By exploiting more than 4,500 unpublished dowry contracts written in Florence between 1242 and 1435, I am able to present the first systematic analysis of dowry trends and bequest behavior in medieval and early Renaissance Florence. I examine the effects of demographic shocks and changes in...

In this study we summarize the main trends in the earnings and employment distribution for the US during the last four decades using data drawn from the March CPS. Our aim is to state the facts in a simple descriptive way , which then enables the readers to formulate their own judgment on how...

We propose a framework to estimate the extent of compliance to minimum wage laws. Cases of non-compliance arise whenever the law enforcement is imperfect, and the share of the match rent offered by a firm to a worker falls below the minimum wage and above the worker’s reservation wage....