We demonstrate that almost one half of the observed wage gap between East and WestGermany reflects differences in worker, establishment, and regional characteristicsrather than differences in productivity at the establishment level. Regional price andestablishment size differentials alone...

We empirically investigate how two-tier unemployment compensation schemes affect the profile of re-employment hazards. We exploit the aggravation of an existing two-tier scheme in Germany in 2005 and estimate its impact on re-employment rates at different durations. For the short-term...

A German policy experiment from 2012 allows me to identify the short-run and longruncausal effects of decentralization on the placement efficiency of public employmentservices (PES). I exploit variation over time and across districts with different types ofPES in a difference-in-differences...

In 2005, the unemployment benefits for long-term unemployed were reduced inGermany. We investigate the effect of this reform on the transition probability fromunemployment to employment using a large German administrative spell data set (SIAB1975-2010). We estimate that the daily transition...