IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/nbr/nberwo/5423.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

Repeat Use of Unemployment Insurance

Author

Listed:
  • Bruce D. Meyer
  • Dan T. Rosenbaum

Abstract

We examine the extent to which unemployment insurance (UI) insures workers against unforeseen events or subsidizes firms and workers engaged in temporary layoffs. Our main source of data is a 5- year panel of UI administrative records from five states. While most claimants receive UI only once during this period, nearly forty percent of claims go to those individuals with three or more years of receipt during the 5-year period. Most repeat recipients are concentrated in seasonal industries and are laid off by the same employer each time. We also find that middle-aged and high-paid workers are more likely to be repeat recipients, suggesting that workers in bad jobs are not the individuals who repeatedly receive UI.

Suggested Citation

  • Bruce D. Meyer & Dan T. Rosenbaum, 1996. "Repeat Use of Unemployment Insurance," NBER Working Papers 5423, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:5423
    Note: LS PE
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.nber.org/papers/w5423.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Miles Corak, 1993. "Unemployment Insurance Once Again: The Incidence of Repeat Participation in the Canadian UI Program," Canadian Public Policy, University of Toronto Press, vol. 19(2), pages 162-176, June.
    2. Topel, Robert H, 1983. "On Layoffs and Unemployment Insurance," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 73(4), pages 541-559, September.
    3. Bruce D. Meyer & Dan T. Rosenbaum, "undated". "Repeat Use of Unemployment Insurance," IPR working papers 95-24, Institute for Policy Resarch at Northwestern University.
    4. Rebecca M. Blank & David E. Card, 1991. "Recent Trends in Insured and Uninsured Unemployment: Is There an Explanation?," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 106(4), pages 1157-1189.
    5. repec:mpr:mprres:652 is not listed on IDEAS
    6. Card, David & Levine, Phillip B., 1994. "Unemployment insurance taxes and the cyclical and seasonal properties of unemployment," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 53(1), pages 1-29, January.
    7. Patricia M. Anderson, 1993. "Linear Adjustment Costs and Seasonal Labor Demand: Evidence from Retail Trade Firms," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 108(4), pages 1015-1042.
    8. Patricia M. Anderson & Bruce D. Meyer, 1994. "The Effects of Unemployment Insurance Taxes and Benefits on Layoffs Using Firm and Individual Data," NBER Working Papers 4960, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    9. Martin Neil Baily, 1977. "Unemployment Insurance as Insurance for Workers," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 30(4), pages 495-504, July.
    10. Patricia M. Anderson & Bruce D. Meyer, 1993. "The Unemployment Insurance Payroll Tax and Interindustry and Interfirm Subsidies," NBER Chapters, in: Tax Policy and the Economy, Volume 7, pages 111-144, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    11. repec:mpr:mprres:2734 is not listed on IDEAS
    12. Blank, Rebecca M & Ruggles, Patricia, 1994. "Short-Term Recidivism among Public-Assistance Recipients," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 84(2), pages 49-53, May.
    13. David T. Ellwood, 1986. "Targeting Would-Be Long-Term Recipients of AFDC," Mathematica Policy Research Reports 35f03eda0fa0455aa0dc255fb, Mathematica Policy Research.
    14. Feldstein, Martin S, 1976. "Temporary Layoffs in the Theory of Unemployment," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 84(5), pages 937-957, October.
    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. Lemieux, Thomas & MacLeod, W. Bentley, 2000. "Supply side hysteresis: the case of the Canadian unemployment insurance system," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 78(1-2), pages 139-170, October.
    2. Bruce D. Meyer & Dan T. Rosenbaum, "undated". "Repeat Use of Unemployment Insurance," IPR working papers 95-24, Institute for Policy Resarch at Northwestern University.
    3. Card, David & Levine, Phillip B., 2000. "Extended benefits and the duration of UI spells: evidence from the New Jersey extended benefit program," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 78(1-2), pages 107-138, October.
    4. Martin Feldstein & Daniel Altman, 2007. "Unemployment Insurance Savings Accounts," NBER Chapters, in: Tax Policy and the Economy, Volume 21, pages 35-64, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. Corak, Miles & Gustafsson, Björn Anders & Österberg, Torun, 2000. "Intergenerational Influences on the Receipt of Unemployment Insurance in Canada and Sweden," IZA Discussion Papers 184, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    6. David Gray & Ted McDonald, 2012. "Does the sophistication of use of unemployment insurance evolve with experience?," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 45(3), pages 1220-1245, August.
    7. Fernando Coloma, 1996. "Seguro de Desempleo: Teoría, Evidencia y una Propuesta," Latin American Journal of Economics-formerly Cuadernos de Economía, Instituto de Economía. Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile., vol. 33(99), pages 295-320.
    8. Katherine Baicker & Claudia Goldin & Lawrence F. Katz, 1998. "A Distinctive System: Origins and Impact of U.S. Unemployment Compensation," NBER Chapters, in: The Defining Moment: The Great Depression and the American Economy in the Twentieth Century, pages 227-264, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    9. Krueger, Alan B. & Meyer, Bruce D., 2002. "Labor supply effects of social insurance," Handbook of Public Economics, in: A. J. Auerbach & M. Feldstein (ed.), Handbook of Public Economics, edition 1, volume 4, chapter 33, pages 2327-2392, Elsevier.
    10. Katherine Baicker & Marit M. Rehavi, 2004. "Policy Watch: Trade Adjustment Assistance," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 18(2), pages 239-255, Spring.
    11. Glismann, Hans H. & Schrader, Klaus, 2001. "Alternative Systeme der Arbeitslosenversicherung: das Beispiel der Vereinigten Staaten und des Vereinigten Königreichs," Kiel Working Papers 1032, Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel).

    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. Katherine Baicker & Claudia Goldin & Lawrence F. Katz, 1998. "A Distinctive System: Origins and Impact of U.S. Unemployment Compensation," NBER Chapters, in: The Defining Moment: The Great Depression and the American Economy in the Twentieth Century, pages 227-264, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    2. Krueger, Alan B. & Meyer, Bruce D., 2002. "Labor supply effects of social insurance," Handbook of Public Economics, in: A. J. Auerbach & M. Feldstein (ed.), Handbook of Public Economics, edition 1, volume 4, chapter 33, pages 2327-2392, Elsevier.
    3. Anderson, Patricia M. & Meyer, Bruce D., 2000. "The effects of the unemployment insurance payroll tax on wages, employment, claims and denials," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 78(1-2), pages 81-106, October.
    4. Patricia M. Anderson & Bruce D. Meyer, 1994. "The Effects of Unemployment Insurance Taxes and Benefits on Layoffs Using Firm and Individual Data," NBER Working Papers 4960, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. Jurajda, Stepan, 2002. "Estimating the effect of unemployment insurance compensation on the labor market histories of displaced workers," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 108(2), pages 227-252, June.
    6. Chen, Wen-Hao & Corak, Miles, 2005. "Entreprises, industries et assurance-chomage : une analyse des donnees sur les employeurs et les employes recueillies au Canada," Direction des études analytiques : documents de recherche 2005260f, Statistics Canada, Direction des études analytiques.
    7. Hakola, Tuulia & Uusitalo, Roope, 2005. "Not so voluntary retirement decisions? Evidence from a pension reform," Journal of Public Economics, Elsevier, vol. 89(11-12), pages 2121-2136, December.
    8. Andrew C. Johnston, 2021. "Unemployment Insurance Taxes and Labor Demand: Quasi-Experimental Evidence from Administrative Data," American Economic Journal: Economic Policy, American Economic Association, vol. 13(1), pages 266-293, February.
    9. Mark Duggan & Audrey Guo & Andrew C. Johnston, 2023. "Experience Rating as an Automatic Stabilizer," Tax Policy and the Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 37(1), pages 109-133.
    10. Patricia M. Anderson & Bruce D. Meyer, 1994. "Unemployment Insurance Benefits and Takeup Rates," NBER Working Papers 4787, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    11. Rainer Eppel & Thomas Horvath & Helmut Mahringer, 2018. "Das Aussetzen von Beschäftigungsverhältnissen als betriebliche Strategie zum Ausgleich von Schwankungen des Personalbedarfs. Ein Update," WIFO Monatsberichte (monthly reports), WIFO, vol. 91(11), pages 799-810, November.
    12. Guo, Audrey, 2020. "The Effects of Unemployment Insurance Taxation on Multi-Establishment Firms," MPRA Paper 97919, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    13. Roed, Knut & Nordberg, Morten, 2003. "Temporary layoffs and the duration of unemployment," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 10(3), pages 381-398, June.
    14. Chen, Wen-Hao & Corak, Miles, 2005. "Firms, Industries, and Unemployment Insurance: An Analysis Using Employer-employee Data from Canada," Analytical Studies Branch Research Paper Series 2005260e, Statistics Canada, Analytical Studies Branch.
    15. Bernardus Van Doornik & David Schoenherr & Janis Skrastins, 2018. "Unemployment Insurance, Strategic Unemployment and Firm-Worker Collusion," Working Papers Series 483, Central Bank of Brazil, Research Department.
    16. Guo, Audrey & Johnston, Andrew C., 2020. "The Finance of Unemployment Compensation and its Consequence for the Labor Market," IZA Discussion Papers 13330, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    17. Rafael Lalive & Josef Zweim�ller, "undated". "Benefit Entitlement and the Labor Market: Evidence from a Large-Scale Policy Change," IEW - Working Papers 105, Institute for Empirical Research in Economics - University of Zurich.
    18. Katherine Baicker & Marit M. Rehavi, 2004. "Policy Watch: Trade Adjustment Assistance," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 18(2), pages 239-255, Spring.
    19. Glismann, Hans H. & Schrader, Klaus, 2001. "Alternative Systeme der Arbeitslosenversicherung: das Beispiel der Vereinigten Staaten und des Vereinigten Königreichs," Kiel Working Papers 1032, Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel).
    20. Miles Corak & Wen-Hao Chen, 2007. "Firms, Industries, and Unemployment Insurance: An Analysis using Employer–Employee Data," Research in Labor Economics, in: Aspects of Worker Well-Being, pages 299-336, Emerald Group Publishing Limited.

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • J65 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Unemployment Insurance; Severance Pay; Plant Closings

    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:nbr:nberwo:5423. 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: the person in charge (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/nberrus.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.