data derived from censuses in 1950 and 1960 indicated a significant international correlation, but a weak intranational relationship between productivity and formal education. Meaningful correlations that exist for some industries across countries lead to the conclusion that there exists a relationship between productivity and education for each industry separately. The major determinant in the variation of productivity is the occupational distribution in the total labor force rather than the variation in the years of schooling of the same occupations. Correlations between the proportion of people with more than a secondary education, with productivity are most significant. Formal education, as a derived demand, is a misleading indicator of productivity, due to the importance of other modes of occupational training. The present use of educational distributions for analysis and planning must be reviewed, incorporating a wide range of variables in order to arrive at a correct appraisal of educational data. Numerous tables present the data. (Author/AG)

1973

ED073242