An Analysis of Dismissal Legislation: Determinants of Severance Pay in West Germany
Abstract
Severance pay is a vital part of employment protection legislation (EPL). We investigate the incidence and level of severance pay for dismissed employees. Our theoretical model predicts that not only the law and its interpretation by labour courts but also the costs of a suit have an impact. Using West German panel data for 1991-2006, we find that the employees\' costs resulting from a suit and the legal determinants of such transfers affect the incidence of severance payments. In contrast, their level only varies with legal regulations. Our results imply that the strictness of EPL in Germany varies with extra-legal factors like employees\' financial constraints.Download Info
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Paper provided by cege – Center for European, Governance and Economic Development Research, University of Goettingen (Germany). in its series cege – Center for European, Governance and Economic Development Research Discussion Papers with number 87.
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Length: 42 pages
Date of creation: 17 Nov 2009
Date of revision:
17 Nov 2009
Handle: RePEc:got:cegedp:87
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Web page: http://www.cege.uni-goettingen.de
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Related research
Keywords: employment protection legislation; labour law; severance pay; survey data;Find related papers by JEL classification:
- J - Labor and Demographic Economics
- K - Law and Economics
- C - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods
- C - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods
This paper has been announced in the following NEP Reports:
- NEP-ALL-2010-01-16 (All new papers)
- NEP-BEC-2010-01-16 (Business Economics)
- NEP-LAB-2010-01-16 (Labour Economics)
- NEP-REG-2010-01-16 (Regulation)
References
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