Recent Publication Productivity of Czech Economists

The author presents individual and institutional rankings based on the publications of Czech economists in impact-factor journals during 1998 to 2005 with the purpose of measuring the international competitiveness of Czech economists. His accounting methodology is egalitarian by international socio-metric standards, accounting also for publications in journals with low impact factor.impact factor; journal publications; Czech Republic; research

Understanding Czech Long-Term Unemployment

[email protected] potential impact of the looming EU accession of Central European economies is unemployment hysteresis working through long-term unemployment (LTU). In this paper, we explore the mechanisms of LTU by providing a detailed description of the recent rise in Czech LTU following the recession of 1997. We place the Czech evidence in international perspective using, e.g., VAR-based simulations, and focus on the role of welfare benefits in driving LTU.http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/39883/3/wp498.pd

Understanding Long-Term Unemployment in the Czech Republic

One potential negative impact of the EU accession of Central European economies could be unemployment hysteresis working through long-term unemployment (LTU). In this paper we explore the mechanisms of LTU by providing a detailed description of the recent rise in Czech LTU following a domestic recession in 1997. We place the Czech data in an international context using VAR-based simulations and examine the role of welfare benefits in driving LTU.long-term unemployment; welfare; simulation

Regional Wage Adjustments and Unemployment: Estimating the Time-Varying Wage Curve (in English)

This paper investigates the flexibility of real wages at the regional level by estimating the wage curve, the relationship between regional unemployment, and the regional level of wages. For this purpose the authors use a sample of annual district-level unemployment and wage data in the Czech Republic from 1993 to 2001. Previous estimates of the wage curve for the Czech Republic suggested that the regional flexibility of real wages is extraordinarily low. Taking into account the endogeneity of unemployment, the authors' results indicate that regional real wages are flexible at the level observed in most developed and developing economies. The temporary deterioration in the regional flexibility observed during the 1997-99 Czech recession is explained by the standard efficiency wage model. Some indication of weakening elasticity since the end of the 1990s is probably associated with the sharp rise in the incidence of long-term unemployment. As this trend is expected to continue, it could further attenuate the elasticity and complicate adjustment processes if adverse shocks appear in the future, particularly after the Czech Republic's anticipated entry into the European Monetary Union.wage curve, wage flexibility, unemployment, panel data

Responses of Private and Public Schools to Voucher Funding: The Czech and Hungarian Experience

A state monopoly in schooling followed the collapse of communism in Central Europe. The centrally planned system was abandoned. Systems comparable with educational voucher scheme, also known as school choice system, were introduced in the Czech Republic and Hungary in the early 1990s. The newly established system of school financing allocates public funds according to the number of students enrolled in a school. Accredited non-state schools, private and religious, are also eligible for public subsidies. The scope and the form of these reforms represent a unique opportunity to test conflicting hypotheses of proponents and opponents of the voucher scheme. In this empirical analysis, we test fundamental theoretical predictions of the voucher model. Specifically, we test: i) whether non-state schools are established at locations where the supply of educational opportunities provided by state schools is low or of low quality, ii) whether state and non-state schools in such a system respond to changes in demand for education, and iii) whether state schools respond to competition from non-state schools. We use detailed school level data on the whole population of schools and data on regional conditions. In our econometric model we estimate education value added, instead of relying on absolute quality of school graduates. We find that non-state schools emerge at locations with excess demand and lower quality state schools. We also find that greater competition from non-state schools creates incentives for state schools with the result that state schools slightly improve the quality of educational inputs used and significantly improve their output, quality of graduates. As concerns the technical schools, we find that non-state schools react to regional labor market conditions in terms of technical branch premium and unemployment rate. We do not find such reactions to market signals by state schools. We introduce this analysis with a review of non-state schools' development in the Czech Republic and Hungary during the 1990s.http://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/39744/3/wp360.pd

Structural and Cyclical Unemployment: What Can Be Derived from the Matching Function? (in English)

We explain movements in the U-V (unemployment and vacancy) space – that is, the relation-ship between stocks of unemployment and job vacancies, known as the Beveridge curve – in the Czech Republic during 1995–2004. While the Beveridge curve is described by labor-market stocks, we explain shifts in the Beveridge curve using gross labor-market flows by estimating the matching function. We interpret parameter changes of the matching function during the business cycle, distinguishing cyclical and structural changes to the unemployment rate. We find that the labor-market flows are good coincidence predictors of business-cycle turning points. We show that the Czech economy suffers hysteresis (path dependency) on the labor market, which is common in many other developed market economies in the European Union.Beveridge curve, Czech Republic, matching function, panel data, structural unemployment

Understanding Czech Long-Term Unemployment

One potential impact of the looming EU accession of Central European economies is unemployment hysteresis working through long-term unemployment (LTU). In this paper, we explore the mechanisms of LTU by providing a detailed description of the recent rise in Czech LTU following the recession of 1997. We place the Czech evidence in international perspective using, e.g., VAR-based simulations, and focus on the role of welfare benefits in driving LTU.Unemployment, Transition, Flexibility, Czech Republic

Responses of Private and Public Schools to Voucher Funding:The Czech and Hungarian Experience

A state monopoly in schooling followed the collapse of communism in Central Europe. The centrally planned system was abandoned. Systems comparable with educational voucher scheme, also known as school choice system, were introduced in the Czech Republic and Hungary in the early 1990s. The newly established system of school financing allocates public funds according to the number of students enrolled in a school. Accredited non-state schools, private and religious, are also eligible for public subsidies. The scope and the form of these reforms represent a unique opportunity to test conflicting hypotheses of proponents and opponents of the voucher scheme. In this empirical analysis, we test fundamental theoretical predictions of the voucher model. Specifically, we test: i) whether non-state schools are established at locations where the supply of educational opportunities provided by state schools is low or of low quality, ii) whether state and non-state schools in such a system respond to changes in demand for education, and iii) whether state schools respond to competition from non-state schools. We use detailed school level data on the whole population of schools and data on regional conditions. In our econometric model we estimate education value added, instead of relying on absolute quality of school graduates. We find that non-state school emerge at locations with excess demand and lower quality state schools. We also find that greater competition from non-state schools creates incentives for state schools with the result that state schools slightly improve the quality of educational inputs used and significantly improve their output, quality of graduates. As concerns the technical schools, we find that non-state schools react to regional labor market conditions in terms of technical branch premium and unemployment rate. We do not find such reactions to market signals by state schools. We introduce this analysis with a review of non-state schools' development in the Czech Republic and Hungary during the 1990s.Educational Finance, Government Expenditures and Education, Occupational Choice, Labor Productivity