School vouchers introduced recently in some Italian regions have lowered the cost of private schools. On one side, we provide evidence that Italian private schools may be selected for different reasons than quality considerations. On the other side, by exploiting individual data on voucher...

In this paper we analyse the contribution of union activity to reducing earnings inequality. Given the specific nature of the system of industrial relations, Italian unions may contribute to inequality reduction through either national bargaining (i.e. reducing between-sector differentials)...

This paper investigates whether adult proficiency formation is affected by social environments. Using the Italian sample of the ALL survey conducted in 2003, which includes cohorts born between 1938 and 1988, we exploit temporal and regional variations in indicators of women empowerment to...