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Evidence-based policy making

IZA World of Labor is an online platform that provides policy analysts, journalists, academics and society generally with relevant and concise information on labor market issues. Based on the latest research, it provides current thinking on labor markets worldwide in a clear and accessible style. IZA World of Labor aims to support evidence-based policy making and increase awareness of labor market issues, including current concerns like the impact of Covid-19, and longer-term problems like inequality.

View our content on Covid-19—Pandemics and the labor market

featured article

Job search requirements for older unemployed workers

Updated

Search requirements for the older unemployed affect their re-employment rates and their flows into states of inactivity

Hans Bloemen

Many OECD countries have, or have had, a policy that exempts older unemployed people from the requirement to search for a job. An aging population and low participation by older workers in the labor market increasingly put public finances under strain, and spur calls for policy measures that activate labor force participation by older workers. Introducing job search requirements for older unemployed workers aims to increase their re-employment rates. Abolishing the exemption from job search requirements for the older unemployed has been shown to initiate higher outflow rates from unemployment for them.

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latest articles

  • Evaluating apprenticeship training programs for firms

    Cost–benefit surveys of employers help design more effective training policies

    Samuel Muehlemann Harald Pfeifer, March 2023
    Apprenticeship training programs typically last several years and require substantial investments by training firms, largely due to the associated labor costs for participants and instructors. Nevertheless, apprentices also add significant value in the workplace. One tool to measure the costs and benefits of training for firms is employer surveys, which were first introduced in the 1970s in Germany. Such cost–benefit surveys (CBS) help to better understand a firm's demand for apprentices and to identify market failures. Therefore, CBS are an important tool for designing effective training policies.
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  • Hours vs employment in response to demand shocksUpdated

    Evaluating the labor market effects of temporary aggregate demand shocks requires analyzing both employment and hours of work

    Robert A. Hart, February 2023
    The responses of working hours and employment levels to temporary negative demand shocks like those caused by the Great Recession in 2007–2008 and the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020–2022 have shown that consideration of both is important. Workers’ desired rises in working hours in times of recession also serve to modify the standard measure of unemployment. During Covid-19, both jobs and earnings were temporarily protected among workers forced into short-time work schemes, providing a useful comparison with the provision of improved unemployment insurance to unemployed workers at that time.
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  • Air pollution and worker productivityUpdated

    Higher levels of air pollution reduce worker productivity, even when air quality is generally low

    Matthew Neidell Nico Pestel, February 2023
    环境al regulations are typically considered to be a drag on the economy. However, improved environmental quality may actually enhance productivity by creating a healthier workforce. Evidence suggests that improvements in air quality lead to improvements in worker productivity at the micro level across a range of sectors, including agriculture, manufacturing, and the service sectors, as well as at more aggregate macro levels. These effects also arise at levels of air quality that are below pollution thresholds in countries with the highest levels of environmental regulation. The findings suggest a new approach for understanding the consequences of environmental regulations.
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  • Temperature, productivity, and income

    Rising temperatures due to climate change could dampen productivity growth for decades

    Olivier Deschenes, February 2023
    Climate change is rapidly deteriorating environmental conditions through droughts and floods, hurricanes, wildfires, rising temperatures, and more frequent and longer heatwaves. A growing literature has shown how higher temperatures reduce worker productivity and economic output. These effects are more pronounced in poorer countries and in climate-exposed economic sectors like agriculture, construction, and manufacturing. The development of new technologies that mitigate exposure to heat among workers, combined with better temperature control in the workplace, will be essential to reduce the economic burden of climate change.
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  • May 12, 2023 - May 13, 2023

    唯一的年度会议

    Philadelphia, United States

    The Society of Labor Economists will hold its Twenty-Eighth Annual Meetings May 12–13, 2023, at the Sonesta Philadelphia Rittenhouse Square.

  • Jun 29, 2023 - Jul 04, 2023

    24th IZA Summer School in Labor Economics

    Berlin, Germany

    The Summer School gives you an opportunity to learn from leading researchers about the latest advances in labor economics. In addition, the accompanying student presentations and mentoring sessions will provide a great platform for you to showcase your research and get valuable feedback.

  • Jul 05, 2023 - Jul 06, 2023

    25th Anniversary IZA Conference in Labor Economics

    Berlin, Germany

    The conference will feature keynotes by Ayşegül Şahin and Patrick Kline, as well as about 15 plenary presentations and a poster session. The conference will conclude with a panel discussion on the German labor market featuring leading policymakers and labor economists (Application deadline: March 15, 2023).

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