The paper questions the predominant view on unemployment and wages in the European Union according to which high unemployment is primarily caused by labour market rigidities, i.e. social institutions and regulations which prevent market-clearingʺ real wage levels and structures. It is shown...

This paper challenges the institutional sclerosis view of the German crisis according to which rigid labour markets and generous welfare state institutions have driven Germany into its position as "Europe's sick man". In general, the view is not convincing, because the underlying hypotheses...

Starting from a Post-Keynesian model in which employment is determined by effective demand and the NAIRU is viewed as a limit to employment, enforced by monetary policy reacting upon conflict inflation, the effects of central bank independence and labour market institutions on macroeconomic...