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The goal of this investigation was to examine personal and environmental factors that may influence levels of daily physical activity in a sample of university staff employees who use flexible work arrangements (flextime or telework). Our first aim was to investigate the link between self-efficacy, perceived barriers, and flexible work arrangements on daily physical activity. Our second aim was to investigate the link between work stress, job burnout, work-to-family conflict and flexible work arrangements on physical activity. Lastly, we investigated if the use of flexible work arrangements buffered the relationship between barriers, as well as job burnout, on physical activity. University staff employees who worked full-time, currently used a flexible work arrangement, lived with at least one family member were eligible to participate. Using a daily diary design, data were collected from 61 university staff employees. Participants completed an initial survey followed by daily diaries over the course of one workweek, resulting in 281 diary days. Data were analyzed with multilevel negative binomial models. Daily barriers and use of flextime were associated with lower physical activity. Self-efficacy, telework, work stress, and work-to-family conflict were not significantly associated with daily physical activity. Flexible work arrangements did not moderate the association between barriers and physical activity. However, flextime moderated the association between job burnout and physical activity. Individuals with high job burnout engaged in more physical activity on flextime days compared to non-flexible workdays. Implications regarding physical activity, flexible work arrangements, and workplace wellness programs are discussed. / Doctor of Philosophy / The goal of this study was to examine minutes spent engaging in physical activity each day among university staff members who use flexible work arrangements. Flexible work arrangements can help employees have more control over their work hours and schedules. In our sample, we were interested in exploring how personal factors, such as the confidence in their ability (i.e. self-efficacy), and barriers influenced the amount of time staff spent engaging in physical activity each day. We were also interested in exploring how work factors, specifically stress from work, feeling burned out from work, and feelings of work interfering with family, influenced the amount of time spent engaging in physical activity. Lastly, we examined how the time spent engaging in physical activity differed on workdays staff used a flexible work arrangement and on days they did not use a flexible work arrangement. We collected data from 61 university staff employees. Participants completed an initial survey followed by short surveys each night for one workweek. We found that the more barriers an individual reported, the less time they spent on physical activity. In addition, on workdays when staff used a flextime arrangement (i.e. control over when work is completed), they engaged in fewer minutes of physical activity than on days they worked typical hours. Self-efficacy, work stress, feeling that work interfered with family, and telework (i.e. control over where work is completed) did not influence physical activity. Interestingly, we found that on workdays that flextime was used, staff with high levels of burnout from their job engaged in more physical activity compared to standard workdays (i.e. no control over their schedule). Implications regarding physical activity, flexible work arrangements, and workplace wellness programs are discussed.

A research report submitted to the Faculty of Commerce, Law and Management, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Commerce (specialising in Taxation) / Tax avoidance is the legal utilisation of the tax regime to one's own advantage, to reduce the amount of tax that is payable by means that are within the law. Tax evasion entails taxpayers deliberately misrepresenting or concealing the true state of their affairs to the tax authorities in order to reduce their tax liability, and includes, in particular, dishonest tax reporting (such as declaring less income, profits or gains than actually earned; or overstating the deductions). The revised general anti-avoidance measures were introduced in the Income Tax Act 58 of 1962 ('the Act') on 2 November 2006 in the form of section 80A to 80L, in order to replace the complicated and confusing as well as ineffective anti-avoidance measures contained in section 103(1). / AC 2018

A mudança do paradigma produtivo, adotado após a segunda guerra mundial, começou nos anos 1970 e provocou fortes impactos na economia, na política e no mercado de trabalho mundialmente. Mais países e trabalhadores se vincularam às cadeias produtivas globais das empresas multinacionais, mas as condições de trabalho decaíram em comparação com o paradigma anterior e em vários países até mesmo as normas fundamentais de trabalho passaram a ser violadas de forma constante. Estas normas, que compõem o regime trabalhista internacional, emanam da Organização Internacional do Trabalho. Uma vez ratificadas pelos seus países membros, cabe a eles fazê-las cumprir por intermédio da sua legislação e poder coercitivo. Uma série de reformas do Estado reduziu este poder e levou os sindicatos a buscarem mecanismos supranacionais para defender as normas de trabalho e esta pesquisa se propõe a analisar os efeitos da atuação transnacional dos sindicatos sobre o regime internacional do trabalho, com ênfase sobre os arranjos públicos e privados que o compõem. / The productive paradigm adopted after the Second World War started to change in the 1970ies and provoked strong impacts on the world economy, its politics as well as the labor market. More countries and workers engaged with multinational corporations global production chains but the labor conditions declined in comparison with the former paradigm and even core labor standards got constantly violated in several countries. These norms arise from the International Labor Organization and are part of the labor regime. Once ratified by its member countries its up to them to enforce their accomplishment through their legislations and coercive power. However some state reforms reduced this power and led the trade unions to seek for supranational mechanisms to defend the labor standards and this research aims to analyze the effects of the unions transnational relations on the international labor regime with emphasis on its public and private arrangements.

Construction and operation of cross-boundary transportation infrastructure is a challenge at the local, state, and international levels. Trends in travel patterns show increases in travel demand in both the United States and Europe resulting in greater attention to cross-boundary infrastructure and services. In the United States, this challenge has arisen most frequently in provision regional transit services and infrastructure while Europe is faced with a challenge of connecting its member-states. One question that remains unknown is whether when governments are faced with providing cross-boundary infrastructure or services, do they develop similar organizational arrangements when meeting these challenges regardless of what level of government is involved? This research asks whether governments at all levels of governance develop similar organizational solutions in the construction and operation of transport infrastructure. This question is answered through an examination of regional transit provision in seven U.S. metropolitan areas, six commuter rail systems in the United States, a series of bi-state river highway bridges in the United States, and five cross-border segments of the Trans-European Transport Network in the European Union, three similar organizational arrangements types were found to govern cross-boundary provision of transportation infrastructure and/or services. These three types, an independent entity, an intergovernmental agreement or contract, or direct financial payment, were found at all levels of governance. The research suggests that there is a relationship between the complexity of the service involved the level of financial control indicating that more complex operations such as network of services requiring day-to-day operation tend to be arranged as independent entities with various levels of public and/or private financing.

Dans un contexte de dégradation des ressources naturelles agricoles, notre étude se propose d'élaborer un concept de capital sol permettant de réexaminer l'analyse économique des sols, en intégrant l'ensemble des services fournis par cet écosystème. Un retour sur les différents cadres d'analyse en agronomie et en sciences environnementales a permis de redéfinir les différentes perspectives associées à l'usage des sols. Une revue de la littérature sur les modèles de l'érosion et de la conservation des sols a été effectuée, et a permis de jeter les bases d'un modèle bio-économique en contrôle optimal du capital sol, basé sur la matière organique du sol et les engrais minéraux. L'étude des états stationnaires associés aux différents régimes a mis en évidence l'importance de la dynamique des stocks de matière organique, ainsi que les apports d'engrais minéraux. Ainsi, en fonction de la vitesse de minéralisation de la matière organique, les régimes miniers atténués (par la restitution de la matière organique) ou bien minier compensé (par des apports d'engrais minéraux) sont stationnaires. Les résultats obtenus par l'estimation économétrique du capital sol par une fonction de production de type translog, à partir des données expérimentales en panel obtenues au Nord-Cameroun, a permis de confirmer le poids de la matière organique et des engrais minéraux. L'estimation des élasticités des facteurs « quantité de mulch » et « quantité d'engrais apporté » a également révélé qu'elles sont négatives à leur valeur minimale, et positive au delà. De même, ces deux facteurs sont substituables à leur valeur minimale, et complémentaires au delà de cette valeur, pour maintenir un stock de capital sol identique. L'analyse des droits de propriété liés au capital sol dans le contexte du Nord-Cameroun a révélé que l'une des contraintes les plus importantes concerne la dissociation entre les droits d'exclusion et les droits de gestion, réduisant de fait l'incitation à investir pour le capital sol. L'étude suggère la prise en compte de l'innovation institutionnelle complémentaire, et propose une nouvelle typologie des innovations basée sur la proportion des deux types d'innovations (technologique et institutionnelle) nécessaires pour maintenir le capital sol. Enfin, l'étude a permis de discuter les principaux instruments de politiques publiques à mesure d'assurer la convergence entre l'optimum privé et l'optimum social. Ces mesures concernent une meilleure définition des droits de propriété, les incitations économiques pour suppléer à la défaillance des marchés, l'action collective pour la définition des arrangements institutionnels endogènes et le paiement et les marchés des services écosystémiques liés au capital sol. / Within a global context of agricultural natural resources degradation, our study aims at elaborating a soil capital concept, which will help renewing soil economic analysis by considering overall ecosystem services provided. A feedback analysis on agronomic and environmental issues related to soil made it possible to clarify different perspectives associated to soil use. Additional litterature review on soil erosion and conservation models helped to lay the foundation of an optimal control model of soil capital, based on organic matter return to soil, and mineral fertilizer application rate. Steady state conditions associated to different soil capital regimes revealed the importance of organic matter stocks, as well as mineral fertilizer in soil capital dynamics. According to organic mineralization rate, attenuated (by organic matter restitution) mining regime, and compensated (by fertiliser application) mining regime of soil capital appeared to be steady state regimes. Results from econometric modelling through translog production function based on 7 years experimental panel data in Northern Cameroon helped confirming organic matter and fertiliser importance in soil capital asset. Production elasticity of factors « mulch quantity » and « fertilizer quantity » revealed that elasticities are negative around minimal values, and positive at medium and maximum values of soil capital. Also, it appeared that these factors are substitutes at minimum value and complementary at medium and maximum value of soil capital. Property rights analysis on soil capital in Northern Cameroon revealed that dissociation between holders or exclusion rights and management rights is among most important constraints in soil capital investment incentive. The study also suggested to take into account complementary institutional innovations, and proposed a specific innovation's typology, according to relative dimensions of technical and institutional innovations on soil capital. Finally, the study discussed the main tools of public policy enabling to reconciliate private and social optimum in soil capital. These include suitable property rights definition, economic incentives to supplement market failures, collective action and paiement and markets for ecosystem services.

A mudança do paradigma produtivo, adotado após a segunda guerra mundial, começou nos anos 1970 e provocou fortes impactos na economia, na política e no mercado de trabalho mundialmente. Mais países e trabalhadores se vincularam às cadeias produtivas globais das empresas multinacionais, mas as condições de trabalho decaíram em comparação com o paradigma anterior e em vários países até mesmo as normas fundamentais de trabalho passaram a ser violadas de forma constante. Estas normas, que compõem o regime trabalhista internacional, emanam da Organização Internacional do Trabalho. Uma vez ratificadas pelos seus países membros, cabe a eles fazê-las cumprir por intermédio da sua legislação e poder coercitivo. Uma série de reformas do Estado reduziu este poder e levou os sindicatos a buscarem mecanismos supranacionais para defender as normas de trabalho e esta pesquisa se propõe a analisar os efeitos da atuação transnacional dos sindicatos sobre o regime internacional do trabalho, com ênfase sobre os arranjos públicos e privados que o compõem. / The productive paradigm adopted after the Second World War started to change in the 1970ies and provoked strong impacts on the world economy, its politics as well as the labor market. More countries and workers engaged with multinational corporations global production chains but the labor conditions declined in comparison with the former paradigm and even core labor standards got constantly violated in several countries. These norms arise from the International Labor Organization and are part of the labor regime. Once ratified by its member countries its up to them to enforce their accomplishment through their legislations and coercive power. However some state reforms reduced this power and led the trade unions to seek for supranational mechanisms to defend the labor standards and this research aims to analyze the effects of the unions transnational relations on the international labor regime with emphasis on its public and private arrangements.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Family Studies and Human Services / Melinda Stafford Markham / Walter R. Schumm / This study produces a grounded theory of how parents make decisions regarding the custody arrangements of their children in the divorce process. Eleven parent/adolescent pairs in shared physical and legal custody arrangements were interviewed. Ten factors were found to influence the custody arrangement decisions of divorcing parents: former partner, children, work, new partner, use of a lawyer, role of family, parenting role, place of residence, finances, and divorce. Parents also weighed perceived costs and rewards when making custody arrangement decisions. In addition, an understanding of the involvement of an adolescent in the custody arrangement decisions was gained through this research. The majority of adolescents in this study had some type of input in the custody arrangements at one point or another. Parents and adolescents both expressed concerns with involving adolescents in custody arrangement decisions as well as an appropriate age for adolescent involvement, and how to determine when an adolescent is ready to be involved in the custody arrangement decisions. Custody arrangement decisions are complex decisions that parents and adolescents face; a number of factors are considered and the custody arrangement decision making process varies for all families.

This research focused on determining the roles and institutional arrangements for economic regulation of urban water services in Sub- Saharan Africa. Urban water service delivery mainly supplied by state owned utilities is constrained due to many factors one of which is related to insufficient or lack of a clear economic regulatory framework. The research used a multiple case study approach and systematically analysed the roles and institutional arrangements of economic regulation of urban water services in three countries of Ghana, Mozambique and Zambia. Based on literature as the source of information, the research developed the existing political and socio-economic environment in the different countries which can affect the design and determination of the roles and institutional arrangements for economic regulation. A further analysis was made of the perceptions on the roles and institutional arrangements of the regulatory framework in the Sub-Saharan African context through a questionnaire distributed beyond the three case countries. The study obtained primary data from focus group discussions, key informant interviews, official documents and observations. Lessons obtained through literature from regulatory institutions in other continents have also been included and these are Jamaica, Latvia, Jakarta in Indonesia, and England and Wales. The factors which can affect the roles and institutional arrangements of economic regulation of urban water services were divided into three groups as: including country governance, socioeconomic and sectoral factors. Country governance factors, which include political stability and fragility, are a key factor in the decision of whether to establish a regulatory agency. On the other hand, socio-economic factors influence the focus or areas which must not be ignored by economic regulation. The third type of factors which include the robustness of a policy framework, and performance levels of utilities, affect the effectiveness and efficiency of an economic regulator. Based on the evidence from the research, economic regulation in Sub-Saharan Africa should address five key roles, which are [i] approval of tariffs that will lead to service providers achieving commercial viability, [ii] "consumer protection" [iii] monitoring and enforcing performance standards, [iv] setting up of a knowledge bank on urban water services, and [v] ensuring that the poor gain sustained access to water services. There are a number of specific regulatory functions within each role. Sub-Saharan African countries are in a unique situation where the urban poor comprise as much as 60% of the urban population and so cannot be ignored in the design of a regulatory framework. The conclusion from this research is that in order to achieve the perceived benefits of economic regulation of urban water services in Sub-Saharan Africa, and subject to conducive and appropriate political and socio-economic environment, the more appropriate institutional arrangements is an autonomous regulatory agency. The autonomy of the regulatory agency will be enhanced if it has its own legal status, and is able to develop, manage and control its own budget financed from a regulatory fee charged on the regulated water providers. Governments should be willing to relinquish regulatory decision making powers to this non-political and non-governmental body. The reporting and appointing mechanisms for the board could also have an influence on the autonomy of the regulator. The research further concludes that economic regulation of urban water services is a necessary but perhaps not sufficient condition for efficient and effective delivery of urban water services. It is not a panacea to the enormous problems of urban water services but can play a very effective role. The research has further found that it is too early to determine the impact of utility regulation on the performance levels of utilities in those countries that have a clearly defined regulatory framework. Utility regulation is still in its infancy in Sub-Saharan Africa and its impact is therefore a subject for further research.