We survey recent microeconometric research on investment and employment that has used panel data on individual firms or plants. We focus on model specification and econometric estimation issues, but we also review some of the main empirical findings. We discuss advantages and limitations of microeconomic data in this context. We briefly review the neoclassical theory of the demand for capital a...

I develop a general equilibrium multi-country model that allows for interaction between firm production and exporting decisions and individual migration decisions. Migrants lower trade costs and influence the number of firms that find it profitable to operate domestically or in foreign markets. The reduction in trade costs will impact consumer welfare by affecting the amount and range of differ...

In recent years organisations such as the OECD, World Bank and the IMF have started to play a more active role in advocating the redesign of labour market institutions. Several similar themes can be found in all these proposals, primarily a belief in the existence of a 'natural' or 'NAIRU' rate of unemployment determined primarily by institutional arrangements such as unemployment benefits, min...

BACKGROUND There is increasing interest in carrying out pre-induction cervical ripening on an outpatient basis. However, there are concerns about the use of prostaglandins, the agents commonly used in hospital settings for this indication, because prostaglandins induce uterine contractions that may lead to fetal hypoxia. Indeed, in a recent study we demonstrated abnormalities in 9% of fetal hea...

Reimbursement of commuting costs by employers has attracted little attention from economists. We develop a theoretical model of a monopsonistic employer who determines an optimal recruitment policy – in a spatial labour market with search frictions, and show that, in general, partial reimbursement of commuting cost will be an element of the recruitment policy. The empirical evidence we offer is...

This paper examines the effects of increased intra-industry trade on the labour market adjustment costs in Portugal’s automobile industry. Using a static and dynamic panel data approach, the results show a negative correlation between changes of employment and marginal intra-industry trade. These results confirm the smooth adjustment hypothesis, as well as suggesting that the multinational comp...

The number of economic evaluations looking at integrated care has increased in recent years [1]. A definition that is often used for economic evaluations is that these studies include a comparison of two or more alternatives in terms of both their costs and consequences [2]. Economic evaluation studies thus relate the cost to the effects of integrated care. Often a comparison is made in which a...