This file is part of IDEAS, which uses RePEc data


[ Papers | Articles | Software | Books | Chapters | Authors | Institutions | JEL Classification | NEP reports | Search | New papers by email | Author registration | Rankings | Volunteers | FAQ | Blog | Help! ]

Optimal Central Bank Conservatism and Monopoly Trade Unions

Author info | Abstract | Publisher info | Download info | Related research | Statistics
Author Info
Helge Berger
Carsten Hefeker
Ronnie Schoeb (The University of Western Ontario Department of Economics)

Additional information is available for the following registered author(s):

Abstract

The "conservative central banker" has come under attack recently. Explicitly modeling the interaction of a trade union with monetary policy, it has been argued that the standard solution to the inflationary bias in monetary policy might actually be welfare reducing if the trade union has an exogenously given preference against inflation. We reframe this discussion in a standard trade union model. We show that the case against the conservative central banker rests exclusively on the assumption of a strictly nominal outside option for the union. There is no welfare gain associated with making the central bank less conservative than society, however if the outside option is in real terms. As the nominal components of the trade union's outside option are mainly public transfers, we also show that the conservative central banker is always optimal if the government can choose the level of unemployment benefits as well as the degree of central bank conservatism.

Download Info
To download:

If you experience problems downloading a file, check if you have the proper application to view it first. Information about this may be contained in the File-Format links below. In case of further problems read the IDEAS help page. Note that these files are not on the IDEAS site. Please be patient as the files may be large.

File URL: http://www.ssc.uwo.ca/economics/econref/workingpapers/researchreports/wp2000/wp2000_14.pdf
File Format: application/pdf
File Function:
Download Restriction: no

Publisher Info
Paper provided by University of Western Ontario, Department of Economics in its series UWO Department of Economics Working Papers with number 200014.

Download reference. The following formats are available: HTML (with abstract), plain text (with abstract), BibTeX, RIS (EndNote, RefMan, ProCite), ReDIF
Length:
Date of creation: Dec 2000
Date of revision:
Handle: RePEc:uwo:uwowop:200014

Contact details of provider:
Postal: Department of Economics, Reference Centre, Social Science Centre, University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada N6A 5C2
Phone: 519-661-2111 Ext.85228
Web page: http://economics.uwo.ca/econref/WorkingPapers/

For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its listing, contact: ().

Related research
Keywords:

Other versions of this item:

References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. Francesco Lippi, 2000. "Strategic Monetary Policy with Non Atomistic Wage Setters," Econometric Society World Congress 2000 Contributed Papers 1354, Econometric Society. [Downloadable!]
    Other versions:
  2. Robert J. Barro & David B. Gordon, 1984. "Rules, Discretion and Reputation in a Model of Monetary Policy," NBER Working Papers 1079, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  3. Gruner, Hans Peter & Hefeker, Carsten, 1999. " How Will EMU Affect Inflation and Unemployment in Europe?," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Blackwell Publishing, vol. 101(1), pages 33-47, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  4. Coricelli, Fabrizio & Cukierman, Alex & Dalmazzo, Alberto, 2000. "Monetary Institutions, Monopolistic Competition, Unionized Labour Markets And Economic Performance," CEPR Discussion Papers 2407, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  5. Guzzo, Vincenzo & Velasco, Andres, 1999. "The case for a populist Central Banker," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 43(7), pages 1317-1344, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  6. Berger, Helge & de Haan, Jakob & Eijffinger, Sylvester C W, 2000. "Central Bank Independence: An Update of Theory and Evidence," CEPR Discussion Papers 2353, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  7. Oswald, Andrew J, 1982. "The Microeconomic Theory of the Trade Union," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 92(367), pages 576-95, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  8. Olivier Jean Blanchard & Lawrence Katz, 1999. "Wage Dynamics: Reconciling Theory and Evidence," NBER Working Papers 6924, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  9. Rogoff, Kenneth, 1985. "The Optimal Degree of Commitment to an Intermediate Monetary Target," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 100(4), pages 1169-89, November. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  10. Cukierman, Alex & Lippi, Francesco, 1999. "Central bank independence, centralization of wage bargaining, inflation and unemployment:: Theory and some evidence," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 43(7), pages 1395-1434, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  11. Lawler, Phillip, 2000. "Centralised Wage Setting, Inflation Contracts, and the Optimal Choice of Central Banker," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 110(463), pages 559-75, April. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  12. Cubitt, Robin P, 1992. "Monetary Policy Games and Private Sector Precommitment," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 44(3), pages 513-30, July. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  13. Fischer, Stanley & Summers, Lawrence, 1993. "Should Governments Learn to Live with Inflation? Reply," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 83(1), pages 312-13, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  14. Walsh, Carl E, 1995. "Optimal Contracts for Central Bankers," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 85(1), pages 150-67, March. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  15. Henrik Jensen, 1993. "International monetary policy cooperation in economies with centralized wage setting," Open Economies Review, Springer, vol. 4(3), pages 269-285, September. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  16. Kydland, Finn E & Prescott, Edward C, 1977. "Rules Rather Than Discretion: The Inconsistency of Optimal Plans," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 85(3), pages 473-91, June. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  17. Eijffinger, S-C-W & de Haan, J, 1996. "The Political Economy of Central-Bank Independence," Princeton Studies in International Economics 19, International Economics Section, Departement of Economics Princeton University,.
    Other versions:
  18. David Soskice & Torben Iversen, 2000. "The Nonneutrality Of Monetary Policy With Large Price Or Wage Setters," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, MIT Press, vol. 115(1), pages 265-284, February. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  19. Lippi, Francesco, 1999. "Revisiting the Case for a Populist Central Banker," CEPR Discussion Papers 2306, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
Full references

Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Robert Franzese, 2001. "Strategic Interactions of Monetary Policymakers and Wage/Price Bargainers: A Review with Implications for the European Common-Currency Area," Empirica, Springer, vol. 28(4), pages 457-486, December. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
  2. James McHugh, 2002. "Wage Centralization, Union Bargaining, and Macroeconomic Performance," IMF Working Papers 02/143, International Monetary Fund. [Downloadable!]
  3. Acocella, Nicola & Di Bartolomeo, Giovanni, 2007. "The Cost of Social Pacts," MPRA Paper 3585, University Library of Munich, Germany. [Downloadable!]
  4. Bernd Hayo & Carsten Hefeker, 2001. "Do We Really Need Central Bank Independence? A Critical Re- examination," Macroeconomics 0103006, EconWPA. [Downloadable!]
  5. Athanasios TAGKALAKIS, 2002. "Labor Market Reform and Wage Bargaining in a Monetary Union," Economics Working Papers ECO2002/28, European University Institute. [Downloadable!]
  6. Tilemahos Efthimiadis, 2004. "Does Wage Indexing Matter?," Money Macro and Finance (MMF) Research Group Conference 2004 30, Money Macro and Finance Research Group. [Downloadable!]
  7. Hans Peter Grüner & Bernd Hayo & Carsten Hefeker, 2005. "Unions, wage setting and monetary policy uncertainty," Working Paper Series 490, European Central Bank. [Downloadable!]
Statistics
Access and download statistics

Did you know? To receive notification of recent additions to the database, subscribe to the free NEP reports.

This page was last updated on 2009-11-25.

This information is provided to you by IDEAS at the Department of Economics, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, University of Connecticut using RePEc data on a server sponsored by the Society for Economic Dynamics.