January 2019

The Populist Backlash Against Europe: Why Only Alternative Economic and Social Policies Can Stop the Rise of Populism in Europe

By Bojan Bugaric (University of Sheffield, Department of Law) The European Union is facing an unprecedented political crisis. This club of liberal and democratic countries has been confronted by a nationalist and populist backlash that threatens the core principles at the very heart of the EU. Capitalizing on the European sovereign debt crisis, the backlash against refugees streaming in from the Middle East, public angst over the growing terror threat, and Brexit, previously fringe populist political parties are growing with...

December 2018

Human Movement Across Border: Key Ingredient Behind Thai Economy and the Future

By Akadet Chaichanavichakit (Waseda University, Graduate School of Asia Pacific Studies) Over the past 50 years, immigration has become a strong force throughout the world. Economic opportunity is among one of the most important factors expediting migrant’s decision to move. The destination countries, which in general have relatively higher level of economic development, usually share the same characteristics of intense labor demands, aging population, and declining birth rate. Therefore, migrant workers have become an important, or even integral, part to...

Pension Reform and Return to Work Policies

By Maria Donovan Fitzpatrick For many people, working after beginning retirement benefit collection is a way to enhance financial security by increasing income. Existing research has shown that retirees are sensitive to the Social Security earnings test, which restricts the amount of earnings some beneficiaries can receive. However, little is known about the effects of other types of policies on post-retirement employment. Instead of restricting earnings, many public pension plans restrict the number of hours beneficiaries can work. I use...

Can Information Influence the Social Insurance Participation Decision of China’s Rural Migrants?

By John Giles (World Bank; IZA Institute of Labor Economics; World Bank - Development Research Group (DECRG)), Xin Meng (Australian National University; IZA Institute of Labor Economics), Guochang Zhao (Southwestern University of Finance and Economics (SWUFE)) This paper uses a randomized information intervention to shed light on whether poor understanding of social insurance, both the process of enrolling and costs and benefits, drives the relatively low rates of participation in urban health insurance and pension programs among China's rural-urban migrants....

November 2018

Immigrants in a Changing Labor Market: Responding to Economic Needs

By Michael Fix,‎ Demetrios G Papademetriou,‎ Madeleine Sumption This volume, which brings together research by leading economists and labor market specialists, examines the role immigrants play in the U.S. workforce, how they fare in good and bad economic times, and the effects they have on native-born workers and the labor sectors in which they are engaged. The book traces the powerful economic forces at play in today's globalized world and includes policy prescriptions for making the American immigration system more...

October 2018

How Persistent Low Returns Will Shape Saving and Retirement

By Olivia S Mitchell,‎ Robert Clark,‎ Raimond Maurer Financial market developments over the past decade have undermined what was once thought to be conventional wisdom about saving, investment, and retirement spending. How Persistent Low Returns Will Shape Saving and Retirement explores how the weak capital market performance predicted for the next several years will shape pension saving, investment, and decumulation plans. Academics, policymakers, and industry leaders debate alternative strategies to cope with these challenges globally, as economic growth remains slow...

Population Aging: Impacts and Policy Imperatives

By The Bank of Korea The Republic of Korea is aging rapidly, as the average woman in her childbearing years gives birth to only 1.17 children ─ among the world’s lowest numbers as of 2016 ─ while people are also living longer. The country is projected to enter into the status of an aged society from 2018, with a share of the elderly in its population of 14.3%, and to become a super-aged society with a share of 20% in...

The Experts’ War on Poverty: Social Research and the Welfare Agenda in Postwar America (American Institutions and Society)

By Romain D. Huret,‎ John Angell In the critically acclaimed La Fin de la Pauverté, Romain D. Huret identifies a network of experts who were dedicated to the post-World War II battle against poverty in the United States. John Angell’s translation of Huret’s work brings to light for an English-speaking audience this critical set of intellectuals working in federal government, academic institutions, and think tanks. Their efforts to create a policy bureaucracy to support federal socio-economic action spanned from the...

Counting the Oil Money and the Elderly: Norway’s Public Sector Balance Sheet

By Ezequiel Cabezon (University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill), Christian Henn (International Monetary Fund) Based on a permanent income analysis, Gagnon (2018) has prominently suggested that Norwayhas saved too much, thereby free-riding on the rest of the world for demand. Our public sectorbalance sheet analysis comes to the opposite conclusion, chiefly because it also accounts forfuture aging costs. Unsurprisingly, we find that Norway's current assets exceed its liabilities bysome 340 percent of mainland GDP. But its nonoil fiscal...

Counting the Oil Money and the Elderly: Norway's Public Sector Balance Sheet

By Ezequiel Cabezon (University of North Carolina (UNC) at Chapel Hill), Christian Henn (International Monetary Fund) Based on a permanent income analysis, Gagnon (2018) has prominently suggested that Norwayhas saved too much, thereby free-riding on the rest of the world for demand. Our public sectorbalance sheet analysis comes to the opposite conclusion, chiefly because it also accounts forfuture aging costs. Unsurprisingly, we find that Norway's current assets exceed its liabilities bysome 340 percent of mainland GDP. But its nonoil fiscal...