<p>In this paper we investigate the size of the consumption drop at retirement in Italy. We use micro data on food and total non-durable household spending covering the period 1993-2004, and evaluate the change in consumption that accompanies retirement by exploiting the exogenous variability in...</p>

In this paper we model the evolution ofincome risk and consumption growth.We decompose the time series innovation of the income process intoits common and cohort-specific components. From these we compute conditional variances which are used as separate risk terms in a consumptiongrowthequation....

Individuals in the UK now face an effective choice between joining different types of pension plan. We model this choice in a life cycle utility- maximising framework, for risk averse individuals. It is assumed that no pension plan can guarantee every individual a fair annuity at the risk-free...

There is much interest in the importance of 'precautionary saving' - the degree to which uncertainty affects household consumption behaviour. In this paper we use household level data on income and expenditure to analyse the importance of precautionary saving in the UK. Using the repeated...

We use a new dataset and a novel identification strategy to analyze the effects of residential segregation on the employment of migrants in 8 Italian cities. Our data, which are representative of the population of both legal and illegal migrants, allow us to measure segregation at the very local...

Two-tier bargaining structures, in which plant-level wage negotiations supplement industry-level wage setting, are present in a number of EU countries, as unions resist pressures for greater decentralization in wage determination. In principle, these two-tier structures could reconcile...

This paper provides an overview of the employment situation of young and old workers in the EU Member States, setting out the most recent development during the crisis and dealing with policies implemented to promote the employment of both groups. The evidence collected shows that there is no...

We document the presence of a trade-off between unemployment benefits (UB) and employment protection legislation (EPL) in the provision of insurance against labour market risk. The mix of quantity restrictions and price regulations adopted by the various countries would seem to correspond to a...

Firing frictions and renegotiation costs affect worker and firm preferences for rigid wages versus individualized Nash bargaining in a standard model of equilibrium unemployment, in which workers vary by observable skill. Rigid wages permit savings on renegotiation costs and prevent workers from...