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Kind of Black: The Musicians' Labour Market in Italy

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  • Alessandro Balestrino

Abstract

It is estimated that only 5% of musicians in Italy are regularly employed. In an attempt at understanding such a peculiar situation, we build a theoretical model of the musicians’ labour market in which we embed the main institutional features of the Italian system. We notice how the presence of taxation incentivates the formation of a black market for musicians and discourages talented agents from becoming full-time musicians in all second-best economies. In Italy both tendencies are particularly strong, and further exacerbated by the presence of an actuarially unfair pension system for musicians. These inefficiencies might be corrected by a two-fold policy: the reform of the pension system, and the introduction of a sufficiently large unemployment benefit for musicians. We notice that the first step, while highly desirable, is unlikely to be politically feasible in the current Italian institutional setting. The second step, which has a general interest for any second-best economy, is instead viable under certain circumstances.
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Suggested Citation

  • Alessandro Balestrino, 2012. "Kind of Black: The Musicians' Labour Market in Italy," LABOUR, CEIS, vol. 26(4), pages 472-491, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:labour:v:26:y:2012:i:4:p:472-491
    DOI: 10.1111/labr.2012.26.issue-4
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    1. Alessandro Balestrino & Umberto Galmarini, 2003. "Imperfect Tax Compliance and the Optimal Provision of Public Goods," Bulletin of Economic Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 55(1), pages 37-52, January.
    2. Tyler Cowen & Alexander Tabarrok, 2000. "An Economic Theory of Avant-Garde and Popular Art, or High and Low Culture," Southern Economic Journal, Southern Economic Association, vol. 67(2), pages 232-253, July.
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    4. Adler, Moshe, 1985. "Stardom and Talent," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 75(1), pages 208-212, March.
    5. Cowell, F A, 1990. "Tax Sheltering and the Cost of Evasion," Oxford Economic Papers, Oxford University Press, vol. 42(1), pages 231-243, January.
    6. Maurizio Caserta & Tiziana Cuccia, 2001. "The Supply of Arts Labour : Towards a Dynamic Approach," Journal of Cultural Economics, Springer;The Association for Cultural Economics International, vol. 25(3), pages 185-201, August.
    7. Joel Slemrod, 2001. "A General Model of the Behavioral Response to Taxation," International Tax and Public Finance, Springer;International Institute of Public Finance, vol. 8(2), pages 119-128, March.
    8. Myles,Gareth D., 1995. "Public Economics," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521497695, January.
    9. Rosen, Sherwin, 1981. "The Economics of Superstars," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 71(5), pages 845-858, December.
    10. Tyler Cowen & Alexander Tabarrok, 2000. "An Economic Theory of Avant-Garde and Popular Art, or High and Low Culture," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 67(2), pages 232-253, July.
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    1. Irene Alfarone & Ugo Merlone, 2024. "Should I stay or should I go: A dynamical model of musicians’ agglomeration and migration," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 58(1), pages 97-116, February.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • J44 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Particular Labor Markets - - - Professional Labor Markets and Occupations
    • Z11 - Other Special Topics - - Cultural Economics - - - Economics of the Arts and Literature

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