Lessons from Successful Labor Market Reformers in Europe
Electronic Access:
Free Download. Use the free Adobe Acrobat Reader to view this PDF file
Summary:
Welfare states can be reformed successfully, and popular support for reforms can be maintained. But this requires an internally consistent package of labor market, fiscal, and product market reforms, including some kind of buy-in, through, for example, tax cuts. Empirical analysis combined with a select number of case studies-comprising Ireland, Denmark, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom-reveals that successful reformers focused on increasing labor supply through benefit reform, lowering tax wedges, and lowering government consumption. At the same time, greater labor supply translated into employment growth more effectively in the presence of liberal labor and product markets.
Series:
Policy Discussion Paper No. 2007/001
Subject:
Employment Labor Labor markets Labor supply Labor taxes Taxes Wages
English
Publication Date:
May 1, 2007
ISBN/ISSN:
9781451975352/1564-5193
Stock No:
PPIEA2007001
Pages:
25
Please address any questions about this title to publications@imf.org