We analyze the performance of labor markets in Latin America since the late 1990s. Strong GDP growth during the commodity boom period led to important gains in employment and a fall in the unemployment rate as labor demand outpaced an increasing labor supply. We emphasize the role of informality...

Past reforms have put the Peruvian pension system on a largely fiscally sustainable path, but the system faces important challenges in providing adequate pension levels for a large share of the population. Using administrative microdata at the affiliate level, we project replacement rates in the...

Appropriate choice of cropping systems to local agro-ecology increases profitability and employment. The increased labour shortage and reduced profitability are growing concerns to the farmers. Keeping this, the paper written with the following objectives: i) To assess the profitability among...

We propose a dynamic general equilibrium model to address the effects of technological progress on immigrant skill composition. Our results from this positive model suggest that neutral and skill-biased technological change imply essentially different immigration policies. On the one hand,...

This paper structurally models and estimates the employment effects of minimum wages in inflexible labor markets with fixed employment costs. When there are fixed costs associated with employment, minimum wage regulation not only results in a reduction in employment among low productivity...

This paper documents recent labor market performance in the Latin American region. The paper shows that unemployment, informality, and inequality have been falling over the past two decades, though still remain high. By contrast, productivity has remained stubbornly low. The paper, then, turns...

We analyze the impact of the Strengthening Women Entrepreneurship in Peru (SWEP) program. SWEP trained female micro-entrepreneurs on business management practices (e.g. accounting, marketing, etc.). The training was provided in 4-5 hour sessions using soap operas and practical exercises...

The paper presents a brief theoretical and historical explanation of the transformative process of the Japanese economy from a stagnant agrarian society to a modern industrial one. Specifically, it analyzes the role of agriculture in the early stage of Japan's development in the last three...

Using the Household, Income and Labour Dynamics in Australia (HILDA) survey, this study shows that the largest proportion of low pay spells originated from higher pay; only a small proportion were from non-employment or recent graduates. While the majority of low pay spells transitioned to...

We perform decompositions and regression analyses that test for the routinization hypothesis and job polarization at the firm level, instead of the aggregate or industry level as in previous studies. Furthermore, we examine the technology-based explanations for routinization and job polarization...