{
  "title": "Labor Market Tightness in Advanced Economies",
  "publication": "Staff Discussion Notes, March 31, 2022",
  "sourceUrl": "https://www.imf.org/en/publications/staff-discussion-notes/issues/2022/03/30/labor-market-tightness-in-advanced-economies-515270",
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  "summary": "Two years after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, a puzzle has emerged in several advanced economies: unfilled job vacancies have increased sharply even though employment has yet to fully recover.",
  "sections": [
    {
      "heading": "Summary findings",
      "content": "- Two years after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, unfilled job vacancies have increased sharply in several advanced economies even though employment has yet to fully recover.\n- The note identifies three contributing factors to elevated vacancies:\n  - barriers to returning to work;\n  - changing worker preferences away from certain types of jobs;\n  - sectoral and occupational job mismatch.\n- The impact of labor market tightness on wage growth:\n  - large for low-pay jobs;\n  - milder overall."
    },
    {
      "heading": "Contributing factors (detailed)",
      "content": "- Barriers to returning to work:\n  - These barriers are highlighted as a key reason for elevated unfilled vacancies despite incomplete employment recovery.\n- Changing worker preferences:\n  - Worker preferences have shifted away from certain types of jobs, contributing to difficulty filling vacancies in those occupations or sectors.\n- Sectoral and occupational mismatch:\n  - Mismatch across sectors and occupations is identified as a driver of vacancy increases and uneven employment recovery."
    },
    {
      "heading": "Impact on wages and wage growth",
      "content": "- Labor market tightness has been:\n  - large for low-pay jobs;\n  - milder overall.\n- The note assesses effects on wage growth and references concepts such as the Wage Phillips Curve and wage inflation in its keyword set."
    },
    {
      "heading": "Policy recommendations and implications",
      "content": "- Bringing disadvantaged groups of workers into the labor force would:\n  - ease labor market pressures;\n  - amplify the recovery;\n  - make the recovery more inclusive.\n- Controlling the pandemic itself is explicitly mentioned as a measure that would help bring disadvantaged workers back into the labor force and relieve tightness."
    },
    {
      "heading": "Publication and metadata",
      "content": "- Authors: Romain A Duval, Yi Ji, Longji Li, Myrto Oikonomou, Carlo Pizzinelli, Ippei Shibata, Alessandra Sozzi, Kirsi Silvennoinen, Marina Mendes Tavares\n- Date: March 31, 2022\n- Series: Staff Discussion Notes No. 2022/001\n- Issue: 001\n- Volume: 2022\n- Pages: 45\n- DOI: https://doi.org/10.5089/9798400204340.006\n- Stock No: SDNEA2022001\n- ISBN: 9798400204340\n- ISSN: 2617-6750\n- Subject: Health, Labor\n- Keywords: COVID-19; Employment; Global; Labor force; Labor Market Dynamics; labor market tightness; Labor markets; Mismatch; unfilled job vacancy; Vacancies; wage growth; wage inflation; Wage Phillips Curve; Wages; worker preference\n\nStaff Discussion Note — \"Labor Market Tightness in Advanced Economies\", March 31, 2022.\n\n---\n\n Content in this bundle\n\n- Staff Discussion Note\n  - Staff Discussion Note (Markdown version){rel=\"alternate\" type=\"text/markdown\"}\n  - Staff Discussion Note (PDF){rel=\"external\" type=\"application/pdf\"}\n\n---\n\nSource: https://www.imf.org/en/publications/staff-discussion-notes/issues/2022/03/30/labor-market-tightness-in-advanced-economies-515270"
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    "Authors: Romain A Duval, Yi Ji, Longji Li, Myrto Oikonomou, Carlo Pizzinelli, Ippei Shibata, Alessandra Sozzi, Kirsi Silvennoinen, Marina Mendes Tavares",
    "Published: March 31, 2022",
    "Series: Staff Discussion Notes",
    "DOI: https://doi.org/10.5089/9798400204340.006",
    "Two years after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, unfilled job vacancies have increased sharply in several advanced economies even though employment has yet to fully recover.",
    "The note identifies three contributing factors to elevated vacancies:",
    "The impact of labor market tightness on wage growth:",
    "Barriers to returning to work:",
    "Changing worker preferences:",
    "Sectoral and occupational mismatch:",
    "Labor market tightness has been:",
    "The note assesses effects on wage growth and references concepts such as the Wage Phillips Curve and wage inflation in its keyword set.",
    "Bringing disadvantaged groups of workers into the labor force would:",
    "Controlling the pandemic itself is explicitly mentioned as a measure that would help bring disadvantaged workers back into the labor force and relieve tightness.",
    "Authors: Romain A Duval, Yi Ji, Longji Li, Myrto Oikonomou, Carlo Pizzinelli, Ippei Shibata, Alessandra Sozzi, Kirsi Silvennoinen, Marina Mendes Tavares",
    "Date: March 31, 2022",
    "Series: Staff Discussion Notes No. 2022/001",
    "Issue: 001",
    "Volume: 2022",
    "Pages: 45",
    "DOI: https://doi.org/10.5089/9798400204340.006",
    "Stock No: SDNEA2022001",
    "ISBN: 9798400204340",
    "ISSN: 2617-6750",
    "Subject: Health, Labor",
    "Keywords: COVID-19; Employment; Global; Labor force; Labor Market Dynamics; labor market tightness; Labor markets; Mismatch; unfilled job vacancy; Vacancies; wage growth; wage inflation; Wage Phillips Curve; Wages; worker preference",
    "**Staff Discussion Note**"
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