Public works for Poland? Active labour market policies during transition

Following the predominance of macroeconomic stabilisation policies and passive income support schemes in the first phase of transition, active labour market policies (ALMPs) have now come to play a more important role in transition economies. This paper looks at the Polish experience and provides empirical evidence on the effectiveness of ALMPs. We use the Polish Labour Force Survey of August 1994 in combination with its Supplement on the Evaluation of Labour Market Policies together with data on ALMP expenditure at the regional (voivodship) level. The macroeconometric analysis of the relationship between labour market flows and ALMP expenditure shows no significant effects. The microeconometric analysis reveals that ALMPs are not particularly well targeted at the problem groups in the labour market. That is, women and people with basic vocational education do not receive enough attention, whereas persons formerly employed in the public administration seem to have a privileged status in ALMPs. As to the effectiveness of ALMPs, the paper shows that former participants cannot expect to find employment more easily than their peers who have been unemployed but have not been in a programme. Subjective evaluations of former participants also suggest that ALMPs, but especially works programmes, have not increased their chances to find a job. --unemployment,active labour market policies,Poland

TUNNELLING IN SQUEEZING AND SWELLING ROCK BY USING HIGH DEFORMABLE CONCRETE ELEMENTS

The poster shows experience on construction using hiDCon-Elements (High Deformable Concrete) in several tunnels. The yieldable concrete elements for the application in squeezing rock conditions have a beam shape and are longitudinally fixed to the excavation surface at different locations. The elements are incorporated into the tunnel lining when the shotcrete is added. If the lining is subjected to a radial rock pressure of the designed value the normal force in the lining will cause the hiDCon-Elements to yield thus preventing the shotcrete from being overstressed. Application of these yieldable concrete elements in strongly swelling rock is achieved by using the new design concept called “Modular Yielding Support”, in which compressible elements of high bearing capacity are placed between the structure and the rock. On the one hand, this method permits a reduction of swelling pressure to a predetermined maximum value. On the other hand, replacement of these elements is possible at any time without impairing the flow of traffic

Employment Effects of Publicly Financed Training Programs The East German Experience

We analyze the effectiveness of publicly financed training and retraining programs in east Germany as measured by their effects on individual re-employment probabilities after training. These are estimated by discrete hazard rate models on the basis of individual-level panel data. We account for unobserved individual heterogeneity in both the training participation and outcome equation. The latter differentiates between transitions into "stable" and "unstable" employment after the completion of a training program. Our findings are that in the first phase of the east German transition process, when the institutions delivering the training programs were being set up, there are no positive effects of training on the probability to find stable employment. For the period of September 1992 to November 1994, when the institutional structure for the programs was in place, we find positive effects of both on?the?job and off?the?job training for women, and positive effects of off?the?job training for men. --publicly financed training,evaluation studies,employment effects,sample selection,east Germany

Do public works programs work? Some unpleasant results from the East German experience

We analyze the effectiveness of public works programs (PWP, Arbeitsbeschaffungsmaßnahmen) in east Germany as measured by their effects on individual future reemployment probabilities in regular jobs. These are estimated by discrete hazard rate models on the basis of individual?level panel data. We account for unobserved individual heterogeneity in both the PWP participation and in the outcome equations. In the latter, we differentiate between transitions into "stable" and "unstable" employment after the PWP. We find that these programs seem to have no special targeting focus on disadvantaged groups in the labor market and that participants are, on average, worse off concerning their re?employment prospects in regular jobs than unemployed people who do not join such a program. A possible explanation for this result is that PWP participants search less intensively for a regular job while on such a program than unemployed non-participants. Thus, our results cast serious doubts on both the effectiveness and the equity aspects of public works programs in east Germany. --public works programs,evaluation studies,employment effects,sample selection,east Germany

The New Administrative Capital in Egypt: The Political Economy of the Production of Urban Spaces in Cairo

The New Administrative Capital reshapes Egypt’s urban landscape thoroughly. Nevertheless, empirical research on its political economy and spatial imaginaries is lacking. Building on a political geography framework and extensive qualitative fieldwork, we aim at contrasting official constructions of space with an analysis of the hidden interests, actions, and power struggles between its main stakeholders. Whereas foreign and private investors are officially key to the project, our analysis demonstrates that state institutions rivaled over its control, providing the military with new rent sources. The location and seize of the new palace indicates a lack of democratic conviction whereas citizen participation is largely missing