This paper examines how unemployment can be measured in a normative fashion - taking into account the mean and inequality of spell lengths - and how the extent of unemployment can be estimated from cross section data of the type found in labour force surveys. The issue is not straightforward...

Cross section data suggest that the relationship between age and hourly earnings is an inverted-U shape. Evidence from panel data does not necessarily confirm this finding suggesting that older workers may not experience a reduction in earnings at the end of their working life. In this paper we...

In all continental European countries there exist non-market mechanisms that determine or "regulate" wage rates for the low-paid. We consider the experience of three countries that have national minimum wages France, Belgium, and the Netherlands--and three where low wage rates are determined...

The work of Card and Krueger has cast doubt on the nature of the relationship between the minimum wage and teenage employment. The earlier "consensus" finding of a small but statistically significant negative effect was based on time series data whereas Card and Krueger's findings are based...

In recent years, there has been a marked increase in the number of studies that examine the economics of child labor and more particularly the determinants of children's labor supply in developing countries. This paper provides a new angle on the causes of child labor force participation by...

The widely used Oaxaca decomposition applies to linear models. Extending it to commonly used nonlinear models such as binary choice and duration models is not straightforward. This paper shows that the original decomposition using a linear model can be obtained as a first order Taylor expansion....

This paper examines how unemployment can be measured in normative fashion - taking into account the mean and inequality of spell lengths - and how the extent of unemployment can be estimated from cross section data of the type found in labour force surveys. The issue is not straightforward since...

Minimum wage fixing came to be increasingly questioned during the 1980s owing to high unemployment and the rise of liberal economic thinking. This led many countries to dilute minimum wage protection by freezing the rates or altering the coverage. However, close examination of the relevant...

Purpose Cross-section data suggest that the relationship between age and hourly earnings is an inverted U shape. Evidence from panel data does not necessarily confirm this finding suggesting that older workers may not experience a reduction in earnings at the end of their working life. The paper...