IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/ausecr/v56y2023i1p109-123.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

JobKeeper: An Initial Assessment

Author

Listed:
  • Jeff Borland
  • Jennifer Hunt

Abstract

We present details of the design and implementation of the 2020–2021 JobKeeper program and review the literature on its impacts. JobKeeper stimulated the macroeconomy and restrained job loss in the downturn. But because the program was not narrowly targeted, the cost per job saved was high and the impact most likely regressive. However, it would not have been possible to devise and implement a more targeted program in the available time, and as it was, JobKeeper was arguably implemented later than needed for maximum effectiveness. We therefore recommend that Australia consider establishing a short‐time work program for use in future recessions.

Suggested Citation

  • Jeff Borland & Jennifer Hunt, 2023. "JobKeeper: An Initial Assessment," Australian Economic Review, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, vol. 56(1), pages 109-123, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:ausecr:v:56:y:2023:i:1:p:109-123
    DOI: 10.1111/1467-8462.12503
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-8462.12503
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/1467-8462.12503?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Giulia Giupponi & Camille Landais & Alice Lapeyre, 2022. "Should We Insure Workers or Jobs during Recessions?," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 36(2), pages 29-54, Spring.
    2. James Bishop & Iris Day, 2020. "How Many Jobs Did JobKeeper Keep?," RBA Research Discussion Papers rdp2020-07, Reserve Bank of Australia.
    3. Rebecca Cassells & Alan Duncan, 2020. "JobKeeper: The efficacy of Australia’s first short-time wage subsidy," Australian Journal of Labour Economics (AJLE), Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre (BCEC), Curtin Business School, vol. 23(2), pages 99-128.
    4. Michael C. Burda & Jennifer Hunt, 2011. "What Explains the German Labor Market Miracle in the Great Recession," Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Economic Studies Program, The Brookings Institution, vol. 42(1 (Spring), pages 273-335.
    5. David Autor & David Cho & Leland D. Crane & Mita Goldar & Byron Lutz & Joshua Montes & William B. Peterman & David Ratner & Daniel Villar & Ahu Yildirmaz, 2022. "The $800 Billion Paycheck Protection Program: Where Did the Money Go and Why Did It Go There?," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 36(2), pages 55-80, Spring.
    6. Dan Andrews & Jonathan Hambur & Elif Bahar, 2021. "The COVID-19 shock and productivity-enhancing reallocation in Australia: Real-time evidence from Single Touch Payroll," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 1677, OECD Publishing.
    7. Timothy Watson & Juha Tervala & Tristram Sainsbury, 2022. "The JobKeeper payment: How good are wage subsidies?," CAMA Working Papers 2022-36, Centre for Applied Macroeconomic Analysis, Crawford School of Public Policy, The Australian National University.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Chris Murphy, 2023. "Fiscal Policy in the COVID‐19 Era," Economic Papers, The Economic Society of Australia, vol. 42(2), pages 107-152, June.
    2. Jeff Borland, 2023. "Introduction," Australian Economic Review, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, vol. 56(1), pages 61-69, March.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Borland, Jeff & Hunt, Jennifer, 2021. "Did the Australian Jobkeeper Program Save Jobs by Subsidizing Temporary Layoffs?," IZA Discussion Papers 14859, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Timothy Watson & Paul Buckingham, 2023. "Australian Government COVID‐19 Business Supports," Australian Economic Review, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, vol. 56(1), pages 124-140, March.
    3. Robert A. Hart, 2023. "Hours vs employment in response to demand shocks," IZA World of Labor, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA), pages 393-393, February.
    4. Alexander Herzog-Stein & Patrick Nüß & Lennert Peede & Ulrike Stein, 2022. "Germany and the United States in coronavirus distress: internal versus external labour market flexibility," Journal for Labour Market Research, Springer;Institute for Employment Research/ Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), vol. 56(1), pages 1-22, December.
    5. James Bishop & Iris Day, 2020. "How Many Jobs Did JobKeeper Keep?," RBA Research Discussion Papers rdp2020-07, Reserve Bank of Australia.
    6. Wei Cui & Jeffrey Hicks & Max Norton, 2022. "How well-targeted are payroll tax cuts as a response to COVID-19? evidence from China," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 29(5), pages 1321-1347, October.
    7. Ulf Rinne & Klaus F Zimmermann, 2013. "Is Germany the North Star of Labor Market Policy?," IMF Economic Review, Palgrave Macmillan;International Monetary Fund, vol. 61(4), pages 702-729, December.
    8. Tom Krebs, 2014. "Labor Market Reform and the Cost of Business Cycles," 2014 Meeting Papers 1017, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    9. Gehrke, Britta & Lechthaler, Wolfgang & Merkl, Christian, 2019. "The German labor market during the Great Recession: Shocks and institutions," Economic Modelling, Elsevier, vol. 78(C), pages 192-208.
    10. Sergio Destefanis & Matteo Fragetta & Giuseppe Mastromatteo & Nazzareno Ruggiero, 2020. "The Beveridge curve in the OECD before and after the great recession," Eurasian Economic Review, Springer;Eurasia Business and Economics Society, vol. 10(3), pages 411-436, September.
    11. Konon, Alexander & Fritsch, Michael & Kritikos, Alexander S., 2018. "Business cycles and start-ups across industries: An empirical analysis of German regions," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 33(6), pages 742-761.
    12. Busl, Claudia & Seymen, Atılım, 2013. "The German labour market reforms in a European context: A DSGE analysis," ZEW Discussion Papers 13-097, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    13. Lonnie Golden & Stuart Glosser, 2013. "Work sharing as a potential policy tool for creating more and better employment: A review of the evidence," Chapters, in: Jon C. Messenger & Naj Ghosheh (ed.), Work Sharing during the Great Recession, chapter 7, pages 203-258, Edward Elgar Publishing.
    14. Rothe, Thomas & Giannelli, Gianna C. & Jaenichen, Ursula, 2013. "Doing well in reforming the labour market? Recent trends in job stability and wages in Germany," VfS Annual Conference 2013 (Duesseldorf): Competition Policy and Regulation in a Global Economic Order 79932, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    15. Elstner, Steffen & Feld, Lars P. & Schmidt, Christoph M., 2018. "The German productivity paradox: Facts and explanations," Ruhr Economic Papers 767, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    16. Graham, James & Ozbilgin, Murat, 2021. "Age, industry, and unemployment risk during a pandemic lockdown," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    17. Brücker, Herbert & Gundacker, Lidwina & Hauptmann, Andreas & Jaschke, Philipp, 2021. "Arbeitsmarktwirkungen der COVID-19-Pandemie: Stabile Beschäftigung, aber steigende Arbeitslosigkeit von Migrantinnen und Migranten (Labor Market Effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic: Robust Employment, bu," IAB-Kurzbericht 202109, Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany].
    18. Jean-Marc Robin & Costas Meghir & Christian Dustmann & Jerome Adda, 2013. "Career Progression, Economic Downturns, and Skills," 2013 Meeting Papers 993, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    19. Philippe Askenazy & Clément Brébion & Pierre Courtioux & Christine Erhel & Malo Mofakhami, 2023. "HRM Strategies in Response to the First Covid Lockdown: a Typology of French Workplaces," CEPN Working Papers hal-03953817, HAL.
    20. Reamonn Lydon & Thomas Y. Mathä & Stephen Millard, 2019. "Short-time work in the Great Recession: firm-level evidence from 20 EU countries," IZA Journal of Labor Policy, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 8(1), pages 1-29, December.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:ausecr:v:56:y:2023:i:1:p:109-123. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/mimelau.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.