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More Caseworkers Shorten Unemployment Durations and Save Costs. Results from a Field Experiment in an Austrian Public Employment Office

Author

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  • René Böheim

    (WIFO)

  • Rainer Eppel

    (WIFO)

  • Helmut Mahringer

    (WIFO)

Abstract

In a randomised controlled trial in Austria, lower caseloads in public employment offices led to more meetings of the unemployed with their caseworkers, more job offers, more program assignments, and more sanctions for noncompliance with job search requirements. More intensive counselling led to shorter unemployment episodes due to faster job entry, but also to more exits from the labour force in the two years following treatment. We find effects for different subgroups of unemployed. We find no effects on wages. A cost-benefit analysis suggests that lower caseloads not only shorten the duration of unemployment but are also cost-effective.

Suggested Citation

  • René Böheim & Rainer Eppel & Helmut Mahringer, 2022. "More Caseworkers Shorten Unemployment Durations and Save Costs. Results from a Field Experiment in an Austrian Public Employment Office," WIFO Working Papers 647, WIFO.
    • Handle: RePEc:wfo:wpaper:y:2022:i:647
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Luc Behaghel & Bruno Cr?pon & Marc Gurgand, 2014. "Private and Public Provision of Counseling to Job Seekers: Evidence from a Large Controlled Experiment," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 6(4), pages 142-174, October.
    2. Rainer Eppel & Ulrike Huemer & Helmut Mahringer & Andrea Weber & Jochen Knöller & Regina Konle-Seidl, 2012. "Öffentliche Arbeitsvermittlungssysteme und ihr Einfluss auf Suchverhalten und Erfolg der Arbeitssuche," WIFO Studies, WIFO, number 45198, February.
    3. Pierre Koning, 2009. "The effectiveness of Public Employment Service workers in the Netherlands," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 37(2), pages 393-409, October.
    4. Jens Hainmueller & Barbara Hofmann & Gerhard Krug-super-† & Katja Wolf, 2016. "Do Lower Caseloads Improve the Performance of Public Employment Services? New Evidence from German Employment Offices," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 118(4), pages 941-974, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Active Labour Market Policy; Public Employment Services; Caseworkers; Counseling; Job Placement; Field Experiment;
    All these keywords.

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