Long-term fiscal effects of public pension reform in Norway: A generational accounting analysis

Generational Accounts (GAs) measure the fiscal sustainability of the public sector. We ask whether the contributions from the Government Pension Fund and remaining oil and gas wealth in the ground, together with the pension reform taking effect in 2011, are sufficiently large to secure generational balance in Norway. Our results show that the pension reform has a substantial effect, and contributes as much to generational balance as the total petroleum wealth. Neither increased economic growth per se nor increased fertility contribute to improve the GAs. The structural characteristics of higher employment and lower transfer payments typical for cyclical upturns, improve the GAs substantially. Optimistic assumptions regarding these structural characteristics do not remove the need for further reforms to obtain fiscal sustainability of the Norwegian public sector. --Generational Accounting,Norway,Fiscal Policy,Intergenerational redistribution

The Welfare State as Provider of Accident Insurance in the Workplace: Efficiency and Distribution in Equilibrium.

The welfare state provides universal insurance for workers against accidents in the workplace. In equilibrium, this insurance does not generate adverse safety incentives to firms. Noninternalized insurance makes workers sort themselves nonoptimally to firms and choose higher individual effort levels to prevent accidents as compared to insurance schemes that are internalized in the market. Welfare state insurance may, therefore, generate higher safety levels than perfect experience rating, not lower. An optimal income taxation scheme in the welfare state implies progressive taxation. The optimal tax level increases with the extent of the welfare state. Copyright 1995 by Royal Economic Society.

Success or selection in vocational rehabilitation programs

SIGLEAvailable from Bibliothek des Instituts fuer Weltwirtschaft, ZBW, Duesternbrook Weg 120, D-24105 Kiel W 517 (94.1) / FIZ - Fachinformationszzentrum Karlsruhe / TIB - Technische InformationsbibliothekDEGerman

Transitions from employment among young Norwegian workers

In a large representative sample of young Norwegian workers, we estimate gross transitions to unemployment, education, and other exits in a multinomial logit. In line with received literature, we find that individuals with high education, experience, and income have significantly lower probabilities of job exits. While female education rates have increased to surpass those of males, female labour market outcomes are still more responsive to family related background characteristics as compared with the outcomes for males.Competing risk, youth employment, youth unemployment

Ability, Self-Confidence, and Search

We explore optimal search for individual improvement when agents start with different confidence in their own ability. The initial self-confidence may be determined by nature or socioeconomic factors. Presuming Bayesian learning, we show that final achievements depend positively on initial confidence. When parents' achievements affect children's self-confidence, a meritocracy, not necessarily founded on ability, may emerge. Social differences may thus stem from - and maintain - unjustifiable opinions about ability differentials.