The aim of this paper is to study the optimal duration of unemployment benefit entitlement duration across the business … cycle. We wonder if the entitlement duration should be prolonged in bad and shortened in good times. Because of consumption … duration may be preferable in the US but not in Europe. -- Unemployment insurance ; entitlement duration ; business cycle …

This paper analyzes the productivity in the US rail industry for the period 1980 - 2006. I propose a value … productivity gains can be attributed to returns to scale and the reshuffling of resources to more efficient firms. However …, productivity slows down for the period 1995 - 2000 after important concentrations. I also look at the correlations between firm …