Unemployment insurance in welfare states: Soft constraints and mild sanctions

Arbeitspapier

Based on a sequence of reforms in the Norwegian unemployment insurance (UI) system, we show that activity-oriented UI regimes - i.e., regimes with a high likelihood of required participa-tion in active labor market programs, duration limitations on unconditional UI entitlements, and high sanction probabilities - deliver substantially shorter unemployment spells than pure income-insurance regimes. Soft constraints, in the form of activity requirements or small benefit cuts af-ter a pre-specified UI duration, have many of the same behavioral consequences as threats of complete benefit termination. Early introduction of a soft constraint appears particularly effec-tive; our results show that the expected unemployment duration falls by half a day for each week the soft constraint is moved ahead in the UI spell. Mild sanctions, in the form of temporary bene-fit terminations in response to inadequate search effort or excess choosiness, cause a significant rise in the job hazard.

Angaben zum Objekt

• Sprache: Englisch

Verweise und Beziehungen

• Erschienen in: Series: Memorandum ; No. 2007,13

Klassifikation und Themen

• Klassifikation: Wirtschaft ; Semiparametric and Nonparametric Methods: General ; Statistical Simulation Methods: General ; Duration Analysis; Optimal Timing Strategies ; Unemployment: Models, Duration, Incidence, and Job Search ; Unemployment Insurance; Severance Pay; Plant Closings ; Mobility, Unemployment, and Vacancies: Public Policy
• Thema: Competing risks ; unemployment insurance ; timing-of-events ; NPMLE ; MMPH ; Arbeitslosenversicherung ; Arbeitsmarktpolitik ; Arbeitsuche ; Arbeitslosigkeit ; Dauer ; Norwegen

Beteiligte, Orts- und Zeitangaben

• Ereignis: Geistige Schöpfung
• (wer): Røed, Knud ; Westlie, Lars
• Ereignis: Veröffentlichung
• (wer): University of Oslo, Department of Economics
• (wo): Oslo
• (wann): 2007

Weitere Informationen

• Handle: http://hdl.handle.net/10419/63182
• Letzte Aktualisierung: 10.03.2025, 11:44 MEZ