In almost all Western economies the median age of the workforce is increasing due to demographic factors. Given the empirical fact that workers of different ages are not perfect substitutes in production, this paper explores how change in the age pattern affects wages and (un)employment. We...

Ist die Arbeitsnachfragekurve eher steil oder eher flach? Die diesbezüglichen Überlegungen von John Hicks (1932) und Alfred Marshall (1920) haben nichts an Aktualität verloren. Ihre vier Gesetze der Nachfrage sind nach wie vor Ausgangspunkt vieler Studien zur Theorie und Empirie der...

This paper analyzes how trade liberalization influences the unemployment rate of workers with different abilities. We refine the Melitz (2003) framework to account for trade unions and heterogeneous workers, who differ with respect to their abilities. Our main findings are: (i) highability...

Trade unions are typically able to convert their industrial power into political power. We show that, depending on the parameter constellation, stronger trade unions may be welfare-improving in terms of an increase in aggregate employment and output, if they successfully lobby for lower trade...