LABOUR MARKET INSTITUTIONS AND WORKER FLOWS: COMPARING GERMANY AND THE US

• 成果类型: Article
• 署名作者: Jung, Philip; Kuhn, Moritz
• 署名单位: University of Bonn; IZA Institute Labor Economics
• 刊物名称: ECONOMIC JOURNAL
• ISSN/ISSBN: 0013-0133
• DOI: 10.1111/ecoj.12118
• 发表日期: 2014
• 页码: 1317-1342
• 关键词: equilibrium unemployment; cyclical behavior; job mobility; VACANCIES; search; COSTS; outs; ins

摘要

We compare labour market flows in the US and Germany between 1980 and 2004. In Germany, average worker flows in and out of unemployment are substantially lower; outflows are equally volatile in both countries; inflows are about twice as volatile in Germany and contribute more to the unemployment rate volatility. We explore four candidates for these differences: unemployment benefits; union bargaining power; employment protection and the efficiency of matching unemployed workers to open positions. We find that a lower matching efficiency in Germany can explain the bulk of the cross-country differences. It amplifies the business cycle and adds persistence.