The standard literature on working time has modelled the decisions of firms in a deterministic framework in which firms can choose between employment and overtime (given mandated standard hours). Contrary to this approach, we follow the real options approach, which allows us to investigate the...

The extremely large disparities in employment rates across Italian regions, and the bad performance of the Italian economy in terms of job creation in the 80´s and early 90´s make job creation a top-priority in the economic policy agenda. This paper uses data on employment from 784 Local Labor...

Wie viele Menschen aus den mittel- und osteuropäischen Ländern (MOEL) werden von dem mit dem EU-Beitritt verbundenen Recht auf Freizügigkeit Gebrauch machen und nach Westen in die "alten" EU-Länder wandern? Die vorgestellten Simulationen ergeben eine Bandbreite für das...

Was bestimmt das individuelle Wanderungsverhalten? Herkömmliche migrationsökonomische Theorieansätze greifen oft zu kurz und überschätzen deshalb die grenzüberschreitenden Wanderungsbewegungen bei weitem. Dieses Diskussionspapier stellt die bisherige Optik auf den Kopf und sucht nach...

The low mobility of people in Europe is considered a problem for adjustment to asymmetric shocks and regional convergence in the European Monetary Union. We suggest a complement to the traditional migration theories, the insider advantages approach to explain why most Europeans prefer to stay....

The findings of recent studies on adjustment processes suggest that regional labour markets in the EU and the US differ significantly. Low wage flexibility and limited labour mobility in European countries involve persistent unemployment differentials across regions. However, the spatial...

This paper argues that global games need global rules. Times of globalisation call for an international framework to regulate efficiently international movements of people. More than ever before, migration is a global phenomenon. This paper discusses the economic necessity of a shift from...

Can process conditionality really enhance poverty reduction in developing countries? This question is addressed in the framework of a politico-economic model considering political distortions both on the recipient and on the donor side. It turns out that process conditionality is a very useful...

This paper takes stock with the results of utility privatization in Bolivia. This paper deals with the process of structural reforms in this country and the specific results that have to date been accomplished in the electricity industry. It is mostly interested in exploring whether the...