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Labor Market Search and Optimal Retirement Policy

Author

Listed:
  • Joydeep Bhattacharya
  • Casey B. Mulligan
  • Robert R. Reed III

Abstract

A popular view about social security, dating back to its early days of inception, is that it is a means for young, unemployed workers to 'purchase' jobs from older, employed workers. The question we ask is: Can social security, by encouraging retirement and hence creating job vacancies for the young, improve the allocation of workers to jobs in the labor market? Using a standard model of labor market search, we establish that the equilibrium with no policy-induced retirement can be efficient. Even under worst-case parameterizations of our model, we find that public retirement programs pay the elderly substantially more than labor market search theory implies that their jobs are worth. An important effect, ignored by the popular view, is that the creation of a vacant job by a retirement reduces the value of other vacant jobs.

Suggested Citation

  • Joydeep Bhattacharya & Casey B. Mulligan & Robert R. Reed III, 2001. "Labor Market Search and Optimal Retirement Policy," NBER Working Papers 8591, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:8591
    Note: AG EFG LS PE
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Casey B. Mulligan, 2000. "Can Monopoly Unionism Explain Publicly Induced Retirement?," NBER Working Papers 7680, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    2. Mortensen, Dale T, 1982. "Property Rights and Efficiency in Mating, Racing, and Related Games," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 72(5), pages 968-979, December.
    3. Jonathan Gruber & David A. Wise, 1999. "Social Security and Retirement around the World," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number grub99-1, January.
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Tiantian Dai & Hua Fan & Shenyi Jiang, 2025. "Labor Market Implications of Pension Reform: Analyzing Delayed Retirement Policies and Fiscal Adjustments in Aging Economies," Annals of Economics and Finance, Society for AEF, vol. 26(1), pages 247-280, May.
    2. Hairault, Jean-Olivier & Langot, François & Zylberberg, André, 2015. "Equilibrium unemployment and retirement," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 79(C), pages 37-58.
    3. J. García-Pérez & Alfonso Sánchez-Martín, 2015. "Fostering job search among older workers: the case for pension reform," IZA Journal of Labor Policy, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 4(1), pages 1-34, December.
    4. repec:fgv:epgrbe:v:66:n:4:a:5 is not listed on IDEAS
    5. Bhattacharya, Joydeep & Reed, Robert R., 2002. "Age-specific employment policies," ISU General Staff Papers 200211050800001187, Iowa State University, Department of Economics.
    6. Bhattacharya, Joydeep & Reed, Robert R., 2001. "Aging, unemployment, and welfare in a life-cycle model with costly labor market search," ISU General Staff Papers 200110010700001188, Iowa State University, Department of Economics.
    7. Dai, Tiantian & Fan, Hua & Liu, Xiangbo & Ma, Chao, 2022. "Delayed retirement policy and unemployment rates," Journal of Macroeconomics, Elsevier, vol. 71(C).
    8. Bhattacharya, Joydeep & Reed, Robert R., 2003. "A positive theory of the income redistributive focus of social security," ISU General Staff Papers 200311260800001186, Iowa State University, Department of Economics.
    9. Mário Centeno & Márcio Corrêa, 2006. "Job Matching, Unexpected Obligations And Retirement Decisions," Anais do XXXIV Encontro Nacional de Economia [Proceedings of the 34th Brazilian Economics Meeting] 159, ANPEC - Associação Nacional dos Centros de Pós-Graduação em Economia [Brazilian Association of Graduate Programs in Economics].
    10. Maes, Marjan, 2008. "Does the dismantlement of early retirement schemes increase unemployment in Belgium?," Working Papers 2008/57, Hogeschool-Universiteit Brussel, Faculteit Economie en Management.
    11. Joydeep Bhattacharya & Robert R. Reed, 2006. "Social Security and Intergenerational Redistribution," Contributions to Economic Analysis, in: Structural Models of Wage and Employment Dynamics, pages 183-213, Emerald Group Publishing Limited.
    12. Coimbra, Leandro Willer P. & Ramos, Francisco de S., 2012. "Mecanismo de incentivo à renovação da mão-de-obra no mercado de trabalho face ao sistema previdenciário," Revista Brasileira de Economia - RBE, EPGE Brazilian School of Economics and Finance - FGV EPGE (Brazil), vol. 66(4), December.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • H21 - Public Economics - - Taxation, Subsidies, and Revenue - - - Efficiency; Optimal Taxation
    • J64 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Unemployment: Models, Duration, Incidence, and Job Search

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