|
on Microeconomic European Issues |
|
Issue of 2018‒04‒09
thirty papers chosen by Giuseppe Marotta Università degli Studi di Modena e Reggio Emilia |
| By: | Christine Lücke; Andreas Knabe |
| Abstract: | Employment protection legislation (EPL) is an important determinant of workers’ perceived future labour market prospects as well as their subjective well-being. Recent studies indicate that it is not only a worker’s own level of protection, but also the employment protection of other workers that matters for individual prospects and well-being. We contribute to this literature by examining how such cross-effects on well-being are mediated by a workers’ perceived risk of job loss and future employability. We apply a structural model to data from the Third Wave of the European Quality of Life Survey, combined with summary indices from the OECD Employment Protection Database. Our results are indicative of cross-effects. Stricter protection for permanent workers (stricter regulation on the length and number of renewals of fixed-term contracts) is associated with lower (higher) perceived employability for both permanent workers and fixed-term workers. In addition, stricter protection for permanent workers is positively related to fixed-term workers’ perceived risk of job loss. We do find some evidence that EPL has significant indirect (cross-)effects on life satisfaction via the mediators. There are no indications for direct, non-mediated effects. |
| Keywords: | employment protection, employability, risk of job loss, life satisfaction |
| JEL: | J28 J68 |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_6936&r=eur |
| By: | Marusca De Castris; Daniele Di Gennaro |
| Abstract: | During the last decades, public policies become a central pillar in supporting and stabilising agricultural sector. In 1962, EU policy-makers developed the so-called Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) to ensure competitiveness and a common market organisation for agricultural products, while 2003 reform decouple the CAP from the production to focus only on income stabilization and the sustainability of agricultural sector. Notwithstanding farmers are highly dependent to public support, literature on the role played by the CAP in fostering agricultural performances is still scarce and fragmented. Actual CAP policies increases performance differentials between Northern Central EU countries and peripheral regions. This paper aims to evaluate the effectiveness of CAP in stimulate performances by focusing on Italian lagged Regions. Moreover, agricultural sector is deeply rooted in place-based production processes. In this sense, economic analysis which omit the presence of spatial dependence produce biased estimates of the performances. Therefore, this paper, using data on subsidies and economic results of farms from the RICA dataset which is part of the Farm Accountancy Data Network (FADN), proposes a spatial Augmented Cobb-Douglas Production Function to evaluate the effects of subsidies on farm's performances. The major innovation in this paper is the implementation of a micro-founded quantile version of a spatial lag model to examine how the impact of the subsidies may vary across the conditional distribution of agricultural performances. Results show an increasing shape which switch from negative to positive at the median and becomes statistical significant for higher quantiles. Additionally, spatial autocorrelation parameter is positive and significant across all the conditional distribution, suggesting the presence of significant spatial spillovers in agricultural performances. |
| Date: | 2018–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:arx:papers:1803.05659&r=eur |
| By: | Gabriel Ahlfeldt; Duncan Roth; Tobias Seidel |
| Abstract: | We estimate the spatially differential effects of a nationally uniform minimum wage that was introduced in Germany in 2015. To this end, we use a micro data set covering the universe of employed and unemployed individuals in Germany from 2011 to 2016 and a difference†in†differences based identification strategy that controls for heterogeneity in pre†treatment outcome trends. We find that the policy led to spatial wage convergence, in particular in the left tail of the distribution, without reducing relative employment in low†wage regions within the first two years. |
| Keywords: | difference-in-differences, employment, Germany, minimum wage, wage inequality |
| JEL: | J31 J58 R12 |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_6924&r=eur |
| By: | Zsuzsa Blasko (European Commission - JRC); Patricia Costa (European Commission - JRC); Esperanza Vera-Toscano (European Commission - JRC) |
| Abstract: | Using data from the 2016 International Civic and Citizenship Education Study (ICCS), this policy report provides a detailed analysis of adolescents’ civic attitudes and behavioural intentions, and the mechanisms shaping them, with a particular emphasis on the broader role of education. ICCS 2016 offers broad information on 14-year-old students’ civic and citizenship knowledge, their civic attitudes and behaviours, as well as their individual characteristics and the school and community contexts. We focus on the 14 the European Member States participating in ICCS 2016. This reports aims at improving the understanding of the associations between students’ school experiences and their attitudes towards citizenship values, the equal rights to minority groups, students' expected political participation and their level of institutional trust. Our findings support the expectation that school can have a role in educating engaged and open-minded young individuals. In particular we find that maintaining an open classroom climate is a key factor associated not only with students’ civic knowledge and later engagement but also with civic attitudes and behavioural intentions. Likewise, motivating students to take part in various forms of within-school activism is likely to increase their interest in actively engaging in democratic processes in later life. Active community involvement (which could be promoted by the school) is also positively associated with attitudes towards social-movement-related citizenship in almost all the participating countries. Above these education approaches, both civic and citizenship knowledge and civic efficacy remain important predictors of students’ civic outcomes. Their roles are very different, though: while efficacy is consistently positively related to all the non-cognitive outcomes across all the countries, for civic knowledge this is true regarding only some attitudes. Finally, we also show that there is no systematic, universal gap between immigrant and native students’ democratic attitudes. A significant gap between immigrant and native students is apparent in most Member States participating in ICCS only with regard to expected electoral participation. On the other hand, immigrant students are generally more in favour of equal rights for minorities. Policies implications are also discussed. |
| Keywords: | Citizenship, Civic attitudes, ICCS |
| Date: | 2018–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ipt:iptwpa:jrc109180&r=eur |
| By: | Bunn, Philip (Bank of England); Pugh, Alice (Bank of England); Yeates, Chris (Bank of England) |
| Abstract: | Monetary policy has the potential to affect income and wealth inequality in the short run. This has always been true, but given the unprecedented period of accommodative policy in a number of advanced economies including the UK over the past decade, it has become more important to understand the size and direction of these effects. We use panel data from the ONS Wealth and Assets Survey on households’ characteristics and balance sheet positions to estimate the distributional impacts of UK monetary policy between 2008 and 2014. Our results suggest that the overall effect of monetary policy on standard relative measures of income and wealth inequality has been small. Given the pre-existing disparities in income and wealth, we estimate that the impact on each household varied substantially across the income and wealth distributions in cash terms, but in percentage terms the effects were broadly similar. We estimate that households around retirement age gained the most from the support to wealth, but that support to incomes disproportionately benefited the young. Overall, our results illustrate the importance of taking a broad-based approach to studying the distributional impacts of monetary policy and of considering channels jointly rather than in isolation. |
| Keywords: | Monetary policy; households; inequality; distributional effects |
| JEL: | D12 D31 E52 E58 |
| Date: | 2018–03–27 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:boe:boeewp:0720&r=eur |
| By: | HINDRIKS Jean (CORE, Université catholique de Louvain); SERSE Valerio (CORE, Université catholique de Louvain) |
| Abstract: | On 1st November 2015, the Belgian government increased the excise tax on alcoholic beverages. For spirits with 40% of alcohol and bottle size of 70cl, this tax change is equivalent to an amount of 2,43€ per bottle of spirits. This paper studies the impact of this tax reform on the retail price of six major brands of spirits, using a difference-in-differences method. The estimation is based on a balanced panel of scanner data from a major supermarket chain and uses the retail prices of the same brands sold in France by the same supermarket chain as a control group. Having information on each store geographical location, we can further test for heterogeneity in tax pass-through according to the intensity of local competition and the scope for cross-border shopping. We find that the tax was quickly passed through spirit retail prices already during the first month of tax implementation and that it was mostly over-shifted. Unlike the (nearly) uniform pricing in US retail chains, we show spatial variation in prices across stores, and we find a large heterogeneity in tax pass-through linked to variation in local competition and price elasticity of demand. Although the tax reform has considerably increased the relative price of Belgian spirits with respect to all its neighboring countries, we find a lower tax shifting only in stores bordering on Luxembourg. Which is the neighboring country with the lowest spirit prices before the alcohol tax reform. These findings have important implications for alcohol control policies as they highlight the risk that the health benefits of alcohol taxation can vary greatly across households according to where they live. |
| Keywords: | tax pass through, scanner data, competition, cross border shopping |
| JEL: | H2 H22 H32 H71 I18 |
| Date: | 2018–03–21 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cor:louvco:2018004&r=eur |
| By: | Jové Llopis, Elisenda,; Segarra Blasco, Agustí, 1958- |
| Abstract: | This paper empirically investigates the factors driving the adoption of energy efficiency (EE) and renewable energy (RE) measures in a sample of 8,213 Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs) in European countries. Using a bivariate probit model we examine their drivers, complementarities, and potential temporal persistence in three European country clusters (Core countries, Mediterranean countries and New EU members). Our results suggest that sustainable energies actions (EE and RE) are highly persistent both at the firm level and across countries and that there are relevant complementarities between EE and RE practices, as well as other resource efficient practices. In addition, strategies for EE seem to rely more on cost saving and regulations, while those for RE are more linked to public support and environmental awareness. This paper ends with some recommendations for policymakers suggesting that Europe needs to design an energy policy for the SMEs firms that jointly pursues both EE and the diffusion of RE according to the technological gap of each member country. Keywords: energy efficiency, renewable energy, European Union, SMEs firms |
| Keywords: | Energies renovables -- Unió Europea, Països de la, Empreses petites i mitjanes -- Aspectes ambientals -- Unió Europea, Països de la, 338 - Situació econòmica. Política econòmica. Gestió, control i planificació de l'economia. Producció. Serveis. Turisme. Preus, |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:urv:wpaper:2072/306520&r=eur |
| By: | Heckley, Gawain (Department of Clinical Sciences, Lund University, Sweden); Fischer , Martin (University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany); Gerdtham, Ulf-G. (Department of Economics, Lund University); Karlsson , Martin (University of Duisburg-Essen, Essen, Germany); Kjellsson, Gustav (Department of Economics, University of Gothenburg, Sweden); Nilsson, Therese (Department of Economics, Lund University) |
| Abstract: | There is a well-documented large positive correlation between education and health and yet it remains unclear as to whether this is a causal relationship. Potential reasons for this lack of clarity include estimation using different methods, analysis of different populations and school reforms that are different in design. In this paper we assess whether the type of school reform, the instrument and therefore subgroup identified and the modelling strategy impact the estimated health returns to education. To this end we use both Regression Discontinuity and Difference in Differences applied to two Swedish school reforms that are different in design but were implemented across overlapping cohorts born between 1938 and 1954 and follow them up until 2013. We find small and insignificant impacts on overall mortality and its common causes and the results are robust to regression method, identification strategy and type of school reform. Extending the analysis to hospitalisations or self-reported health and health behaviours, we find no clear evidence of health improvements due to increased education. Based on the results we find no support for a positive causal effect of education on health. |
| Keywords: | Health returns to education; demand for medical care |
| JEL: | I12 I18 |
| Date: | 2018–03–29 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:lunewp:2018_008&r=eur |
| By: | Janke, Katharina (Lancaster University); Johnston, David W. (Monash University); Propper, Carol (Imperial College London); Shields, Michael A. (Monash University) |
| Abstract: | Studies using education policy reforms to isolate causal effects of education on health produce mixed evidence. We analyse an unusually large sample and study chronic health conditions. For identification, we use two major education reforms, one that raised the minimum school leaving age and one that affected the broader educational attainment distribution. This method generated precise estimates of the impact of education on a comprehensive range of health conditions. Our results indicate that extra education, at the lowest end or higher up the attainment distribution, has little impact on the prevalence of chronic illness. The one interesting exception is diabetes. |
| Keywords: | education reform, health conditions, causality |
| JEL: | I14 I24 |
| Date: | 2018–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp11353&r=eur |
| By: | Bartels, Charlotte (DIW Berlin); Shupe, Cortnie (DIW Berlin) |
| Abstract: | We compute participation tax rates across the EU and find that work disincentives inherent in tax-benefit systems largely depend on household composition and the individual's earner role within the household. We then estimate participation elasticities using an IV Group estimator that enables us to investigate the responsiveness of individuals to work incentives. We contribute to the literature on heterogeneous elasticities by providing estimates for different socioeconomic groups by country, gender and earner role within the household. Our results show an average elasticity of 0.08 for men and of 0.14 for women as well as a high degree of heterogeneity across countries. The commonly cited difference in elasticities between men and women stems predominantly from the earner role of the individual within the household and nearly disappears once we control for this factor. |
| Keywords: | participation elasticities, labor supply, taxation, cross-country comparisons |
| JEL: | H24 H31 J22 J65 |
| Date: | 2018–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp11359&r=eur |
| By: | Fiammetta Rossetti (European Commission - JRC); Daniel Nepelski (European Commission - JRC); Melisande Cardona (European Commission - JRC) |
| Abstract: | In 2015 the European Commission (EC) DG CNECT launched the 2nd edition of the Startup Europe (SE) initiative under the Horizon 2020 EU Research and Innovation programme. This initiative coordinated the efforts of six distinct projects (Digistart, Welcome, ePlus, Startup Scaleup, Twist and Startup Europe Partnership) that connected just as many European entrepreneurial ecosystems. This report provides the theoretical framework to analyse the policy support to entrepreneurship and evidence on the nearly 700 startups participating in the SE projects. This exercise also helps to collect relevant insights about the effectiveness of the matching between the SE offerings and the needs of startups. |
| Keywords: | Entrepreneurship, Innovation, ICT policy, Digital Economy, Digital Single Market |
| Date: | 2018–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ipt:iptwpa:jrc110945&r=eur |
| By: | Teruel, Mercedes; Segarra Blasco, Agustí, 1958- |
| Abstract: | Previous results show that gender diversity increases the probability that firms invest in R&D and engage in innovation. This paper explores the relationship between gender diversity of R&D departments and their capacity to patent. Based on the Spanish Community Innovation Survey between 2004 and 2014, we apply a two-step procedure in order to control for endogeneity. Although gender diversity affects OEPM patents negatively, its impact is non-significant for patents with international coverage (EPO, USPTO, or PCT). A relevant result is the fact that the generation of patents is positively affected by the diversity of categories in the R&D labs. Our results highlight that, gender diversity of R&D teams does not play a relevant impact on the capacity of the firm to register patents. However, the diversity according to the professional role in R&D teams exerts a positive influence. In sum, the key question is not the gender diversity per se but the gender diversity jointly with the professional status. JEL Code: O30, O31, J16. Keywords: gender diversity, patent generation |
| Keywords: | Innovacions tecnològiques -- Direcció i administració, Patents d'invenció, Programes d'acció positiva -- Espanya, 33 - Economia, |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:urv:wpaper:2072/307040&r=eur |
| By: | Skedinger, Per (Research Institute of Industrial Economics (IFN)) |
| Abstract: | In Sweden, as in many other countries, marginal groups tend to be overrepresented in non-standard employment. A decomposition of the employment rate of full-time workers on permanent contracts reveals that non-standard employment contributes to a substantially weaker labour market attachment for females and the foreign born than suggested by conventional employment figures alone. Our econometric analysis shows that the negative wage premia associated with fixed-term employment are considerably smaller in Sweden, both for natives and foreign born, than those that have been found for other countries. This may be due to a highly compressed wage structure and extensive coverage of collective bargaining in Sweden. On the whole, the type of fixed-term contract seems not to matter for the estimated wage premia. |
| Keywords: | Fixed-term employment; Part-time employment; Labour market attachment; Wage differentials |
| JEL: | J21 J31 |
| Date: | 2018–03–27 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:iuiwop:1204&r=eur |
| By: | Jon Kristian Pareliussen; Hyunjeong Hwang; Heikki Viitamäki |
| Abstract: | The combination of different working-age benefits, childcare costs and income taxation creates complexity, reduces work incentives and holds back employment. This paper compares Finland’s benefit system with two benefit reform scenarios: a uniform benefit for all (“basic income”) and a universal tapering rule (“universal credit”). The scenarios are modelled in the OECD TaxBen model and the TUJA microsimulation model. We find that replacing current benefits with a basic income would improve incentives for many, but with a drastic redistribution of income and likely increasing poverty as a result. Merging working-age benefits with similar aims and coordinating their tapering against earnings would on the other hand consistently improve work incentives and transparency, while preserving or improving social protection. |
| Keywords: | basic income, Finland, inequality, universal credit, welfare reform, work incentives |
| JEL: | D31 H53 H55 J38 |
| Date: | 2018–04–10 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:oec:ecoaaa:1464-en&r=eur |
| By: | Wilkinson, David (University College London); Bryson, Alex (University College London); Stokes, Lucy (National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR)) |
| Abstract: | We explore the variation in pupil attainment at the end of secondary schooling in England. The paper links data on all schools and all pupils within these schools to analyse the role of the school in accounting for this variation. We analyse a number of different indicators of pupil attainment including value added between the end of primary and secondary schooling and attainment levels at the end of secondary schooling. We examine indicators that were the focus of the school accounting framework as well as others indicators that were not directly part of how schools were assessed. We show that schools account for a minority of the variance in pupil attainment, and the extent of the variation accounted for by the school is sensitive to the measure of pupil attainment used. In addition, we find that the majority of the explained school level variance in attainment is related to school composition. However, most of the variance in pupil attainment remains unexplained, raising questions about what other factors contribute to the variation in school performance. |
| Keywords: | schools, school performance, pupil attainment |
| JEL: | I21 |
| Date: | 2018–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp11372&r=eur |
| By: | Stephen Gibbons; Olmo Silva; Maria Sánchez-Vidal |
| Abstract: | Housing subsidies for low income households are a central pillar of many welfare systems, but an expensive one. This paper investigates the consequences of an unusual policy aimed at reducing the burden of these subsidies by rationing tenants' use of space. Specifically, we study a policy introduced by the UK Government in 2013 which substantially cut housing benefits for tenants deemed to have a 'spare' bedroom - based on specific criteria related to household composition. Our study is the first to evaluate the impacts of the policy on its target group considering a range of outcomes. To do so, we use a difference-in-difference methodology that compares the observed behaviour of the treated households relative to a control group determined from the details of the policy rules. We find that - as expected - the treated group experienced losses to housing benefit and overall income. Although the policy was not successful in encouraging residential moves, it did incentivise people who moved to downsize - suggesting some success in terms of one of the policy goals, namely reducing 'under-occupancy' in the long run. We find no statistically significant effects on households' food consumption, savings or employment outcomes, despite the associated income reductions. Finally, we find some evidence of a reduction in self-reported satisfaction though this effect is not precisely estimated. |
| Keywords: | social housing, social rents, bedroom tax. Housing benefits |
| JEL: | H55 H2 R21 R28 |
| Date: | 2018–04 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp1537&r=eur |
| By: | Bütikofer, Aline (Dept. of Economics, Norwegian School of Economics and Business Administration); Riise, Julie (University of Bergen); Skira, Meghan (University of Georgia) |
| Abstract: | We examine the impact of the introduction of paid maternity leave in Norway in 1977 on maternal health. Before the policy reform, mothers were eligible for 12 weeks of unpaid leave. Mothers giving birth after July 1, 1977 were entitled to 4 months of paid leave and 12 months of unpaid leave. We combine Norwegian administrative data with survey data on the health of women around age 40 and estimate the mediumand long-term impacts of the reform using regression discontinuity and difference-inregression discontinuity designs. Our results suggest paid maternity leave benefits are protective of maternal health. The reform improved a range of maternal Health outcomes, including BMI, blood pressure, pain, and mental health, and it increased health-promoting behaviors, such as exercise and not smoking. The effects were larger for first-time and low-resource mothers and women who would have taken little unpaid leave in the absence of the reform. We also study the maternal health effects of subsequent expansions in paid maternity leave and find evidence of diminishing returns to leave length. |
| Keywords: | Maternity leave; Maternity health; |
| JEL: | I12 I18 J13 J18 |
| Date: | 2018–03–05 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:nhheco:2018_004&r=eur |
| By: | Rossella Iraci Capuccinello; Giuseppe Migali |
| Keywords: | High school dropout, Extracurricular Activities, Student Engagement, Propensity score matching |
| JEL: | I20 I21 I28 |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:lan:wpaper:232397381&r=eur |
| By: | McCann, Fergal |
| Abstract: | The Irish banking system has in recent years experienced a large build-up in Non-Performing Loans (NPLs) during the crisis followed by a sharp reduction in the 2013-2017 period. In this article I present a recent history of the ongoing resolution of the mortgage arrears crisis in Ireland. Using a large and close to exhaustive panel data set of Irish mortgages from 2008 to 2016, I present a number of new findings on loan transitions between delinquency states, the importance of legacy effects of the crisis in explaining recent entry to arrears, the role of mortgage modification in the reduction in arrears balances, the extent of borrower-lender engagement and the financial vulnerability that remains in pockets of the Irish mortgage market. JEL Classification: G01, G21 |
| Keywords: | borrower engagement, loan transitions, mortgage modification, mortgages, Non-Performing Loans |
| Date: | 2018–03 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:srk:srkwps:201871&r=eur |
| By: | Gómez, Miguel García-Posada |
| Abstract: | We assess the impact of credit constraints on investment, inventories and other working capital and firm growth with a large panel of small and medium-sized enterprises from 12 European countries for the period 2014-2016. The data come from the Survey on the access to finance of enterprises (SAFE), a survey that is especially designed to analyse the problems in the access to external finance of European SMEs. The key identification challenge is a potential reverse-causality bias, as firms with poor investment and growth opportunities may have a higher probability of being credit constrained. We implement several strategies to overcome this obstacle: proxies for investment opportunities, lagged regressors, random effects and instrumental variables. Our findings suggest that credit constraints, both in bank financing and other financing (e.g. trade credit), have strong negative effects on investment in fixed assets, while the impact on firm growth and working capital is less robust. JEL Classification: G30, G31, G32 |
| Keywords: | firm growth, instrumental variables, investment, ordered probit, working capital |
| Date: | 2018–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ecb:ecbwps:20182126&r=eur |
| By: | Masiak, Christian; Moritz, Alexandra; Lang, Frank |
| Abstract: | This EIF Working Paper investigates financing patterns of European SMEs by looking at a large number of different financing instruments and their complementary and substitutive effects, using the SAFE dataset collected in 2015. We develop an empirical taxonomy of SME financing patterns in Europe, applying cluster analyses. In order to investigate the cluster stability over time, we replicate an approach by Moritz et al. (2016)2, who used the SAFE data from 2013. In addition, we extend that study by looking at the role of the country-specific macroeconomic and institutional environment for the financings patterns of SMEs. Our results confirm the results of Moritz et al. (2016) and show that European SME financing is not homogenous, but that different financing patterns exist. Our cluster analysis identifies seven distinct SME financing types based on the financing instruments used: mixed-financed SMEs with focus on other loans, mixed-financed SMEs with focus on retained earnings or sale of assets, state-subsidised SMEs, debt-financed SMEs, trade-financed SMEs, asset-based financed SMEs, and internally-financed SMEs. Moreover, the SME financing types can be profiled according to their firm-, product-, industry-, and country-specific characteristics. Our findings can support policy makers in assessing the impact of changes in policy measures for SME financing. |
| Keywords: | EIF,European SME financing,financing patterns,empirical taxonomy,cluster analysis |
| JEL: | G32 G21 G24 G18 |
| Date: | 2017 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:zbw:eifwps:201740&r=eur |
| By: | Giménez Gómez, José M. (José Manuel); Peris, Josep E.; Solís Baltodano, María José, |
| Abstract: | In order to support economic development across all EU regions, € 351.8 billion -almost a third of the total EU budget- has been set aside for the Cohesion Policy during the period 2014-2020. The distribution of this budget is made throughout ve main structural and investment funds, after long and though negotiations among the EU member states. The current paper analyzes the problem of allocating the limited resources of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) as a conflicting claims problem (O'Neill, 1982). Speci cally, we show how this approach ts this actual problem, and we propose an alternative way of distributing the budget via (i) claims solutions or (ii) the imposition of bounds (guarantees) to each of the regions. As an example of this approach, we study the Spanish case and we obtain that the constrained equal losses rule (and the talmudian, that coincides with it in the applied problem) reduces inequality and promotes convergence more properly. Keywords: conflicting claims problems; public budget distribution; European Regional Development Fund; EU convergence |
| Keywords: | Fons Europeu de Desenvolupament Regional, Pressupost -- Unió Europea, Països de la, 336 - Finances. Banca. Moneda. Borsa, |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:urv:wpaper:2072/306977&r=eur |
| By: | Paul Vertier; Max Viskanic |
| Abstract: | Can a small scale inflow of migrants affect electoral outcomes? We study whether the relocation of migrants from the Calais “Jungle” to temporary migrant-centers (CAOs) in France affected the results of the 2017 presidential election. Using an instrumental variables approach that relies on the size of holiday villages present in municipalities, we find that the presence of a CAO reduced the vote share increase of the far-right party (Front National) by about 15.7 percent. These effects, which dissipate spatially and depend on city characteristics and on the size of the inflow, point towards the contact hypothesis (Allport (1954)). |
| Keywords: | political economy, voting, migration, EU, France, migrants |
| JEL: | C36 D72 J15 P16 R23 |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_6927&r=eur |
| By: | Bodnár, Katalin; Fadejeva, Ludmila; Iordache, Stefania; Malk, Liina; Paskaleva, Desislava; Pesliakaitė, Jurga; Jemec, Nataša Todorović; Tóth, Peter; Wyszyński, Robert |
| Abstract: | We study the transmission channels for rises in the minimum wage using a unique firm-level dataset from eight Central and Eastern European countries. Representative samples of firms in each country were asked to evaluate the relevance of a wide range of adjustment channels following specific instances of rises in the minimum wage during the recent post-crisis period. The paper adds to the rest of literature by presenting the reactions of firms as a combination of strategies, and evaluates the relative importance of those strategies. Our findings suggest that the most popular adjustment channels are cuts in non-labour costs, rises in product prices, and improvements in productivity. Cuts in employment are less popular and occur mostly through reduced hiring rather than direct layoffs. Our study also provides evidence of potential spillover effects that rises in the minimum wage can have on firms without minimum wage workers. JEL Classification: D22, E23, J31 |
| Keywords: | adjustment channels, firm survey, minimum wage |
| Date: | 2018–01 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ecb:ecbwps:20182122&r=eur |
| By: | Aoki, Yu (University of Aberdeen); Santiago, Lualhati (Office for National Statistics, UK) |
| Abstract: | This paper studies the causal effect of English proficiency on residential location outcomes and the socioeconomic class of immigrants in England and Wales, exploiting a natural experiment. Based on the phenomenon that young children learn a new language more easily than older children, we construct an instrument for English proficiency using age at arrival in the United Kingdom. Taking advantage of a unique dataset, we measure the extent of residential segregation along different dimensions, and find that poor English skills lead immigrants to live in areas with a high concentration of people who speak their same native language, but not necessarily in areas with a high concentration of people of their same ethnicity or country of birth. This finding could suggest that, for immigrants with poor English proficiency, what matters for their residential location decision is language spoken by residents, as opposed to ethnicity or country of birth. We also find that language skills have an impact on the occupation-based socioeconomic class of immigrants: Poor English skills reduce the likelihood of being in the occupation-based class 'higher managerial and professional' and increase that of being in the class 'self-employment'. |
| Keywords: | language skills, deprivation, residential segregation, socioeconomic class |
| JEL: | J15 J61 R23 Z13 |
| Date: | 2018–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp11368&r=eur |
| By: | Caroline Mothe (IREGE - Institut de Recherche en Gestion et en Economie - USMB [Université de Savoie] [Université de Chambéry] - Université Savoie Mont Blanc); Uyen Nguyen-Thi (LISER - Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research); Angela Triguero-Cano (Department of International Economics - University of Castilla-La Mancha) |
| Abstract: | Although the antecedents of environmental innovation and open innovation strategies have been well studied separately, the relationship between a firm's openness and environmental technological innovation still remains an interesting topic to research, especially in terms of the various modes of openness on the one hand and the product–process distinction on the other. This study relies on data from the French Community Innovation Survey to differentiate the association of three dimensions of open inbound innovation search strategies—acquiring, sharing, and information sourcing—with environmental product (ecoproduct) and process (ecoprocess) innovations. Inbound innovation, attained through the acquisition of machinery, equipment, and software, is more likely to be associated with ecoprocess than ecoproduct innovations; external R&D only drives ecoproducts. Inbound sharing through R&D cooperation seems associated with the introduction of both ecoproducts and ecoprocesses. For inbound innovation sourcing, external market sources of information are positively associated with firms' involvement in all types of environmental innovation. |
| Keywords: | R&D cooperation,Sourcing,R&D acquisition,Environmental innovation,Inbound innovation |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hal:journl:hal-01701063&r=eur |
| By: | Susilo, Yusak (CTS - Centre for Transport Studies Stockholm (KTH and VTI)); Liu, Chengxi (CTS - Centre for Transport Studies Stockholm (KTH and VTI)); Börjesson, Maria (CTS - Centre for Transport Studies Stockholm (KTH and VTI)) |
| Abstract: | Customer Satisfaction Surveys conducted among public transport passengers over 15 years in Stockholm show that the satisfaction with crowding has been and is low. Surprisingly, however, crowding does not seem to be important for the passengers’ total satisfaction with the public transport service, not even for passengers on the most highly crowded bus services in central Stockholm. A possible reason is that crowding is not perceived as part of the service delivered by the public transport provider. Using less aggregated data than previous studies we also find that the performance of the attributes crowding, reliability and frequency influences satisfaction with these attributes. Moreover, a general result is that when comparing different bus lines and public transport modes, the satisfaction with an attribute is influenced by the performance of this attribute, while the importance level is much more stable across bus lines and public transport modes. There is also a trend increase in the satisfaction with many attributes (but not for crowding), while the importance is more stable over time. |
| Keywords: | activity-travel patterns; life cycle stages; long term changes; time-use; intra-household interaction |
| JEL: | R41 R42 R48 |
| Date: | 2018–03–23 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:ctswps:2018_008&r=eur |
| By: | Jahn, Elke J. (University of Bayreuth); Rosholm, Michael (Aarhus University) |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates whether the stepping-stone effect of temporary agency employment varies over the business cycle. Using German administrative data for the period 1985-2012 and an estimation framework based on the timing-of-events model, we estimate in-treatment and post-treatment effects and their relationship to the aggregate unemployment rate. We find evidence of a strong lock-in effect of agency employment, particularly in tight labor markets. This suggests that firms do not use agency employment as a screening device when unemployment is low. Moreover, the positive post-treatment effect is noticeably larger in periods of high unemployment, indicating that workers might be activating networks they established while in treatment. We further document that the matching quality in terms of earnings improves for those leaving unemployment directly from agency employment. This gain is higher when unemployment is low. |
| Keywords: | temporary agency employment, stepping-stone effects, cyclicality, Germany |
| JEL: | C41 J40 J64 |
| Date: | 2018–02 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp11377&r=eur |
| By: | Lundborg, Petter (Department of Economics, Lund University); Plug, Erik (Amsterdam School of Economics, University of Amsterdam); Würtz Rasmussen, Astrid (Department of Economics and Business Economics, Aarhus) |
| Abstract: | This paper introduces a new IV strategy based on IVF (in vitro fertilization) induced fertility variation among childless women to estimate the causal effect of having children on their career. For this purpose, we use administrative data on IVF treated women in Denmark. Because observed chances of IVF success do not depend on labor market histories, IVF treatment success provides a plausible instrument for childbearing. Our IV estimates indicate that fertility effects on earnings are: (i) negative, large and long lasting; (ii) driven by fertility effects on hourly earnings and not so much on labor supply; and (iii) much stronger at the extensive margin than at the intensive margin. |
| Keywords: | Children; extensive and intensive fertility margins; female labor supply; |
| JEL: | D82 J13 J16 J22 J31 J32 |
| Date: | 2018–03–28 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:hhs:ifauwp:2018_002&r=eur |
| By: | Miguel Portela; Paul Schweinzer |
| Abstract: | We document the relationship of a set of individual choices - including parenthood, marital state, and income - with an individual’s cause of death. Using the data set of the Office for National Statistics Longitudinal Study (ONS-LS) which follows one percent of the population of England and Wales along five census waves 1971, 1981, 1991, 2001, and 2011, our competing risks analysis yields several striking results. 1) Females have only a 28% chance to die of cancer when they have children (compared to childless females); 2) males have a 71% increased chance of dying from cancer when they are married (compared to unmarried males); 3) females with children have only a 34% risk to die of heart disease and 4) a 53% chance of dying from infections (compared to females without children); 5) married men have an increased expectation of 23% to die of heart disease (compared to unmarried men); 6) high income and house ownership always is associated with higher survival but less so than having children. |
| Keywords: | children, mortality. longevity |
| JEL: | I10 J10 |
| Date: | 2018 |
| URL: | http://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:ces:ceswps:_6935&r=eur |