"Pierre and Scarpetta present evidence on how employers perceive labor regulations and react when these are perceived to constrain the operation of their firm. They draw from harmonized surveys of (up to) 17,000 firms around the world and compare employers' responses with actual labor...

This report summarizes a program of research coordinated by the World Bank and carried out from October 2002 to May 2004. The objectives of the program have been to: 1) Highlight the major dynamics in the evolution of important sanitary and phytosanitary standards (SPS) in selected...

Injections are one of the most common health care procedures, with some 16 billion injections administered world-wide each year. Most injections (90 to 95 percent) are given for therapeutic purposes, and only 5 to 10 percent are given for immunization. Injections are often unnecessary and are...

Smoking harms the health of smokers and those around them. Smokers are at far higher risks of strokes, heart attacks and other cardiovascular diseases; cancers of the lungs, mouth, larynx, bladder, pancreas, kidneys and stomach; emphysema, bronchitis, and tuberculosis. These diseases cause...

This report describes labor practices in the Lao garments export sector as seen by both management and labor. The main objective of this report is to present the differing perspectives on working conditions between managers and workers, and to explore ways in which the Lao garment sector could...