The Ifo Institute has worked out a detailed proposal to reform the system of welfare benefits and made estimates regarding the consequences for employment, distribution of income and fiscal costs. The Ifo proposal aims at making the German labour market functional again without lowering the...

Redesigning the Welfare State argues that the current high level of unemployment in Germany not only creates a major challenge for the German welfare state, but is to a good extent caused by the way the country's welfare system is designed. - The authors review the public debate on labour market...

The study investigates the consequences of EU Eastern enlargement for labour markets and public finances in Germany. The potential for immigration to Germany from the five largest candidate countries in CEE is forecasted building on econometric estimates. Then, the opportunities and problems...