Economic Policies and Unemployment Dynamics in Europe
Books, January 28, 1997
Source details
- Canonical URL
- Economic Policies and Unemployment Dynamics in Europe
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Bibliographic details
- Published: January 28, 1997
- Series: Books
- DOI: https://doi.org/10.5089/9781557755780.071
Summary and focus
- 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.
- The analysis focuses on mechanisms that prevent employers and employees from adjusting promptly to changing market opportunities.
- A distinctive feature emphasized is that unemployment in Europe not only rises during recessions, but does not fall when economic weaknesses are overcome.
Methodology and analytical approach
- Methodology concentrates on the adjustment processes of employers and employees to changing market opportunities.
- Cross-country comparisons are used to identify differences and commonalities; the book finds no single common cause for joblessness across the five countries studied.
Key mechanisms identified
- Outdated economic structures.
- The power of labor unions.
- Rising nonwage labor costs.
- The disparity between unemployed workers and available jobs.
Subject areas and keywords
- Subjects: Employment, Labor, Labor force, Labor markets, Real wages, Unemployment
- Keywords: BOOK, determination equation, Employment, employment equation, Europe, labor force, Labor force, Labor markets, Real wages, Southern Europe, Unemployment, wage, wage equation, wage staggering, Western Europe
Implications highlighted in the text
- Persistent unemployment in Europe involves institutional and structural factors that impede post-recession recovery in joblessness.
- Policy considerations discussed revolve around addressing labor market rigidities (union influence, nonwage labor costs) and improving matching between unemployed workers and vacancies, as suggested by the focus on the identified mechanisms.
Economic Policies and Unemployment Dynamics in Europe; January 28, 1997; Pages: 227; DOI: https://doi.org/10.5089/9781557755780.071