Over the past twenty years or so there has been a marked increase in the study of personnel issues by labour economists. These studies have explored such topics as incentives, compensation methods, human resource strategies and institutional structures, and have provided an insightful empirical literature rich in the creative use of new data. In these two volumes, the editors bring together many of the theoretical papers which were key in establishing personnel economics as a discipline within economics, as well as a selection of empirical studies which have been important in developing an understanding of the economics of human resource issues. The editors have written an authoritative introduction to complement their selection.