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Costs of Business Cycles for Unskilled Workers

Author

Listed:
  • MUKOYAMA, Toshihiko
  • ŞAHIN, Ayşegül
Abstract
This paper reconsiders the cost of business cycles under market incompleteness. Primarily, we focus on the heterogeneity in the cost among different skill groups. Unskilled workers are subject to a much larger risk of unemployment during recessions than are skilled workers. Moreover, unskilled workers earn less income, which limits their ability to self-insure. We examine how this heterogeneity in unemployment risk and income translates into heterogeneity in the cost of business cycles. We find that the welfare cost of business cycles for unskilled workers is substantially higher than the welfare cost for skilled workers.

Suggested Citation

  • MUKOYAMA, Toshihiko & ŞAHIN, Ayşegül, 2005. "Costs of Business Cycles for Unskilled Workers," Cahiers de recherche 15-2005, Centre interuniversitaire de recherche en économie quantitative, CIREQ.
    • Handle: RePEc:mtl:montec:15-2005
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    cost of business cycles; incomplete markets; skill and unemployment;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity
    • E32 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - Business Fluctuations; Cycles
    • E61 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Macroeconomic Policy, Macroeconomic Aspects of Public Finance, and General Outlook - - - Policy Objectives; Policy Designs and Consistency; Policy Coordination

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