UNEMPLOYMENT BENEFITS, CONTRACT LENGTH AND NOMINAL WAGE FLEXIBILITY

We show in a union-bargaining model that a decrease in the unemployment benefit level increases not only equilibrium employment, but also nominal wage flexibility, and thus reduces employment variations in the case of nominal shocks. Long-term wage contracts lead to higher expected real wages and hence higher expected unemployment than short-term contracts. Therefore lower benefits reduce the expected utility gross of contract costs of a union member more with long-term than with short-term contracts and thus create an incentive for shorter contracts. Incentives for employers work in the same direction. Lower taxes associated with lower benefits also tend to make short-term contracts more attractive.nominal wage flexibility; contract length; macroeconomic fluctuations; unemployment benefits.

Nominal Wage Flexibility, Wage Indexation and Monetary Union

Membership in a monetary union (EMU) is likely to imply stronger incentives for nominal wage flexibility in the form of wage indexation and shorter contract length than non-membership. For example, EMU entry may cause a move from a nonindexation to an indexation equilibrium. But more wage flexibility is only an imperfect substitute for an own monetary policy. It is possible that an increase in wage flexibility is welfare-decreasing, because of the accompanying rise in price variability. If indexation occurs outside the EMU, either multiple equilibria or full-indexation equilibria may occur.nominal wage flexibility; wage indexation; EMU; asymmetric shocks

Unemployment Benefits, Contract Length and Nominal Wage Flexibility

We show in a union-bargaining model that a decrease in the unemployment benefit level increases not only equilibrium employment, but also nominal wage flexibility, and thus reduces employment variations in the case of nominal shocks. Long-term wage contracts lead to highter expected real wages and hence higher expected unemployment than short-term contracts. Therefore lower benefits reduce the expected utility gross of contract costs of a union member more with long-term than with short-term contracts and thus create an incentive for shorter contracts. Incentives for employers work in the same direction. Lower taxes associated with lower benefits also tend to make short-term contracts more attractive.Nominal wage flexibility, contracts length, macroeconomic fluctuations, unemployment benefits

Nominal Wage Flexibility, Wage Indexation and Monetary Union

Membership in a monetary union implies stronger incentives for nominal wage flexibility in the form of wage indexation and shorter contract length than nonmembership. For example, entry into a monetary union may cause a move from a non-indexation to an indexation equilibrium. But more wage flexibility is only an imperfect substitute for an own monetary policy. It is possible that an increase in wage flexibility is welfare-decreasing because of the accompanying rise in price variability. The interaction between wage setting and central bank behaviour may result in either multiple equilibria or a unique full-indexation equilibrium.nominal wage flexibility, wage indexation, monetary union, asymmetric shocks

Mobile unemployment in a post-industrial society: The case of Sweden

Since the early 90s, every region in Sweden has been struck by high unemployment, especially among young persons. In the same period, there has been an overrepresentation of unemployed among inter-regional migrants. Increasingly, however, this mobility does not lead to employment. Yet, there are largely economic factors explaining this mobility. There seems to be a dual spatial pattern of this phenomenon. Preferably, unemployed migrate to (a) metropolitan regions and to (b) rural areas. This indicates that the phenomenon is multifaceted. Mobile unemployed have different backgrounds and different aspirations. Unemployed migrants to rural areas are predominantly low cost seekers who do not look for a regular job any longer. Unemployed migrants to metropolitan regions are to a large extent recent immigrants and/or young persons attracted by the informal segments of the urban labor market. The aim of the paper is to describe emerging patterns of inter-regional migration of unemployed, to analyze the socio-economic careers of different migrant groups, and to analyze factors leading to mobile unemployment. The factors analyzed include changes in the welfare system and in labor market policy. Finally, the paper will discuss the regional economic consequences of the emerging pattern and the policy implications.

The Ontology of Electromagnetism

Electromagnetism is usually understood as a theory describing how charged particles and eletromagnetic fields interact. In this paper I argue that a double ontology comprising both particles and fields is problematic. Either we should think of electromagnetism as a theory about charged particles directly interacting with each other, or as theory of fields whose local interactions are manifested as field quanta, called "particles." From a purely theoretical point of view the choice between a particle and a field interpretation does not matter much when it concerns classical electromagnetism; both interpretations are possible and, as shown by Quine, there is a general method for translating a theory about one kind of objects into a theory assuming another kind of objects, provided these theories are empirically equivalent. From an empiricist point of view, however, the particle interpretation is the choice, since some particles are directly observable. Testable predictions of electromagnetism are predictions of the motion of charged bodies, in theory represented as particles, so this must be the empiricists' choice of ontology. In quantum electrodynamics one is however forced to chose a field ontology, since a particle ontology for this theory is impossible. So called "quantum particles" are field quanta, which cannot be treated as individuals making up a domain of quantification. There is thus a tension regarding ontology between classical and quantum electrodynamics. But this tension is nothing else than the much debated measurement problem of quantum mechanics

Framgångsfaktorer för virkesköpare

Ett ökat behov för de svenska skogsindustriföretagen på skogsråvara har skapat en stor konkurrens bland skogsföretagen att få köpa virke från de privata skogsägarna. Denna stora konkurrens innebär att virkesköparna på skogsföretagen får en allt viktigare roll i att behålla och utöka sitt företags marknadsandelar på den privata skogsägarmarknaden. Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka vilka egenskaper som ledde till framgång för virkesköpare. Men även att undersöka om det fanns någon skillnad på vad som ledde till framgång beroende på erfarenheten hos virkesköparen samt beroende på i vilken region virkesköparen arbetade. En enkät utformades i syfte att samla in data från virkesköparna om deras egenskaper och arbetssätt. Enkäten skickades ut till alla 83 virkesköpare som arbetade på Holmen. 56 stycken svarade vilket gav en svarsfrekvens på 67%. Datan användes sedan för multivariata dataanalyser så som PCA, OPLS-DA och OPLS analyser. I analyserna jämfördes de framgångsrika virkesköparna mot de ej framgångsrika. Virkesköparna delades upp i grupper efter erfarenhet och var i Sverige de arbetade. Egenskaper som ledde till framgång kunde med hjälp av analyserna identifieras. Även skillnader på vad som ledde till framgång beroende på virkesköparens erfarenhet identifierades. Vissa regionala skillnader kunde dessutom identifieras. De egenskaper som visade sig ha störst betydelse för virkesköparnas framgång var virkesköparens förmåga att sätta upp egna höga mål, att känna att det är viktigt att klara sin budget samt att tycka att det finns en viss tävlan mot sina kollegor.An increased need of timber in the Swedish forest industry has created big competition among forest companies to buy timber from the private forest owners. This competition means that timber purchasers at the forest companies has an increasingly important role in maintaining and expanding their company's market shares timber from the private forest owners. The purpose of this study is to investigate the characteristics that led to success for timber purchasers. But also, to investigate whether there was any difference in what led to success depending on the experience of the timber buyer but also if there are a difference what led to success on depending on in which region the timber buyer is working. A survey was designed in order to collect data from timber purchasers about their characteristics and working methods. The survey was sent out to all 83 timber purchasers who worked at Holmen. 56 answered, which gave a response rate of 67%. The data was then used for multivariate data analyzes such as PCA, OPLS-DA and OPLS analyzes. In the analyzes, the successful timber purchasers were compared with the unsuccessful ones. The timber purchasers were divided into groups according to experience and where in Sweden they worked. Characteristics that led to success could be identified in the analyzes. Differences in what led to success depending on the timber buyer's experience were also identified. In addition, some regional differences could be identified. The qualities that proved to be most important for the timber purchaser’s success were, among other things, the timber buyer's ability to set his own high goals, to feel that it is important to manage the budget and to think that there is a certain competition against the colleagues

The Ontology of Electromagnetism

Electromagnetism is usually understood as a theory describing how charged particles and eletromagnetic fields interact. In this paper I argue that a double ontology comprising both particles and fields is problematic. Either we should think of electromagnetism as a theory about charged particles directly interacting with each other, or as theory of fields whose local interactions are manifested as field quanta, called "particles." From a purely theoretical point of view the choice between a particle and a field interpretation does not matter much when it concerns classical electromagnetism; both interpretations are possible and, as shown by Quine, there is a general method for translating a theory about one kind of objects into a theory assuming another kind of objects, provided these theories are empirically equivalent. From an empiricist point of view, however, the particle interpretation is the choice, since some particles are directly observable. Testable predictions of electromagnetism are predictions of the motion of charged bodies, in theory represented as particles, so this must be the empiricists' choice of ontology. In quantum electrodynamics one is however forced to chose a field ontology, since a particle ontology for this theory is impossible. So called "quantum particles" are field quanta, which cannot be treated as individuals making up a domain of quantification. There is thus a tension regarding ontology between classical and quantum electrodynamics. But this tension is nothing else than the much debated measurement problem of quantum mechanics