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This book, edited by S.G.B. Henry and Dennis J. Snower, examines the high unemployment that has plagued five European countries- France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom- for more than a decade. Its methodology focuses on the mechanisms that prevent employers and employees from adjusting promptly to changing market opportunities. Chief among these mechanisms are outdated economic structures, the power of labor unions, rising nonwage labor costs, and the disparity between unemployed workers and available jobs. Although cross-country differences indicate that there is no common cause for joblessness in Europe, the book discusses a unique characteristic of the European labor market- that unemployment not only rises during recessions, but does not fall when economic weaknesses are overcome.
This paper argues that an important group of labor market policies are complementary in the sense that the effect of each policy is greater when implemented in conjunction with the other policies than in isolation. This may explain why the diverse, piecemeal labor market reforms in many European countries in recent years have had so little success in reducing unemployment. What is required instead is deeper labor market reforms across a broader range of complementary policies and institutions. To be politically feasible, these reforms must be combined with measures to address distributional issues.
The paper analyzes the wage-employment effects of replacing unemployment benefits by negative income taxes. It first surveys the major equity and efficiency effects of unemployment benefits versus negative income taxes, and summarizes the salient features of many European unemployment benefit systems in this light. Second, it presents a simple theoretical model that focuses on the relative wage-employment effects of unemployment benefits versus negative income taxes. Finally, it provides some empirical groundwork for assessing this relative effect
During his distinguished career at the IMF, Jacques J. Polak served as both Director of Research and, subsequently as a member of the IMF Executive Board. His distinct contribution to the discipline of international financial policy is highlighted in this book edited by Jacob A. Frenkel and Morris Goldstein. The papers included were prepared for a conference, cosponsored by the Netherlands Bank and the IMF, held in Polak's honor in Washington, D.C., in January 1991.
The IBSS is the essential tool for librarians, university departments, research institutions and any public or private institution whose work requires access to up-to-date and comprehenisve knowledge of the social sciences.
This title was first published in 2000. The result of an international meeting organized by the European Centre, this book reports from economists, social scientists and experts from government and inter-governmental institutions who came together to investigate the best way to overcome mass unemployment in Europe.
Beginning with the development of credit-money theory in the twentieth century, Paul Dalziel derives a model that explains how interest rates are used by authorities to maintain price stability. His conclusions suggest ways in which the current policy framework can be improved to promote growth, without sacrificing that stability.
This 1996 book examines the consequences, and policy implications of failure in training provision and skills acquisition in the industrial world.
This paper analyzes the macroeconomic effects of fiscal and labor market policies in developing countries. The basic framework considers a small open economy with a large informal production sector and a heterogeneous work force. The labor market is segmented as a result of efficiency considerations and minimum wage laws. The basic model is then extended to account for unemployment benefits, income taxation, and imperfect labor mobility across sectors. The analysis indicates, among other results, that a reduction in unemployement benefits has a positive effect on output of tradable goods by lowering both the level of efficiency wages and the relative rent captured by skilled workers.
This paper reviews conceptual linkages between taxation and unemployment, available empirical evidence and country policies that may have a bearing on these linkages in the OECD and in a sample of developing and transitional economies, Fund policy advice on these issues, and tax policy options in addressing the unemployment problem. It concludes that the emphasis in policy should be placed on minimizing tax distortions, rather than on formulating activist tax policies to reduce unemployment.