Research Interests:

David Blackaby’s main areas of research are labour markets, regional economic, public policy and the Welsh Economy.  He has an established track record of attracting research grant income, including research grants from the ESRC.  He has also completed a number of labour market studies for public and private agencies.

Research as a labour economist has generally used large micro datasets and has been concentrated into analysing earnings and unemployment determination.  In particular, research has been undertaken on the determinants of the earnings and employment probabilities of ethnic minorities, women and religious groups.  He has also undertaken research on the labour market flexibility migration, productivity, redundancy, trade unions, people with disabilities, regional earnings differentials and the relationship between wages and unemployment.

Most research has made use of large-scale datasets and has been policy orientated and seeks to inform public debate and provide evidence based policy advice.

PhD Areas and Topics in Economics

Administration:
Deputy Head of School of Business and Economics
Chair Learning Environment User Group
University Learning and Teaching Committee
University ICT Strategy Committee
University Admissions Committee
University HERA Steering Group

External Activity:
CHUDE Steering Committee 2001 –
Member of the Economics and Econometrics Panel for the RAE 2008
Member ESRC Resource Board 2005 –
ESRC Senior Examiner Research Student Competition 2003-2006
ESRC Postgraduate Training Recognition Panel for Economics 2001, 2003, 2005 (Deputy Chair) and 2007 (Chair)
Commissioning Panel UKHLS
QAA Subject Benchmark Group for Economics 1999, 2006.
Royal Economic Society Womens Committee 2002 –

Current Grants:
ESRC Centre for Spatial Economics with LSE, Glasgow, Oxford & Newcastle 2008 -

Academic publications:

• "Wales : An Economic Survey", Contemporary Wales, Vol.8, 1996 (with P D Murphy, N. O’Leary and D E L Thomas), Vol.8, 1996, pp.213-304.
• "A picture of male and female unemployment among Britain's Ethnic minorities", Scottish Journal of Political Economy, Vol.44, May 1997, pp.182-197 (with S Drinkwater, D Leslie and P Murphy).
• "Welsh-speakers and the Labour Market", Contemporary Wales, Vol.9, 1997, pp.158-170 (with S Drinkwater).
• "The distribution of male and female earnings 1973-91 : Evidence for Britain", Oxford Economic Papers Vol.49, 1997, pp.356-272 (with K Clark, D G Leslie and P D Murphy).
• "What a difference a wife makes : evidence of women investing in their husband’s careers", Bulletin of Economic Research Vol.50, No.1, 1998, pp.1-18 (with PS Carlin and PD Murphy). [ http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1467-8586.00047 ]
• "The ethnic wage gap and employment differentials in the 1990s : Evidence for Britain", Economics Letters Vol.58, 1998, pp.97-103 (with DG Leslie, PD Murphy and NC O’Leary). [ http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0165-1765(97)00274-7 ]
• An Investigation of Racial Disadvantage, Manchester University Press, (D Leslie, D Blackaby, K Clark, S Drinkwater, P Murphy, N O’Leary), Manchester University Press, Manchester and New York, 1998 pp.227.
• "Regional Labour Markets and Institutions in the United Kingdom", Chapter 5 in Institutions and Regional Labour Markets in Europe, ed by L Van der Laan and S M Ruesga, Ashgate, Aldershot, 1998, pp. 81-103, (with D. Armstrong).
• "Explaining racial variations in unemployment in Britain", Manchester School (with DG Leslie, PD Murphy and NC O’Leary), January 1998.
  "Graduate Earnings in Great Britain: A Matter of Degree?" Applied Economic Letters, Vol. 6, 1999, pp. 311-315 (with PD Murphy and NC O’Leary).
• "The Payment of Public Sector Workers in the UK: Reconciliation with North-American Findings", Economics Letters, vol. 65, 1999, pp. 239-243 (with PD Murphy and NC O'Leary). [ http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/S0165(99)00132-9 ]
• "Ethnic Differences in Labour Market Volatilty: An Explanation using the British Household Panel Survey", Applied Economics Letters, Vol. 6, 1999, pp. 463-466 (with SJ Drinkwater, DG Leslie and PD Murphy). [ http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9914.2007.00392.x ]
• "Measuring the cost of the fear of unemployment: an information approach", Labour, 13, 1999, pp.481-508, (with D Leslie http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1467-9914.00104]
• Women in Senior Management in Wales, Research Discussion Series, Equal Opportunities Commission, 1999, Manchester, pp.130, ISBN: 1 870358 84 8 (with N Charles, C Davies, P Murphy, N O’Leary and P Ransome).
• Earnings and Employment Opportunities of Disabled People, Research Report, no.133, 1999, Department of Education and Employment, Nottingham, pp.117, ISBN: 1 84186 060 8, (with K Clark, S Drinkwater, D Leslie, P Murphy and N O’Leary).
• An Economic and Social Assessment of the Closure of BP Llandarcy: Summary Report, University of Wales Swansea, Swansea, 1999, pp.22, ISBN: 0 906 250 56 0 (with others).
• "Ethnic and Other Minority Representation in UK Academic Economics", Economic Journal, vol. 110, 2000, pp. F293-311 (with J Frank).
• "It's Still There! Maintaining the Glass Ceiling in Wales", Contemporary Wales, vol. 13, 2000, pp. 116-137 (with others).
• "The Economic and Social Consequences of the Closure of BP Llandarcy", Contemporary Wales, vol.13, 2000, pp. 138-159 (with others).
• "English Language Fluency and the Ethnic Wage Gap for Men in England and Wales", Economic Issues, vol. 6, 2001, pp. 21-32 (with NC O'Leary, PD Murphy and SJ Drinkwater).
• The Gender Pay Gap in Wales, Research Discussion Series, Equal Opportunities Commission, 2001, Manchester, pp. 85, ISBN 1 84206 004 X (with NJ Moore, PD Murphy and NC O'Leary).
• "White/Ethnic Minority Earnings and Employment Differentials in Britain: Evidence from the LFS", Oxford  Economic Papers, vol. 54, 2002, pp. 270-297 (with  DG Leslie, PD Murphy and NC O'Leary). [ http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oep/54.2.270]
• “Why are Ethnic Minority Applicants less likely to be accepted into higher education?” Higher Education Quarterly, vol.54, No.1, 2002, pp.65-91 (with D Leslie and A Abbott). [ http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/1468-2273.00203]
• "The Effect of Unionisation on Wages in Great Britain: Estimates from the Labour Force Survey", Economic Issues, vol.8, 2003, pp. 33-45 (with PD Murphy and NC O'Leary). [ http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9957.2004.00405.x]
• "Inactivity and Unemployment in Wales: A Contribution to the Policy Debate", Welsh Economic Review, vol. 15, 2003, pp. 28-32 with MK Jones, PD Murphy and NC O'Leary)"Quantile Regression Estimates of the Union Wage Effect for Great Britain", The Manchester School, vol. 72, 2004, pp. 497-514 (with NC O'Leary and PD Murphy). [ http://dx.doi.org/10.1111j.1467-9957.2004.00405.x]
• “Brain Drain” Agenda, Summer 2004, Institute of Welsh Affairs 42-43 (with S Drinkwater).
• “A Cuckoo in the Nest”, Agenda, Spring 2005, Institute of Welsh Affairs, 15-18 (with S Drinkwater).
• “Outside Offers and the Gender Pay Gap: Empirical Evidence from the UK Academic Labour Market”, The Economic Journal, Vol.115, 2005, pp.F81-F107 (with A Booth and J Frank). [ http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.0013-0133.2005.00973.x]
• “The Public-Private Sector Training Gap for Full-Time Employees in Britain: Evidence from SCELI”, International Journal of Economic Research, Vol.2, No.2, 2005, pp.21-41 (with P L Latreille, P D Murphy and N C O’Leary).
• “Born in Britain: How are Native Ethnic Minorities Faring in the British Labour Market”, Economic Letters, Vol.88, 2005, pp.370-375 (with D G Leslie, P D Murphy and N C O’Leary). [ http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.econlet.2005.03.008]
• "Explorations the Status of Women Economists", Feminist Economics, Vol.12, Issue 3, 2006, pp.427-474 (with J P Jacobsen, R E Robb, J Burton, J Humphries, H Joshi, W Xiabo and D Xiao-Yuan) [ http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13545700600669667]
• "Devolution, Sustainability and the GDP Convergence: Is the Welsh Agenda Achievable?”  Regional Studies, Vol.40, No.6, 2006, pp.679-689 (with L Mainwaring and R Jones). [ http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00343400600868994]
• “A Change in the Earnings Penalty for British Men with Working Wives: Evidence from the 1980s and 1990s”, Labour Economics, Vol.14, No.1, 2007, pp.119-134(with P S Carlin and P D Murphy). [ http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.labeo.2005.04.003]
• An analysis of reservation wages for the economically inactive, Economics Letters, Vol. 97, No. 1, 2007, pp1-5 (with P D Murphy, P Latreille, N O’Leary and P Sloane). [ http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.econlet.2007.02.005]
• Employment discrimination in Northern Ireland and the Good Friday Agreement, forthcoming Economics Letters, 2008, (with P D Murphy and N O’Leary). [ http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.econlet.2007.07.003]
• University Patenting in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland; A Comparative Analysis, forthcoming Higher Educational Quarterly, 2008, (with A Beale and L Mainwaring).

Some Recent Reports:

• The Gender Pay Gap in Wales, Equal Opportunities Commission, pp85+iii, 2001, (with N. Moore, P D Murphy and N. O’Leary).
• Returns to Education a Survey of Findings, Report to the Economic Research Unit, Welsh Assembly Government, pp72+iii, 2003, (with P D Murphy, N. O’Leary and P. Sloane).
• Identifying Barriers to Economic Activity in Wales, part I, Report to the Welsh Assembly Government, ERAP, pp233+xv, 2003, (with P D Murphy, M. Jones, R. Jones, P. Latreille, N. O’Leary and P. Sloane).
• Identifying Barriers to Economic Activity in Wales, part II, A Survey of the Economically Inactive in Three Areas of Special Interest, Report to the Welsh Assembly Government, ERAP, pp203+xvi, 2004, (with M. Jones, R. Jones, P. Latreille, P D Murphy, N. O’Leary and P. Sloane).
• SMEs and Occupational Segregation in Wales, Report for the Welsh Development Agency and the Equal Opportunities Commission, pp229, 2005, (with A Henley, M. Jones, R. Jones, P D Murphy, N. O’Leary and P. Sloane).
• The Welsh Language and Labour Market Inactivity, Report for the Welsh assembly Government, pp84, 2005, (with P.Latreille, P D Murphy, N. O’Leary and P. Sloane).
• Explaining Earnings, Inactivity and Unemployment Differences between Wales and the Rest of the UK: 1972-2003, Report for the Welsh Assembly Government, pp149, 2005, (with P D Murphy, S. Drinkwater and N. O’Leary).