Hartz IV and the Decline of German Unemployment

Hartz IV and the Decline of German Unemployment PDF Author: Brigitte Hochmuth
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

Get Book Here

Book Description
This paper proposes a new approach to evaluate the macroeconomic effects of the Hartz IV reform in Germany, which reduced the generosity of long-term unemployment benefits. We use a model with different unemployment durations, where the reform initiates both a partial effect and an equilibrium effect. The relative importance of these two effects and the size of the partial effect are estimated based on the IAB Job Vacancy Survey. Our novel methodology provides a solution for the existing disagreement in the macroeconomic literature on the unemployment effects of Hartz IV. We find that Hartz IV was a major driver for the decline of Germany's unemployment and that partial and equilibrium effect where of equal importance. We thereby contribute to the literature on partial and equilibrium effects of unemployment benefit changes. In addition, we are the first to provide direct empirical evidence on labour selection, which can be interpreted as one dimension of recruiting intensity.

Hartz IV and the Decline of German Unemployment

Hartz IV and the Decline of German Unemployment PDF Author: Brigitte Hochmuth
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

Get Book Here

Book Description
This paper proposes a new approach to evaluate the macroeconomic effects of the Hartz IV reform in Germany, which reduced the generosity of long-term unemployment benefits. We use a model with different unemployment durations, where the reform initiates both a partial effect and an equilibrium effect. The relative importance of these two effects and the size of the partial effect are estimated based on the IAB Job Vacancy Survey. Our novel methodology provides a solution for the existing disagreement in the macroeconomic literature on the unemployment effects of Hartz IV. We find that Hartz IV was a major driver for the decline of Germany's unemployment and that partial and equilibrium effect where of equal importance. We thereby contribute to the literature on partial and equilibrium effects of unemployment benefit changes. In addition, we are the first to provide direct empirical evidence on labour selection, which can be interpreted as one dimension of recruiting intensity.

The Fall in German Unemployment

The Fall in German Unemployment PDF Author: Carlos Carrillo-Tudela
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Income distribution
Languages : en
Pages : 48

Get Book Here

Book Description
In this paper we investigate the recent fall in unemployment, and the rise in part-time work, labour market participation, inequality and welfare in Germany. Unemployment fell because the Hartz IV reform induced a large fraction of the long-term unemployed to deregister as jobseekers and appear as non-participants. Yet, labour force participation increased because many unregistered-unemployed workers ended up accepting low-paid part-time work that was offered in quantity in absence of a universal minimum wage. A large part of the rise in part-time work was also due to the tax benefits Hartz II introduced to take up a mini-job as secondary employment. This has provided an easy way to top-up labour income staggering under the pressure of wage moderation. The rise in part-time work led to an increase in inequality at the lower end of income distribution. Overall we find that Germany increased welfare as unemployment fell.

The Rise of Eastern Europe and German Labor Market Reform

The Rise of Eastern Europe and German Labor Market Reform PDF Author: Timo Walter
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages :

Get Book Here

Book Description


Transitions in the German Labor Market

Transitions in the German Labor Market PDF Author: Michael U. Krause
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 60

Get Book Here

Book Description
Since the so-called Hartz IV reforms around 2005 and during the global crisis of 2008/2009, the German labor market featured mainly declining unemployment rates. We develop a search and matching model with heterogeneous skills to explore the role of structural and cyclical policies for this performance. Calibrating unemployment benefits to approximate legislation before and after the reforms, we find a large reduction in unemployment and its duration, with the transition concluding after about three years. During the crisis, the extended use of short-time labor subsidies that prevent jobs from being destroyed is likely to have prevented strong increases in unemployment.

Varieties of Capitalism

Varieties of Capitalism PDF Author: Peter A. Hall
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199247749
Category : Business & Economics
Languages : en
Pages : 557

Get Book Here

Book Description
Applying the new economics of organisation and relational theories of the firm to the problem of understanding cross-national variation in the political economy, this volume elaborates a new understanding of the institutional differences that characterise the 'varieties of capitalism' worldwide.

The Oxford Handbook of Job Loss and Job Search

The Oxford Handbook of Job Loss and Job Search PDF Author: Ute-Christine Klehe PhD
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0190903503
Category : Psychology
Languages : en
Pages : 608

Get Book Here

Book Description
Job search is and always has been an integral part of people's working lives. Whether one is brand new to the labor market or considered a mature, experienced worker, job seekers are regularly met with new challenges in a variety of organizational settings. Edited by Ute-Christine Klehe and Edwin A.J. van Hooft, The Oxford Handbook of Job Loss and Job Search provides readers with one of the first comprehensive overviews of the latest research and empirical knowledge in the areas of job loss and job search. Multidisciplinary in nature, Klehe, van Hooft, and their contributing authors offer fascinating insight into the diverse theoretical and methodological perspectives from which job loss and job search have been studied, such as psychology, sociology, labor studies, and economics. Discussing the antecedents and consequences of job loss, as well as outside circumstances that may necessitate a more rigorous job hunt, this Handbook presents in-depth and up-to-date knowledge on the methods and processes of this important time in one's life. Further, it examines the unique circumstances faced by different populations during their job search, such as those working job-to-job, the unemployed, mature job seekers, international job seekers, and temporary employed workers. Job loss and unemployment are among the worst stressors individuals can encounter during their lifetimes. As a result, this Handbook concludes with a discussion of the various types of interventions developed to aid the unemployed. Further, it offers readers important insights and identifies best practices for both scholars and practitioners working in the areas of job loss, unemployment, career transitions, outplacement, and job search.

Can Germany be Saved?

Can Germany be Saved? PDF Author: Hans-Werner Sinn
Publisher:
ISBN: 9780262512602
Category : Competition, Unfair
Languages : en
Pages : 0

Get Book Here

Book Description
A prominent economist argues in this German bestseller that Germany can rescue its sluggish economy by transforming its social welfare system and reforming its labor market and tax structure, offering insights into economic dilemmas experienced by all advanced economies in a time of globalization. What has happened to the German economic miracle? Rebuilding from the rubble and ruin of two world wars, Germany in the second half of the twentieth century recaptured its economic strength. High-quality German-made products ranging from precision tools to automobiles again conquered world markets, and the country experienced stratospheric growth and virtually full employment. Germany (or West Germany, until 1989) returned to its position as the economic powerhouse of Europe and became the world's third-largest economy after the United States and Japan. But in recent years growth has slowed, unemployment has soared, and the economic unification of eastern and western Germany has been mishandled. Europe's largest economy is now outperformed by many of its European neighbors in per capita terms. In Can Germany Be Saved?, Hans-Werner Sinn, one of Germany's leading economists, takes a frank look at his country's economic problems and proposes welfare- and tax-reform measures aimed at returning Germany to its former vigor and vitality. Germany invented the welfare state in the 1880s when Bismarck introduced government-funded health insurance, disability insurance, and pensions; the German system became a model for other industrialized countries. But, Sinn argues, today's German welfare state has incurred immense fiscal costs and destroyed economic incentives. Unemployment has become so lucrative that the private sector, already under pressure from international low-wage competitors, has increasing difficulties in paying sufficiently attractive wages. Sinn traces many of his country's economic problems to an increasingly intractable conflict between Germany's welfare state and the forces of globalization. Can Germany Be Saved? (an updated English-language version of a German bestseller) asks the hard questions--about unions, welfare payments, tax rates, the aging population, and immigration--that all advanced economies need to ask. Its answers, and its call for a radical rethinking of the welfare state, should stir debate and discussion everywhere.

Before and After the Hartz Reforms

Before and After the Hartz Reforms PDF Author: Lena Jacobi
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Germany
Languages : en
Pages :

Get Book Here

Book Description
"Having faced high unemployment rates for more than a decade, the German government implemented a comprehensive set of labour market reforms during the period 2003-2005. This paper describes the economic and institutional context of the German labour market before and after these so-called Hartz reforms. Focussing on active policy measures, we delineate the rationale for reform and its main principles. As results of programme evaluation studies post-reform have become available just now, we give a first assessment of the effectiveness of key elements of German ALMP before and after the Hartz reforms. The evidence indicates that the re-organisation of public employment services was mainly successful, with the exception of the outsourcing of services. Re-designing training programmes seems to have improved their effectiveness, while job creation schemes continue to be detrimental for participants' employment prospects. Wage subsidies and start-up subsidies show significantly positive effects. On balance, therefore, the reform seems to be moving the German labour market in the right direction"--Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit web site.

Strong Governments, Precarious Workers

Strong Governments, Precarious Workers PDF Author: Philip Rathgeb
Publisher: Cornell University Press
ISBN: 1501730606
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 170

Get Book Here

Book Description
Why do some European welfare states protect unemployed and inadequately employed workers ("outsiders") from economic uncertainty better than others? Philip Rathgeb’s study of labor market policy change in three somewhat-similar small states—Austria, Denmark, and Sweden—explores this fundamental question. He does so by examining the distribution of power between trade unions and political parties, attempting to bridge these two lines of research—trade unions and party politics—that, with few exceptions, have advanced without a mutual exchange. Inclusive trade unions have high political stakes in the protection of outsiders, because they incorporate workers at risk of unemployment into their representational outlook. Yet, the impact of union preferences has declined over time, with a shift in the balance of class power from labor to capital across the Western world. National governments have accordingly prioritized flexibility for employers over the social protection of outsiders. As a result, organized labor can only protect outsiders when governments are reliant on union consent for successful consensus mobilization. When governments have a united majority of seats, on the other hand, they are strong enough to exclude unions. Strong Governments, Precarious Workers calls into question the electoral responsiveness of national governments—and thus political parties—to the social needs of an increasingly numerous group of precarious workers. In the end, Rathgeb concludes that the weaker the government, the stronger the capacity of organized labor to enhance the social protection of precarious workers.

The Case for a Job Guarantee

The Case for a Job Guarantee PDF Author: Pavlina R. Tcherneva
Publisher: John Wiley & Sons
ISBN: 1509542116
Category : Political Science
Languages : en
Pages : 85

Get Book Here

Book Description
One of the most enduring ideas in economics is that unemployment is both unavoidable and necessary for the smooth functioning of the economy. This assumption has provided cover for the devastating social and economic costs of job insecurity. It is also false. In this book, leading expert Pavlina R. Tcherneva challenges us to imagine a world where the phantom of unemployment is banished and anyone who seeks decent, living-wage work can find it - guaranteed. This is the aim of the Job Guarantee proposal: to provide a voluntary employment opportunity in public service to anyone who needs it. Tcherneva enumerates the many advantages of the Job Guarantee over the status quo and proposes a blueprint for its implementation within the wider context of the need for a Green New Deal. This compact primer is the ultimate guide to the benefits of one of the most transformative public policies being discussed today. It is essential reading for all citizens and activists who are passionate about social justice and building a fairer economy.