infonet-economy

This paper investigates if multinationals in.uence the political process through lobbying more effectively than national firms. First, I introduce a model which contrasts a multinational’s incentives for lobbying with those of a national firm. Then the effect of lobbying on the political decision is analyzed. I conclude that multinationals have smaller incentives to lobby because...

This paper presents an attempt to create competition in the water market by means of direct competition. We argue that the usual liberalisation device, competition for the market by franchise bidding, is problematic due to particular features in the water industry. Our approach proposes the implementation of product market competition, i.e. competition in the market. In such a...

Heutzutage betreiben viele europäische Länder neben einer passiven Einkommensabsicherung der Arbeitslosen auch eine substantielle aktive Arbeitsmarktpolitik (Fortbildungskurse, Beschäftigungsprogramme, etc.), um deren Wiederbeschäftigung zu beschleunigen. Dieses Papier entwickelt in groben Zügen die Vision einer gezielten wirkungsorientierten aktiven Arbeitsmarktpolitik, wie sie in...

In this paper we provide experimental evidence indicating that incentive contracts may undermine voluntary cooperation. This suggests that explicit incentives may have costly side effects that have been largely neglected by economists. In our experiments the undermining effect is so strong that the incentive contracts are less efficient than contracts without any incentives. Buyers,...

In East Germany, active labour market policies (ALMPs) are used on a large scale to contain fast rising unemployment after unification. This paper evaluates the effects for participants in public employment programmes (PEPs), that are an important part of ALMPs. It focuses on individual unemployment probabilities. By concentrating on the state of Sachsen-Anhalt, the econometric...

This paper investigates the effectiveness of benefit sanctions in reducing unemployment duration. Data from the Swiss labor market allow making a distinction between the effect of a warning that a person is not complying with eligibility requirements and the effect of the actual enforcement of a benefit sanction. We find that both warning and enforcement have a positive effect on the...

The paper studies the demand for foreign university graduates at the firm level. Using a unique dataset on recruitment policies of firms in four European countries, the determinants of demand for internationally mobile highly skilled employees are established. I investigate the number, origin, skills, and functions of foreign graduates, as well as the experiences of firms recruiting...