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On the cyclicality of unemployment: Resurrecting the participation margin

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  • Ebell, Monique

Abstract

This paper considers a real business cycle model with search frictions in the labor market and labor supply which is elastic along the participation margin. Previous authors have found that such models generate counterfactually procyclical unemployment and a positively sloped Beveridge curve. This paper presents a calibrated model which succeeds at generating countercyclical unemployment and a negatively sloped Beveridge curve, despite the presence of a participation margin.

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  • Ebell, Monique, 2011. "On the cyclicality of unemployment: Resurrecting the participation margin," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 18(6), pages 822-836.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:labeco:v:18:y:2011:i:6:p:822-836
    DOI: 10.1016/j.labeco.2011.06.006
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Christian Haefke & Michael Reiter, 2006. "Endogenous Labor Market Participation and the Business Cycle," Computing in Economics and Finance 2006 383, Society for Computational Economics.
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    Cited by:

    1. Elsby, Michael W.L. & Hobijn, Bart & Şahin, Ayşegül, 2015. "On the importance of the participation margin for labor market fluctuations," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 72(C), pages 64-82.
    2. Idriss Fontaine, 2021. "Uncertainty and Labour Force Participation," Oxford Bulletin of Economics and Statistics, Department of Economics, University of Oxford, vol. 83(2), pages 437-471, April.
    3. Per Krusell & Toshihiko Mukoyama & Richard Rogerson & Aysegul Sahin, 2020. "Gross Worker Flows and Fluctuations in the Aggregate Labor Market," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 37, pages 205-226, August.
    4. Michael Elsby & Bart Hobijn & Ayşegül Şahin, 2013. "On the Importance of the Participation Margin for Market Fluctuations," Working Paper Series 2013-05, Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco.
    5. Wei Cui & Sören Radde, 2020. "Search-based Endogenous Asset Liquidity and the Macroeconomy [Why Don’t US Issuers Demand European Fees for IPOs?]," Journal of the European Economic Association, European Economic Association, vol. 18(5), pages 2221-2269.
    6. Ronald Bachmann & Rahel Felder, 2021. "Labour market transitions, shocks and institutions in turbulent times: a cross-country analysis," Empirica, Springer;Austrian Institute for Economic Research;Austrian Economic Association, vol. 48(2), pages 329-352, May.
    7. Per Krusell & Toshihiko Mukoyama & Richard Rogerson & Ayşegül Şahin, 2017. "Gross Worker Flows over the Business Cycle," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 107(11), pages 3447-3476, November.
    8. Didem Tuzemen, 2012. "Labor market dynamics with endogenous labor force participation and on-the-job search," Research Working Paper RWP 12-07, Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City.
    9. Sanjay K. Chugh & Christian Merkl, 2016. "Efficiency And Labor Market Dynamics In A Model Of Labor Selection," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 57(4), pages 1371-1404, November.
    10. Tüzemen, Didem, 2017. "Labor market dynamics with endogenous labor force participation and on-the-job search," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 28-51.
    11. Wei Cui & Sören Radde, 2014. "Search-Based Endogenous Illiquidity and the Macroeconomy," Discussion Papers of DIW Berlin 1367, DIW Berlin, German Institute for Economic Research.
    12. Michael W. L. Elsby & Ryan Michaels & David Ratner, 2015. "The Beveridge Curve: A Survey," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 53(3), pages 571-630, September.
    13. A. Devulder, 2014. "Heterogeneity, Unemployment Benefits and Voluntary Labor Force Participation," Working papers 493, Banque de France.
    14. Carnicelli, Lauro, 2018. "Financial shocks and endogenous labor market participation," MPRA Paper 90254, University Library of Munich, Germany.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Search; Business cycles; Labor market participation;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity
    • E32 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Prices, Business Fluctuations, and Cycles - - - Business Fluctuations; Cycles
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply
    • J64 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Unemployment: Models, Duration, Incidence, and Job Search

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