B6171 - POLITICAL ECONOMY OF LABOUR MARKETS

Learning outcomes

The course aims to provide an overview of labour market regulation and its organizational logic, the main developments and the factors explaining them, the collective actors involved. At the end of the course, students will be able to: • Analyse and compare regimes of labour market regulation; • Critically discern social, political, and economic inputs and outcomes; • Understand the institutional foundations of labour market regulation.

Course contents

Il corso copre questioni chiave del mercato del lavoro come la disoccupazione, la determinazione dei salari, l'offerta di competenze e lo sviluppo delle competenze, e la qualità del lavoro. Il corso adotta un approccio istituzionalista comparato allo studio dei mercati del lavoro e, pertanto, offre una panoramica di un'ampia gamma di istituzioni e aree di policy, tra cui, tra le altre, la protezione dell'occupazione, i sussidi di disoccupazione e le politiche di attivazione, i sindacati e la contrattazione collettiva. Il corso affronterà anche questioni contemporanee come la creazione di green jobs, parità di genere, le politiche del mercato del lavoro durante la crisi, i cambiamenti demografici e la carenza di competenze sul mercato del lavoro.

 

Qui sotto una lista degli argomenti trattati con letture indicative: 

Intro to the course, key concepts and facts about contemporary labour markets

Clegg, Daniel, and Niccolo Durazzi. "Introduction: Labour Market Policy as a Field of Government Action and an Object of Research." In Handbook of Labour Market Policy in Advanced Democracies, edited by Daniel Clegg and Niccolo Durazzi, 1–13. Edward Elgar Publishing, 2023.

Theoretical perspectives on the political economy of labour markets

Howell, David, Dean Baker, Andrew Glyn, and John Schmitt. "Are Protective Labor Market Institutions at the Root of Unemployment? A Critical Review of the Evidence." Capitalism and Society 2, no. 1 (2007): Article 1. Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2206526 .

Actors (I): Trade unions&employers

Gordon, Joshua, and Dennie Oude Nijhuis. "Trade Unions and the Evolution of Labour Market Policy." In Handbook of Labour Market Policy in Advanced Democracies, edited by Daniel Clegg and Niccolo Durazzi, 177–192. Edward Elgar Publishing, 2023.

Actors (II): The state and international organisations

Zohlnhöfer, Reimut, and Linda Voigt. "Political Parties and Labour Market Policies." In Handbook of Labour Market Policy in Advanced Democracies, edited by Daniel Clegg and Niccolo Durazzi, 161–176. Edward Elgar Publishing, 2023.

Industrial relations

Garnero, A. (2021). "The impact of collective bargaining on employment and wage inequality: Evidence from a new taxonomy of bargaining systems." European Journal of Industrial Relations, 27(2), 185–202.

Welfare (i): Unemployment benefits, IWBs and ALMPs

Melike Wulfgramm, Lukas Fervers, Unemployment and subsequent employment stability: does labour market policy matter?,Socio-Economic Review, Volume 13, Issue 4, October 2015, Pages 791–812,

Welfare (iI): Family policies and the gender gap

Ferragina, E. (2019). Does Family Policy Influence Women’s Employment?: Reviewing the Evidence in the Field.Political Studies Review,17(1), 65-80.https://doi.org/10.1177/1478929917736438

Skill formation

Di Carlo, D., & Durazzi, N. (2023). "Skill formation: part of and complement to the labour market policy mix?" In D. Clegg & N. Durazzi (Eds.), Handbook of Labour Market Policy in Advanced Democracies (pp. 327–342). Edward Elgar Publishing.

Employment protection legislation

Piasna, A. (2023). "Employment protection legislation: towards more inclusive or segmented labour markets?" In D. Clegg & N. Durazzi (Eds.), Handbook of Labour Market Policy in Advanced Democracies (pp. 249–263). Edward Elgar Publishing.

Minimum wage

Picot, G. (2023). "Minimum wages: by collective bargaining and by law." In D. Clegg & N. Durazzi (Eds.), Handbook of Labour Market Policy in Advanced Democracies (pp. 234–248). Edward Elgar Publishing

Industrial Policy

Mazzucato, M., Cimoli, M., Dosi, G.et al.Which Industrial Policy Does Europe Need?.Intereconomics50, 120–155 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10272-015-0535-1

Dualization or liberalization of labour markets?

Alvariño, Manuel, et al. "The End of the Age of Dualisation? A Comparative Analysis of Fifty Years of Labour Market Protection Reforms in Spain and Italy." https://osf.io/dwn6z/download/?format=pdf

Is wage moderation good or bad for countries?

Stockhammer, Engelbert. "Wage moderation does not work: unemployment in Europe."Review of Radical Political Economics 39.3 (2007): 391-397.

 

Il corso include anche 2-3 sessioni dedicate allo sviluppo, discussione e presentazione del lavoro di gruppo. Ogni anno verrà data una domanda di rilevanza politica e sociale. L'anno scorso il gruppo ha cercato di rispondere alla seguente domanda: "Perchè i salari italiani sono così bassi rispetto alla media europea?"

Readings/Bibliography

Clegg, Daniel, and Niccolo Durazzi, eds. Handbook of labour market policy in advanced democracies. Edward Elgar Publishing, 2023.

Il modulo non segue interamente il libro di testo. Si prega di guardare il materiale su Virtuale

Teaching methods

Lezioni interattive; classe 'ribaltata'; dibattiti in classe e discussioni di gruppo; studi di caso.

Assessment methods

50% Lavoro di gruppo e 50% esame scritto

 

Il lavoro di gruppo consiste in una presentazione e un blogpost. 

 

L'esame scritto dura due ore e i frequentanti devono rispondere a due domande su tre.

Teaching tools

PowerPoint; articoli di giornale; brevi video; studi di caso; simulazioni.

Office hours

See the website of Chiara Benassi