Volume 19, Number 1 (Winter) 1984
Ragan, James F., Jr. 1984. “Investigating the Decline in Manufacturing Quit Rates.” Journal of Human Resources 19(1):53-71.
In contrast to previous studies, the research reported here finds that the quit rate in manufacturing has declined in recent decades. This trend is discernible not only for aggregate manufacturing, but also for 19 of 20 manufacturing industries. An increase in fixed costs of labor relative to wages has contributed to reduced mobility, inducing employers to raise the cost of quitting to employees. The impact on labor turnover of other factors, including unionism, a changing composition of employment in various industries, and labor legislation, is also investigated.
The author is Associate Professor of Economics, Kansas State University. This project was initiated while the author was a visiting scholar at the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. He has benefited from helpful comments by Steve Abel, Krishna Akkina, Dan Bechter, Daniel Hamermesh, Paul Koch, Glenn Miller, John Pencavel, Sharon P. Smith, and two anonymous referees. Steve Pollock and Roberto Jordan provided excellent research assistance. The author alone bears responsibility for the views expressed in this paper.
© 2003 by the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System
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