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Commentary

Watch exclusive video from conferences, debates and other events on labor market economics as well as reading the latest opinion pieces from IZA World of Labor authors.

October 28, 2019

Kathryn H. Anderson

Should governments intervene in the assimilation of immigrants?

Governments and local communities can facilitate the wage and employment assimilation of immigrants by implementing effective programs.
October 07, 2019

Daniel S. Hamermesh

Self-checkout and Neo-Luddism

Neo-Luddism hurts society as a whole and if successful benefits only a few people.
September 23, 2019

Michael Bognanno

Is CEO pay economically justified?

Concerns over high levels of CEO pay often accompany economic downturns—when the disparity in pay between top executives and struggling workers is most unsettling.
September 16, 2019

Nina Smith

Gender quotas for the board room?

Gender quotas are not a major palliative for the problem that female talent is being wasted.

Women at Work Around the World

Female labor force participation is mainly driven by the value of women’s market wages versus the value of their non-market time. While women’s labor force participation has risen in many countries, rates remain quite low in some countries and regions.

Read more articles on female labor force participation.

Read Daiji Kawaguchi and Hiroaki Mori's article: "The labor market in Japan, 2000–2016"

Read Tomi Kyyrä and Hanna Pesola's article: "The labor market in Finland, 2000–2016"

Read Elena Nikolova's article: "Can diversity encourage entrepreneurship in transition economies?"

Read Jungmin Lee's article: "The labor market in South Korea, 2000–2016"

Read Rafael Lalive and Tobias Lehmann's article: "The labor market in Switzerland, 2000–2016"

Read Benedikt Herz and Thijs van Rens' article: "The labor market in the UK, 2000–2016"

Read Philippe Askenazy's article: "The changing of the French labor market, 2000–2017"
Minimum wages, austerity and debt

2013 IZA prizewinner, Daniel Hamermesh, discusses topical economic issues, including minimum wage, and austerity. See his IZA World of Labor article where he examines how labor costs affect companies' demand for labor.
The importance of labor supply and the role of public policy

Richard Blundell, of University College London and IZA, explains the importance of labor supply and the role that public policy plays. His IZA World of Labor article specifically looks at the role of tax policy.