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Equilibrium Wage and Employment Dynamics in a Model of Wage Posting without Commitment

Author

Listed:
  • Coles, Melvyn

    (University of Essex)

  • Mortensen, Dale T.

    (Northwestern University)

Abstract

A rich but tractable variant of the Burdett-Mortensen model of wage setting behavior is formulated and a dynamic market equilibrium solution to the model is defined and characterized. In the model, firms cannot commit to wage contracts. Instead, the Markov perfect equilibrium to the wage setting game, characterized by Coles (2001), is assumed. In addition, firm recruiting decisions, firm entry and exit, and transitory firm productivity shocks are incorporated into the model. Given that the cost of recruiting workers is proportional to firm employment, we establish the existence of an equilibrium solution to the model in which wages are not contingent on firm size but more productive employers always pay higher wages. Although the state space, the distribution of workers over firms, is large in the general case, it reduces to a scalar that can be interpreted as the unemployment rate in the special case of homogenous firms. Furthermore, the equilibrium is unique. As the dimension of the state space is equal to the number of firms types in general, an (approximate) equilibrium is computable.

Suggested Citation

  • Coles, Melvyn & Mortensen, Dale T., 2011. "Equilibrium Wage and Employment Dynamics in a Model of Wage Posting without Commitment," IZA Discussion Papers 5900, IZA Network @ LISER.
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp5900
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Giuseppe Moscarini & Fabien Postel-Vinay, 2013. "Stochastic Search Equilibrium," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 80(4), pages 1545-1581.
    2. Guido Menzio & Shouyong Shi, 2010. "Directed Search on the Job, Heterogeneity, and Aggregate Fluctuations," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 100(2), pages 327-332, May.
    3. Monika Merz & Eran Yashiv, 2007. "Labor and the Market Value of the Firm," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 97(4), pages 1419-1431, September.
    4. Burdett, Kenneth & Judd, Kenneth L, 1983. "Equilibrium Price Dispersion," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 51(4), pages 955-969, July.
    5. Melvyn G. Coles, 2001. "Equilibrium Wage Dispersion, Firm Size and Growth," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 4(1), pages 159-187, January.
    6. Robert E. Lucas & Jr., 1967. "Adjustment Costs and the Theory of Supply," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 75(4), pages 321-321.
    7. Burdett, Kenneth & Mortensen, Dale T, 1998. "Wage Differentials, Employer Size, and Unemployment," International Economic Review, Department of Economics, University of Pennsylvania and Osaka University Institute of Social and Economic Research Association, vol. 39(2), pages 257-273, May.
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    Cited by:

    1. Giuseppe Moscarini & Fabien Postel-Vinay, 2016. "Did the Job Ladder Fail after the Great Recession?," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 34(S1), pages 55-93.
    2. Giuseppe Moscarini & Fabien Postel-Vinay, 2013. "Stochastic Search Equilibrium," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 80(4), pages 1545-1581.
    3. Melvyn G. Coles & Dale T. Mortensen, 2016. "Equilibrium Labor Turnover, Firm Growth, and Unemployment," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 84, pages 347-363, January.
    4. repec:spo:wpmain:info:hdl:2441/22qd4iha9ql84kd2t534hdeb is not listed on IDEAS
    5. Cai, Xiaoming & Gautier, Pieter A. & Teulings, Coen N. & Watanabe, Makoto, 2014. "Collective versus decentralized wage bargaining and the efficient allocation of resources," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 26(C), pages 34-42.
    6. Coles, Melvyn G & Kelishomi, Ali Moghaddasi, 2011. "New Business Start-ups and the Business Cycle," CEPR Discussion Papers 8588, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    7. Kenneth Burdett, 2014. "A Tribute to Dale Mortensen," EconomicDynamics Newsletter, Review of Economic Dynamics, vol. 15(1), April.
    8. Giuseppe Moscarini & Fabien Postel-Vinay, 2016. "Did the Job Ladder Fail after the Great Recession?," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 34(S1), pages 55-93.
    9. Giuseppe Moscarini & Fabien Postel-Vinay, 2016. "Wage Posting and Business Cycles: a Quantitative Exploration," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 19, pages 135-160, January.
    10. Camilo Morales-Jimenez, 2018. "Dynamic and Stochastic Search Equilibrium," 2018 Meeting Papers 1240, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    11. Giuseppe Moscarini & Fabien Postel-Vinay, 2013. "Stochastic Search Equilibrium," Review of Economic Studies, Oxford University Press, vol. 80(4), pages 1545-1581.
    12. Manning, Alan, 2025. "The immobile incumbent problem in a model of short-term wage-posting," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 127471, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    13. Camilo Morales-Jimenez, 2022. "Dynamic and Stochastic Search Equilibrium," Finance and Economics Discussion Series 2022-018, Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (U.S.).
    14. Kameshwari Shankar & Suman Ghosh, 2013. "A Theory of Worker Turnover and Knowledge Transfer in High-Technology Industries," Journal of Human Capital, University of Chicago Press, vol. 7(2), pages 107-129.
    15. Manning Alan, 2025. "The Immobile Incumbent Problem in a Model of Short-Term Wage-Posting," German Economic Review, De Gruyter, vol. 26(4), pages 315-360.

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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • D21 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations - - - Firm Behavior: Theory
    • D49 - Microeconomics - - Market Structure, Pricing, and Design - - - Other
    • E23 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Production
    • J42 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Particular Labor Markets - - - Monopsony; Segmented Labor Markets
    • J64 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Unemployment: Models, Duration, Incidence, and Job Search

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