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Vocational Training for Unemployed Youth in Latvia: Evidence from a Regression Discontinuity Design

Author

Listed:
  • Bratti, Massimiliano

    (Università degli Studi di Milano)

  • Ghirelli, Corinna

    (Bank of Spain)

  • Havari, Enkelejda

    (IÉSEG School of Management)

  • Santangelo, Giulia

    (European Commission, Joint Research Centre)

Abstract
This paper evaluates the impact of a vocational training programme on the labour market outcomes of unemployed youth in Latvia. The programme is part of the Youth Guarantee scheme for the period 2014-2020, the largest action launched by the European Union to reduce youth unemployment rate and to support young people aged between 15 and 29 who are not in education, employment or training (NEETs). To estimate the causal effect of participating in the programme on the employment outcomes, we exploit a rule that gives priority for participation to unemployed people under the age of 25 using a fuzzy Regression Discontinuity Design setup. The estimated effects of the programme on the probability of being employed and monthly income up to 3.5 years after registering in the programme are positive but not statistically significant, although we find a strong positive effect of the priority rule on programme participation. This is the first evidence on the impact of a programme within the current Youth Guarantee scheme in Europe and our findings are in line with those from the literature on the evaluation of active labour market policies targeting youth.

Suggested Citation

  • Bratti, Massimiliano & Ghirelli, Corinna & Havari, Enkelejda & Santangelo, Giulia, 2018. "Vocational Training for Unemployed Youth in Latvia: Evidence from a Regression Discontinuity Design," IZA Discussion Papers 11870, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp11870
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    Cited by:

    1. Francesco Pastore & Marco Pompili, 2020. "Assessing the Impact of Off-the-Job and On-the-Job Training on Employment Outcomes: A Counterfactual Evaluation of the PIPOL Program," Evaluation Review, , vol. 44(2-3), pages 145-184, April.
    2. Judit Krekó & Balázs Munkácsy & Márton Csillag & Ágota Scharle, 2022. "A job trial subsidy for youth:cheap labour or a screening device?," CERS-IE WORKING PAPERS 2222, Institute of Economics, Centre for Economic and Regional Studies.
    3. Massimiliano Bratti & Corinna Ghirelli & Enkelejda Havari & Giulia Santangelo, 2022. "Vocational training for unemployed youth in Latvia," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 35(2), pages 677-717, April.
    4. Pastore, Francesco & Pompili, Marco, 2019. "Assessing the Impact of Off- and On-The-Job Training on Employment Outcomes: A Counterfactual Evaluation of the PIPOL Program," IZA Discussion Papers 12074, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    5. Carlos Pesquera Alonso & Práxedes Muñoz Sánchez & Almudena Iniesta Martínez, 2021. "Youth Guarantee: Looking for Explanations," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(10), pages 1-13, May.
    6. Iva Tomić & Ivan Zilic, 2020. "Working for 200 Euro? The Unintended Effects of Traineeship Reform on Youth Labor Market Outcomes," LABOUR, CEIS, vol. 34(3), pages 347-371, September.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    youth guarantee; Latvia; vocational training; employment; policy evaluation; administrative data; regression discontinuity design;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J01 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - General - - - Labor Economics: General
    • J08 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - General - - - Labor Economics Policies
    • J18 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Public Policy
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity

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