In some countries including Germany unemployed workers can increase their income during job search by taking up "marginal employment" up to a threshold without any deduction from their benefits. Marginal employment can be considered as a wage subsidy as it lowers labour costs for firms owing to...

This paper analyzes the mobility between self-employment, wage employment and non-employment. Using data for men in West Germany, we find strong true state dependence in all three states. Moreover, compared to wage employment, non-employment increases the probability of self-employment...

Purpose – This paper aims to analyze the role of social networks on the job search choices of the unemployed. If social networks convey useful information in the job search process, individuals with larger networks should experience a higher productivity of informal search channels. This in...

Purpose – This paper aims to present the IZA Evaluation Dataset, a newly created data source allowing for the evaluation of active labor market policies in Germany. Design/methodology/approach – The paper's approach is a description of the sampling and contents of the IZA Evaluation Dataset...

"The transition process from unemployment to employment is determined by the reservation wage and the search effort of the unemployed worker. The optimal search strategy depends on labour market institutions like the generosity of unemployment benefits and 'classical' characteristics like age...

"The transition process from unemployment to employment is determined by the reservation wage and the search effort of the unemployed worker. The optimal search strategy depends on labour market institutions like the generosity of unemployment benefits and 'classical' characteristics like age...