"In the 1990s, Finland underwent a deep depression as its GDP dropped about 14% and unemployment rose from 3 to almost 20%. This is a story of bad luck and bad policies. Bad luck took the form of external shocks: the collapse of trade with the former Soviet Union in 1991, but also sharp cycles...

The main proposals for the reform of payroll-based employers' social security contributions have been the (partial) replacement of the contribution by increased sales tax and the so called SII-contribution, in which the base would consist of the wage bill and the operating margin of the firm. In...

This paper deals with some aspects of the Finnish economic crisis in the 1990s by starting with a quick description of the main macroeconomic features of the crisis together with some empirical evidence on price and wage as well as interest rate determination. With these as a background a...

The paper formulates a model of wage determination in which the firm decides on employment after a monopoly union has determined wages. The novelty is to incorporate investment and capital decisions by firms. The subgame-perfect Nash equilibrium and its comparative statics for wages, capital...

Is there a Nordic model? What are the main characteristics of the Nordics? What challenges are they facing? Is the Nordic welfare state viable in conditions of globalization and ageing populations? What reforms are needed? The Nordic countries have attracted much international attention in...