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Jumping the Queue: Nepotism and Public-Sector Pay

Author

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  • Chassamboulli, Andri

    (University of Cyprus)

  • Gomes, Pedro Maia

    (Birkbeck, University of London)

Abstract

We set up a model with search and matching frictions to understand the effects of employment and wage policies, as well as nepotism in hiring in the public sector, on unemployment and rent seeking. Conditional on inefficiently high public-sector wages, more nepotism in public-sector hiring lowers the unemployment rate because it limits the size of queues for public-sector jobs. Wage and employment policies impose an endogenous constraint on the number of workers the government can hire through connections.

Suggested Citation

  • Chassamboulli, Andri & Gomes, Pedro Maia, 2020. "Jumping the Queue: Nepotism and Public-Sector Pay," IZA Discussion Papers 13086, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp13086
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    Cited by:

    1. Geromichalos, Athanasios & Kospentaris, Ioannis, 2022. "The unintended consequences of meritocratic government hiring," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 144(C).
    2. Jean Francky Landry Ngono, 2023. "Corrupting Politicians to Get Out of Unemployment: Empirical Evidence from Africa," Journal of the Knowledge Economy, Springer;Portland International Center for Management of Engineering and Technology (PICMET), vol. 14(2), pages 1004-1032, June.
    3. Diogo Baerlocher, 2022. "Public employment and economic growth," Economic Theory, Springer;Society for the Advancement of Economic Theory (SAET), vol. 73(1), pages 211-236, February.
    4. Andri Chassamboulli & Pedro Gomes, 2021. "Jumping the queue: nepotism and public-sector pay," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 39, pages 344-366, January.
    5. Michael, Maria & Christofides, Louis N., 2020. "The impact of austerity measures on the public - private sector wage gap in Europe," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 63(C).
    6. Andrea Camilli & Pedro Gomes, 2023. "Public employment and homeownership dynamics," Public Choice, Springer, vol. 194(1), pages 101-155, January.
    7. Feng, Shuaizhang & Guo, Naijia, 2021. "Labor market dynamics in urban China and the role of the state sector," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 49(4), pages 918-932.
    8. Chassamboulli, Andri & Gomes, Pedro, 2023. "Public-sector employment, wages and education decisions," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 82(C).
    9. Lucas Navarro & Mauricio Tejada, 2022. "Does Public Sector Employment Buffer the Minimum Wage Effects?," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 43, pages 168-196, January.
    10. Gomes, Pedro Maia & Wellschmied, Felix, 2020. "Public-Sector Compensation over the Life Cycle," IZA Discussion Papers 13042, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    public-sector wages; nepotism; public-sector employment; unemployment; queues;
    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
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • J45 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Particular Labor Markets - - - Public Sector Labor Markets
    • J64 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Unemployment: Models, Duration, Incidence, and Job Search

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