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Thumbscrews for Agencies or for Individuals? How to Reduce Unemployment

Author

Listed:
  • Andrey Launov

    (Department of Economics, Johannes Gutenberg-Universitaet Mainz, Germany)

  • Klaus Wälde

    (Department of Economics, Johannes Gutenberg-Universitaet Mainz, Germany)

Abstract
To which extent does an increase in operating effectiveness of public employment agencies on the one hand and a reduction of unemployment benefits on the other reduce unemployment? Using the recent labour market reform in Germany as background we find that the role of unemployment benefit reduction for the re- duction of unemployment is very modest (7% of the observed decline). Enhanced effectiveness of public employment agencies, to the contrary, explains a substan- tial part (34%) of the observed post-reform unemployment decline. If disincentive effects of PEA reforms had been avoided, the effect could have increased to 51%.

Suggested Citation

  • Andrey Launov & Klaus Wälde, 2013. "Thumbscrews for Agencies or for Individuals? How to Reduce Unemployment," Working Papers 1307, Gutenberg School of Management and Economics, Johannes Gutenberg-Universität Mainz, revised 01 Sep 2013.
    • Handle: RePEc:jgu:wpaper:1307
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
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    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    Cited by:

    1. Gadatsch, Niklas & Stähler, Nikolai & Weigert, Benjamin, 2016. "German labor market and fiscal reforms 1999–2008: Can they be blamed for intra-euro area imbalances?," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 50(C), pages 307-324.
    2. Michèle Belot & Philipp Kircher & Paul Muller, 2019. "Providing Advice to Jobseekers at Low Cost: An Experimental Study on Online Advice," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 86(4), pages 1411-1447.
    3. Anja Bauer & Ian King, 2015. "The Hartz Reforms, the German Miracle, and the Reallocation Puzzle," Discussion Papers Series 550, School of Economics, University of Queensland, Australia.
    4. Bauer, Anja & King, Ian, 2018. "The Hartz reforms, the German Miracle, and labor reallocation," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 103(C), pages 1-17.
    5. Luke Haywood, 2014. "Bedingungsloses Grundeinkommen: eine ökonomische Perspektive," DIW Roundup: Politik im Fokus 33, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Employment agencies; unemployment benefi?ts; labour market reform; unemployment; structural model;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity
    • J65 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Unemployment Insurance; Severance Pay; Plant Closings
    • J68 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Public Policy

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