Gil, I await with baited breath. I hope it is out before I retire ;-) On the issue of efficiency wage, I think in its institutional form (gift-exchange model) it has been around for a long time in fact, if not in theory, in the workers demand from the 19th C for "a fair days work for a fair days pay." It also means taking wages out of competition, which is the historic demand of labour unions. But all this hinges on the rejection of marginal productivity theory of wages -- a very good discussion and rejection of the neoclassical version of which can be found in Lester Thurow's book on inequality. I have some difficulty in accepting the short- run -- long-run dicotomy in labour markets. All decisions are made 'in the short run' -- cost markup investment decisions are made on the basis of existing wages (often institutionally set) and the expectations of what will happen to those wages over the expected life of the investment. This is Galbraith's reverse sequence as it affects labour and wages. In any case, this will be my last post on this subject as I will be off-list beginning next week until the new year studying labour markets and wages in Slovenia. Have a good holiday season. Paul Phillips, Economics, University of Manitoba
