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Did Active Labour Market Policies Help Sweden Rebound from the Depression of the Early 1990s?

Author

Listed:
  • Anders Forslund

    (Uppsala University)

  • Alan B. Krueger

    (Princeton University and NBER)

Abstract
In the early 1990s the Swedish labor market was hit by the worst shock it experienced since the 1930s, with the unemployment rate rising to 10 percent. This development stands out in light of Sweden's performance in the post-war period. Between the mid 1940s and the crisis of the 1990s, the Swedish unemployment rate oscillated between one percent and just under four percent (Figure 1). Unemployment even remained low in the 1970s despite oil price shocks that led to persistently high unemployment elsewhere in Europe. A natural question is what, if anything, in Swedish institutions and policies explains why Sweden's unemployment rate did not follow the same pattern as in most western European countries? A factor often mentioned for this envious performance is Sweden's active labor market policies (cf e.g. Layard, Nickell and Jackman, 1991).

Suggested Citation

  • Anders Forslund & Alan B. Krueger, 2008. "Did Active Labour Market Policies Help Sweden Rebound from the Depression of the Early 1990s?," Working Papers 1035, Princeton University, Department of Economics, Center for Economic Policy Studies..
    • Handle: RePEc:pri:cepsud:158
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Forslund, Anders, 2019. "Employment outcomes and policies in Sweden during recent decades," Working Paper Series 2019:15, IFAU - Institute for Evaluation of Labour Market and Education Policy.
    3. Hansen, Ellen, & Avila, Zulum., 2012. "Preliminary assessment of training and retraining programmes implemented in response to the Great Recession :," ILO Working Papers 994684193402676, International Labour Organization.
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    6. Walter Nicholson & Karen Needels & Heinrich Hock, 2014. "Unemployment Compensation During the Great Recession: Theory and Evidence," National Tax Journal, National Tax Association;National Tax Journal, vol. 67(1), pages 187-218, March.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Sweden;

    JEL classification:

    • J88 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor Standards - - - Public Policy
    • E32 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - Business Fluctuations; Cycles

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