The Economics of Rising Inequalities

by Daniel Cohen (Editor), Thomas Piketty (Editor), Gilles Saint-Paul (Editor)

Overview

From New York Times best-selling author Thomas Piketty and noted Professors of Economics Daniel Cohen and Gilles Saint-Paul, comes an in-depth discussion of rising inequalities in the western world. It explores the extent to which rising inequalities are the mechanical consequence of changes in economic fundamentals (such as changes in technological or demographic parameters), and to what extent they are the contingent consequences of country-specific and time-specific changes in institutions.

Both the 'fundamentalist' view and the 'institutionalist' view have some relevance. For instance, the decline of traditional manufacturing employment since the 1970s has been associated in every developed country with a rise of labor-market inequality (the inequality of labor earnings within the working-age population has gone up in all countries), which lends support to the fundamentalist view. But, on the other hand, everybody agrees that institutional differences (minimum wage, collective bargaining, tax and transfer policy, etc.) between Continental European countries and Anglo-Saxon countries explain why disposable income inequality trajectories have been so different in those two groups of countries during the 1980s-90s, which lends support to the institutionalist view.

The chapters in this volume show the strength of both views. Through empirical evidence and new theoretical insights the contributors argue that institutions always play a crucial role in shaping inequalities, and sometimes preventing them, but that inequalities across age, sex, and skills often recur. From Sweden to Spain and Portugal, from Italy to Japan and the USA, the volume explores the diversity of the interplay between market forces and institutions.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780198727736
Publisher:	Oxford University Press
Publication date:	09/03/2014
Edition description:	UK ed.
Pages:	376
Product dimensions:	6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.80(d)

About the Author

Edited by Daniel Cohen, Professor of Economics, University of Paris I/Ecole normale supérieure, Thomas Piketty, Director of Studies, Department of Economics, EHESS, and Gilles Saint-Paul, Professor, Department of Economics, Université des Sciences Sociales, Toulouse

Table of Contents

Part I: Markets and Institutions1. The Distribution of Earnings in Spain During the 1980s: The effects of skill, unemployment, and union power, Olympia Bover, Samuel Bentolila, and Manuel Arellano2. Earnings Inequality in Portugal and Spain: Contrasts and similarities, Olga Cantó, Ana R. Cardoso, and Juan F. Jimeno3. Changes in Unemployment and Wage Inequality: An alternative theory and some evidence, Daron Acemoglu4. Does Competition at School Matter? A view based on the Italian and Japanese experiences, Giorgio Brunello and Tsuneo Ishikawa5. The Causes of the 'Youth Employment Problem': A (labour) supply side view, Etienne Wasmer6. Pareto-Improving Immigration in an Economy with Equilibrium Unemployment, Javier OrtegaPart II: Lifetime Inequalities and the Scope for Redistribution7. Consumption Inequality and Income Uncertainty, Richard Blundell and Ian Preston8. Income Redistribution Within the Life Cycle Versus Between Individuals: Empirical evidence using Swedish panel data, Anders Bjorkland and Mårten Palme9. Earnings Dispersion, Low Pay, and Household Poverty in Italy, 1977-1998, Andrea Brandolini, Piero Cippollone, and Paolo Sestito10. Changes in Home Production and Trends in Economic Inequality, Peter Gottschalk and Susan E. Mayer11. Unequal Societies: Income distribution and the social contract, Roland Bénabou12. Unemployment, Specialization, and Collective Preferences for Social Insurance, John Hassler, José V. Rodríguez Mora, Kjetil Storesletten, and Fabrizio Zilibotti

Editorial Reviews

"This volume provides a range of interesting arguments that make different and often important partial contributions to the explanation of recent trends in inequality."— Economic Geography

"The studies cover quite a broad set of issues affecting inequality ... The research agenda of these studies is rich and ambitious." —Industrial and Labor Relations Review

"The volume has many merits. All of the papers are well written, substantial, methodologically solid, and quite readable at the Masters level." —Industrial and Labor Relations Review

"... a valuable addition to the literature ... a collection on a mix of topics, with some papers you will want to refer back to and several that will likely give rise to extensive further studies." —Industrial and Labor Relations Review

From the Publisher