Showing posts with label Inclusive Growth. Show all posts
Wednesday, September 16, 2015
Israel’s Labor Market: High Inequality, Low Productivity
- Inequality in Israel is among the highest in the OECD (this refers to net income inequality, that is, inequality of income after tax and transfers). The income share of the richest 10 percent of people is 13 times the share of the bottom 10 percent, a ratio that is exceeded only by the United States. Real disposable incomes of the top decile have increased since the 1980s, while incomes of the bottom decile have stagnated. Israel’s Gini coefficient of disposable income is among the highest in the OECD.
- Average incomes in Israel are similar to those in Korea and New Zealand but well below the level in richer Western European countries and the United States. There was rapid catch-up toward U.S. incomes between 1950 and the mid- 1970s, but since then Israel’s average income has stagnated at around 60 percent of US average incomes.
- Part of this stagnation is due to low productivity growth. One reason may be that Israel is the most restrictive amongst advanced economies in terms of product market regulations—state control, barriers to entrepreneurship, and barriers to trade and investment all rank amongst the highest across its peers.. In terms of sectors, Israel ranks amongst the highest in regulation of network sectors, retail trade and professional services.
A new IMF report provides an in-depth look at Israel’s labor market:
- Inequality in Israel is among the highest in the OECD (this refers to net income inequality, that is, inequality of income after tax and transfers). The income share of the richest 10 percent of people is 13 times the share of the bottom 10 percent, a ratio that is exceeded only by the United States. Real disposable incomes of the top decile have increased since the 1980s,
Posted by at 5:58 PM
Labels: Inclusive Growth
Friday, September 11, 2015
What Lies Behind Norway’s Low Unemployment Rate?
The unemployment rate in Norway is one of the lowest among OECD countries. At the same time, according to an IMF report, absence from work due to sickness “is the highest among the OECD countries, and so is expenditure on health related benefits, which is more than 5 percent of GDP. About one-fifth of the working age population receives income supports related to health problems or disability, which is nearly everybody who is not working. Read the full article…
Posted by at 9:00 AM
Labels: Inclusive Growth
Monday, September 7, 2015
Labor Day Special: How Countries Rank on Whether Growth Creates Jobs
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| Turkey’s Labour and Social Security Minister Ahmet Erdem (center), surrounded by Labour and Employment Ministers of the G20, poses for a family photo during the G20 Ministerial meeting in Ankara, Turkey on Sept 3. (AFP) |
Does economic growth lead to job creation in the short run (over a year)? This new report ranks the G20 countries on how well they are able to translate short run growth into more jobs. Check your guesses against the answers in the report.
Turkey’s Labour and Social Security Minister Ahmet Erdem (center), surrounded by Labour and Employment Ministers of the G20, poses for a family photo during the G20 Ministerial meeting in Ankara, Read the full article…
Posted by at 11:47 AM
Labels: Inclusive Growth
Friday, August 14, 2015
Recent Labor Market Reforms in Spain: A Preliminary Assessment
“The 2012 labor market reforms are making a difference. Wage moderation is contributing to a visible recovery in headline employment growth, and the reforms have made the labor market more resilient to shocks. There is also some evidence that the contribution of temporary contracts to employment growth has started to decrease. However, the reliance on temporary workers remains strong overall and further structural reforms will be required to reduce the still very high level of long-term, structural unemployment.”
From a new IMF study:
“The 2012 labor market reforms are making a difference. Wage moderation is contributing to a visible recovery in headline employment growth, and the reforms have made the labor market more resilient to shocks. There is also some evidence that the contribution of temporary contracts to employment growth has started to decrease. However, the reliance on temporary workers remains strong overall and further structural reforms will be required to reduce the still very high level of long-term,
Posted by at 5:25 PM
Labels: Inclusive Growth
Friday, July 17, 2015
IMF Staff Paper: Unionization, Minimum Wages and Inequality
“IMF economists have found a decline in unionization—that is, the reduction in the proportion of workers who are union members—and the erosion of minimum wages to be associated with rising inequality in advanced economies. However, these findings do not necessarily constitute a blanket recommendation for higher unionization and minimum wages.” Read the IMF Survey story and the paper.
This work adds to the growing stock of IMF work on inequality. Here’s:
- a guide to previous IMF work on inequality;
- a special feature on Jobs & Inequality,;
- new work on the impact of capital account liberalization on inequality; and,
- the IMF’s work on inequality in China
“IMF economists have found a decline in unionization—that is, the reduction in the proportion of workers who are union members—and the erosion of minimum wages to be associated with rising inequality in advanced economies. However, these findings do not necessarily constitute a blanket recommendation for higher unionization and minimum wages.” Read the IMF Survey story and the paper.
This work adds to the growing stock of IMF work on inequality.
Posted by at 10:03 PM
Labels: Inclusive Growth
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