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Morris M. Kleiner

University of Minnesota, USA

Occupational licensing is growing in industrialized nations as they move from manufacturing to a service-based economy. Knowing the costs and benefits of occupational licensing is significant in determining the optimal amount of labor market regulation

IZA World of Labor role

Author

Current position

Professor of Public Affairs and AFL-CIO Chair Professor of Labor Policy, Humphrey School of Public Affairs, University of Minnesota; Director, Center for Labor Policy

Research interest

Occupational licensing, wages

Website

https://www.hhh.umn.edu/directory/morris-kleiner

Positions/functions as a policy advisor

Research Economist, National Bureau of Economic Research, 1984–1994

Past positions

Visiting Professor, London School of Economics, 2016; Visiting Scholar, Queen Mary University of London, 2016

Qualifications

PhD Economics, University of Illinois, USA

Selected publications

  • “Analyzing occupational licensing among the states.” Journal of Regulatory Economics Online (2017): 1–27 (with E. Volotnikov).

  • “Do occupational regulations increase earnings? Evidence from China.” Industrial Relations 56:2 (2017): 351–381 (with W. Chi and X. Qian).

  • Analyzing the Influence of Occupational Licensing Duration on Labor Market Outcomes. NBER Working Paper No. 22810, 2016 (with S. Han).

  • “Relaxing occupational licensing requirements: Analyzing wages and prices for a medical service.” Journal of Law and Economics 59:2 (2016): 261–291 (with A. Marier, K. W. Park, and C. Wing).

  • Guild-Ridden Labor Markets: The Curious Case of Occupational Licensing. Michigan: Upjohn Institute Press, 2015.

article(s)

  • The influence of occupational licensing and regulation

    Occupational licensing may raise wages and benefits for those licensed but also reduce access to work without clear benefits to consumers

    Morris M. Kleiner, October 2017
    Since the end of World War II, occupational licensing has been one of the fastest growing labor market institutions in the developed world. The economics literature suggests that licensing can influence wage determination, the speed at which workers find employment, pension and health benefits, and prices. Moreover, there is little evidence to show that licensing improves service quality, health, or safety in developed nations. So, why is occupational licensing growing when there are such well-established costs to the public?
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