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Public works for Poland? Active labour market policies during transition

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  • Puhani, Patrick A.
  • Steiner, Viktor

Abstract

Following the predominance of macroeconomic stabilisation policies and passive income support schemes in the first phase of transition, active labour market policies (ALMPs) have now come to play a more important role in transition economies. This paper looks at the Polish experience and provides empirical evidence on the effectiveness of ALMPs. We use the Polish Labour Force Survey of August 1994 in combination with its Supplement on the Evaluation of Labour Market Policies together with data on ALMP expenditure at the regional (voivodship) level. The macroeconometric analysis of the relationship between labour market flows and ALMP expenditure shows no significant effects. The microeconometric analysis reveals that ALMPs are not particularly well targeted at the problem groups in the labour market. That is, women and people with basic vocational education do not receive enough attention, whereas persons formerly employed in the public administration seem to have a privileged status in ALMPs. As to the effectiveness of ALMPs, the paper shows that former participants cannot expect to find employment more easily than their peers who have been unemployed but have not been in a programme. Subjective evaluations of former participants also suggest that ALMPs, but especially works programmes, have not increased their chances to find a job.

Suggested Citation

  • Puhani, Patrick A. & Steiner, Viktor, 1996. "Public works for Poland? Active labour market policies during transition," ZEW Discussion Papers 96-01, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
  • Handle: RePEc:zbw:zewdip:9601
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Steiner, Viktor & Kwiatkowski, Eugeniusz, 1995. "The Polish labour market in transition," ZEW Discussion Papers 95-03, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    2. Boeri, Tito & Burda, Michael C., 1996. "Active labor market policies, job matching and the Czech miracle," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 40(3-5), pages 805-817, April.
    3. Micklewright, John & Nagy, Gyula, 1996. "Labour market policy and the unemployed in Hungary," European Economic Review, Elsevier, vol. 40(3-5), pages 819-828, April.
    4. Lechner, Michael, 1995. "Effects of continuous off-the-job training in East Germany after unification," ZEW Discussion Papers 95-27, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    5. Lehmann,Hartmut, 1995. "Active labor market policies in the OECD and in selected transition economies," Policy Research Working Paper Series 1502, The World Bank.
    6. Tito Boeri & Michael Burda, 1997. "Aktivní politika na trhu práce, sladění nabídky s poptávkou a tzv. český zázrak [Active Labour Market Policies, Job Matching and the Czech Miracle]," Politická ekonomie, Prague University of Economics and Business, vol. 1997(2), pages 183-192.
    7. Burda, Michael C & Lubyová, Martina, 1995. "The Impact of Active Labour Market Policies: A Closer Look at the Czech and Slovak Republics," CEPR Discussion Papers 1102, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Jackman, Richard & Pauna, Catalin, 1997. "Labour market policy and the reallocation of labour across sectors," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 2047, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    2. Lechner Michael & Miquel Ruth & Wunsch Conny, 2007. "The Curse and Blessing of Training the Unemployed in a Changing Economy: The Case of East Germany After Unification," German Economic Review, De Gruyter, vol. 8(4), pages 468-509, December.
    3. Puhani, Patrick A, 1999. "Public Training and Outflows from Unemployment: An Augmented Matching Function Approach on Polish Regional Data," CEPR Discussion Papers 2244, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    4. Boeri, Tito & Flinn, Christopher J., 1999. "Returns to Mobility in the Transition to a Market Economy," Journal of Comparative Economics, Elsevier, vol. 27(1), pages 4-32, March.
    5. Puhani, Patrick A., 1996. "Poland on the dole: unemployment benefits, training, and long-term unemployment during transition," ZEW Discussion Papers 96-30, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    6. Puhani, Patrick A., 1997. "All Quiet on the Wage Front? Gender, Public-Private Sector Issues, and Rigidities in the Polish Wage Structure," ZEW Discussion Papers 97-03, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    7. Kraus, Florian & Puhani, Patrick A. & Steiner, Viktor, 1997. "Employment Effects of Publicly Financed Training Programs The East German Experience," ZEW Discussion Papers 97-33, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    8. Kraus, Florian & Puhani, Patrick A. & Steiner, Viktor, 1998. "Do public works programs work? Some unpleasant results from the East German experience," ZEW Discussion Papers 98-07, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    9. Richard Jackman & C Pauna, 1997. "Labour Market Policy and the Reallocation of Labour Across Sectors," CEP Discussion Papers dp0338, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
    10. World Bank, 2004. "Growth, Employment and Living Standards in Pre-Accession Poland, Volume 1," World Bank Publications - Books, The World Bank Group, number 14904, December.
    11. Patrick Puhani & Viktor Steiner, 1997. "The Effectiveness and Efficiency of Active Labour Market Policies in Poland," Empirica, Springer;Austrian Institute for Economic Research;Austrian Economic Association, vol. 24(3), pages 209-231, October.
    12. Puhani, Patrick A., 1999. "Estimating the effects of public training on Polish unemployment by way of the augmented matching function approach," ZEW Discussion Papers 99-38, ZEW - Leibniz Centre for European Economic Research.
    13. Elżbieta Antczak & Ewa Gałecka‐Burdziak & Robert Pater, 2019. "What Affects Efficiency In Labour Market Matching At Different Territorial Aggregation Levels In Poland?," Bulletin of Economic Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 71(2), pages 160-179, April.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    unemployment; active labour market policies; Poland;
    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
    • J64 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Unemployment: Models, Duration, Incidence, and Job Search
    • J68 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Public Policy

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