We are pleased to invite you to the seminar series on “Macroeconomics and Labor Markets“ organized by the Chair of Macroeconomics at the Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg, Prof. Merkl, the Chair of Global Governance and International Trade at the Friedrich-Alexander University Erlangen-Nuremberg, Prof. Moser, and the Competence Field Macroeconomics of the Institute for Employment Research (IAB). Researchers of both institutions, as well as national and international guests, present their current work at the intersection of labor- and macroeconomics.
The next seminar will be held on Tuesday, April 14, from 12:00 to 13:30 (German time).
It will take place via Zoom.
Oskari Vähämaa (University of Helsinki) will talk about “Furloughs, Employment, and Worker Reallocation in Normal Times” (joint work with Niku Määttänen and Eero Mäkynen).
Abstract:
Are furlough schemes useful under normal business cycle conditions? We address this question using administrative data from Finland, where such a scheme has long existed, and a model of firm dynamics with hiring and layoff costs, frictional unemployment, and firm-level wage rigidity. Furloughs provide firms with flexibility by allowing temporary workforce reductions at a lower cost than layoffs followed by rehiring. Yet in the model, it is optimal to eliminate the furlough option, as it does little to facilitate reallocation from low productivity to high productivity firms and does not reduce layoffs much. In contrast, a small layoff tax improves welfare by balancing employment gains against reduced productivity.