Jordan Claridge

Excited to announce new OA article with Jane Humphries, 'The economic history of caring labour'.

Using historical data on infant feeding, we show how breastfeeding acted as a buffer against weak public health systems and how scientific and technological change reshaped this care work over time.

<em>The Economic History Review</em> | EHS Journal | Wiley Online Library This paper moves beyond the focus on ‘average’ wage trends in pre-industrial economies by examining the broad diversity of pay rates and forms of remuneration across occupations and regions in mediev...

Now on Early View: 'The commercialization of labour markets: Evidence from wage inequality in the Middle Ages'.
By Jordan Claridge, Vincent Delabastita & Spike Gibbs.
@jordanclaridge.bsky.social @vincentdelabastita.bsky.social‬ @kingshistory.bsky.social
onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...

We’ve launched a new collection of openly accessible videos, Interviews with Historians, in which prominent 20th century historians reflect on their lives and professional practices. Access the collection here:
www.history.ac.uk/library-digi...

If you've read this far, thanks for sticking around! We hope you enjoy the paper!

#EconHist #Medieval #MiddleAges #Wages #Inequality #Labour

@lseechist.bsky.social

While we find evidence of the commercialization of labour markets, this did not benefit all labourers equally. Ultimately, we hope our attempt to look 'beyond' average wages reveals some new insights into both patterns of commercialization and the nature of medieval labour markets.

Ultimately, we find that wage inequality in medieval England was shaped by a complex interplay of market forces and persistent customary structures. High levels of commercialization didn’t always lead to higher wages; local customs and labour supply often mattered more.

By 1400, wage gaps shifted. Areas like East Anglia saw big wage increases, likely due to tighter labour markets after the Black Death. But the structure of inequality - who could bargain, and how - still largely hinged on occupation and custom.

Wage inequality also varied regionally. In 1300, ploughmen in the North of England earned far more than those in East Anglia, despite the fact that the latter region was highly commercialized. Occupation AND region played a more important role in determining workers' wages in 1400 than in 1300.

We also find growing commercialization in the labour market. Some roles became more “professionalized” and better paid. Others, especially part-time labour and young workers, were disappearing, in most places, by 1400.

Why? We find that customarily-fixed levels of in-kind wages of many ‘core’ workers insulated them from wage shocks, both positive and negative. By contrast, the jobs which paid more cash and were in high-demand at certain times of the year, like harvest, were more responsive to market forces.

We find that the Black Death reshaped labour markets, but not uniformly. ‘Core’ roles, like ploughmen and carters were well paid before the plague. After the plague, other roles, which had been more peripheral before the Black Death experienced wage growth, while ‘core’ workers saw stagnation.

We develop a new empirical approach using weekly wage rates reconstructed from manorial accounts, facilitating comparison of thousands of wage observations across occupation, region, and time.

The paper attempts to move beyond the focus on average wage trends in pre-industrial economies by examining the broad diversity of pay rates and forms of remuneration of agricultural labourers in medieval England.

@vincentdelabastita.bsky.social, Spike Gibbs and I have a new working paper out! We explore the dynamics of wage inequality in medieval England, which allows us to better understand the commercialization of labour markets in the Middle Ages.

www.lse.ac.uk/Economic-His...

YouTube video by Institute of Economic Affairs How The Black Death Increased Worker's Wages: Medieval England's Economic Revolution | IEA Interview

Thanks to the Institute for Economic Affairs for indulging in my ramblings about my recent research!

youtu.be/pXkofabuCBI?...

@lseechist.bsky.social #econhist

“Women in Late Medieval Private Credit: Mechanisms Driving Social and Economic Change in Central Europe

Interested in women in the late medieval economy? Join us on Tuesday 11th at the IHR (online only) for Anna Molnar (KCL) on credit and change.
www.history.ac.uk/events/women...

This is such sad news. I worked with Nicola at the British Agricultural History Society. She always brought such an effortless and infectious positive energy. She could (and regularly did) brighten up even a Zoom meeting.

What a tragedy.

Job announcement for Postdoctoral Researcher in Economic History

Job announcement for Postdoctoral Researcher in Economic History

📢We are hiring 📢

We look to fill a Postdoc position in Economic History!

5-year position funded by ERC project „Entrenched: Elite Capture and Social Mobility“

jobportal.uni-koeln.de/bewerben/1964

Deadline: Jan 17, 2025
Please spread widely!

@econtribute.bsky.social
#EconSky

I’m our faculty seminar, Karolina Hutkovà gave an overview of four (!) papers on the development of the British fiscal military state.

In the PhD seminar, @gregorysalter.bsky.social presented the first results of his study on the transition from seigniorial management to lessee farming in medieval England, with particular attention to how risk was managed and transferred.

The last week of term at LSE was capped off with some excellent seminars. #econhist

Very happy to have @vincentdelabastita.bsky.social at the LSE Economic History seminar with some interesting new insights on the role of technological change on labour markets.

#econhist #laboureconomics

Please help me spread the word about this amazing two-year pre-doc opportunity. Research with faculty is optional. Get paid to take classes that prepare you for PhD. Deadline 11/15: stern.nyu.edu/programs-adm...

I created a starter pack of LSE Economic History people on Bluesky.

Let me know if I have missed you! go.bsky.app/BJSugbh

🚨Job Market Paper Here!
NOW ON BLUESKY!!

Are we fully examining every aspect of contemporary agrarian reforms to understand their true impacts?
In my JMP I analyze the effects of public land transfers (PLT) versus expropriations, the primary land allocation methods used in Latin America reforms

Jane Whittle presenting today at the LSE Economic History seminar. A fascinating paper on the gender wage gap in medieval and Early Modern English agriculture.

The first teaching I did when I joined LSE was with Nick. I knew he was a formidable researcher, but was also one of the most compelling lecturers I have ever seen. He took a lot of time to support and mentor me. He demonstrated that a good researcher need not sacrifice teaching or collegiality.

Types of “Types of Econ Papers”: A Meta-Analysis
#econsky #agecon #energysky

New WP out! Cities and the Rise of Working Women, with Mounir Karadja (@mkaradja.bsky.social) and Erik Prawitz.

NYU highlights "Stars in the Shadows" with Anna Airoldi and Halina Dang (my pre-doc and co-author applying for PhDs!)
stern.nyu.edu/experience-s...