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Simultaneous Search with Heterogeneous Firms and Ex Post Competition

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  • Gautier, Pieter
  • Wolthoff, Ronald

Abstract

We study a search model where workers can apply to high and or low productivity firms. Firms that compete for the same candidate can increase their wage offers as often as they like. We show that if workers apply to two jobs, there is a unique symmetric equilibrium where workers mix between sending both applications to the high and sending both to the low productivity sector. But, efficiency requires that they apply to both sectors because a higher matching rate in the high-productivity sector can then be realized with fewer applications (and consequently fewer coordination frictions) if workers always accept the offer of the most productive sector. However, in the market the worker's payoff is determined by how much the firm with the second highest productivity is willing to bid. This is what prevents them from applying to both sectors. For many configurations, the equilibrium outcomes are the same under directed and random search. Allowing for free entry creates a second source of inefficiency. We discuss the effects of increasing the number of applications and show that our results can easily be generalized to N-firms.

Suggested Citation

  • Gautier, Pieter & Wolthoff, Ronald, 2007. "Simultaneous Search with Heterogeneous Firms and Ex Post Competition," CEPR Discussion Papers 6169, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
  • Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:6169
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Gautier, Pieter A. & Moraga-González, José L. & Wolthoff, Ronald P., 2007. "Structural Estimation of Search Intensity: Do Non-Employed Workers Search Enough?," IZA Discussion Papers 3045, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Gautier, Pieter A. & Wolthoff, Ronald P., 2009. "Simultaneous search with heterogeneous firms and ex post competition," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 16(3), pages 311-319, June.
    3. Cai, Xiaoming & Gautier, Pieter A. & Wolthoff, Ronald P., 2017. "Search frictions, competing mechanisms and optimal market segmentation," Journal of Economic Theory, Elsevier, vol. 169(C), pages 453-473.
    4. Thérèse REBIÈRE & Frédéric GAVREL & Isabelle LEBON, 2009. "Formal Education Versus Learning-by-doing," EcoMod2009 21500078, EcoMod.
    5. Gautier, Pieter A. & Moraga-González, José L. & Wolthoff, Ronald P., 2016. "Search costs and efficiency: Do unemployed workers search enough?," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 84(C), pages 123-139.
    6. Kaas Leo, 2010. "Variable Search Intensity with Coordination Unemployment," The B.E. Journal of Macroeconomics, De Gruyter, vol. 10(1), pages 1-33, October.
    7. Pieter Gautier & Jose Luis Moraga-Gonzalez & Ronald Wolthoff, 2007. "Structural Estimation of Search Intensity: Do non-employed workers search hard enough?," 2007 Meeting Papers 695, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    8. Gautier, Pieter & Holzner, Christian, 2011. "Simultaneous Search and Network Efficiency," CEPR Discussion Papers 8522, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    9. Serdar Birinci & Kurt See & Shu Lin Wee, 2020. "Job Applications and Labor Market Flows," Working Papers 2020-023, Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis, revised Jan 2023.
    10. Ronald Wolthoff, 2018. "Applications and Interviews: Firms’ Recruiting Decisions in a Frictional Labour Market," Review of Economic Studies, Oxford University Press, vol. 85(2), pages 1314-1351.
    11. Ronald Wolthoff & Pieter Gautier & Xiaoming Cai, 2016. "Inclusive versus Exclusive Markets:," 2016 Meeting Papers 262, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    12. Wolthoff, Ronald P., 2011. "It's About Time: Implications of the Period Length in an Equilibrium Job Search Model," IZA Discussion Papers 6002, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    13. Kaas, Leo, 2008. "Variable Search Intensity in an Economy with Coordination Unemployment," IZA Discussion Papers 3697, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    14. Xiaoming Cai & Pieter Gautier & Ronald Wolthoff, 2015. "Inclusive versus Exclusive Markets: Search Frictions and Competing Mechanisms," Working Papers tecipa-545, University of Toronto, Department of Economics.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Simultaneous search; Directed search; Efficiency; Heterogeneous firms;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D83 - Microeconomics - - Information, Knowledge, and Uncertainty - - - Search; Learning; Information and Knowledge; Communication; Belief; Unawareness
    • E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity
    • J23 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Demand
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J64 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Unemployment: Models, Duration, Incidence, and Job Search

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