Privatization and changes in the wage structure
21 November 2008
| With the financial crisis and the government’s subsequent increased role in the economy, the question whether to privatize firms or not is certainly as relevant now as it was under Thatcher. The first to be affected by those kinds of decisions are the workers of the considered firms. This IZA publication for example found that wage and wage growth distributions widened significantly after privatization. The central questions really remain however who the winners and the losers are and why? |
Debating thresholds in assessing health technology
21 November 2008
| To prioritize spending of taxpayers’ money on healthcare, one way is known as Health Technology Assessment (HTA). To evaluate treatments in terms of their utility, HTA institutions have measured the benefits of a treatment as the period by which one’s life is extended and improved. This may sound (too?) scientific but does not exclude making a choice on an economic threshold of a given medicine, according to this Stockholm Network paper. There is a lot of room for improving today’s threshold concept before it can actually be used, the authors argue. Thresholds would need to be made more explicit and transparent, while taking into consideration the quality of evidence for instance. |
Active labour market policy: synergies and trade-offs
17 November 2008
| What benefits can be attained from an active labour market policy? Author Røed investigates and found that an active labour market policy is not only good for finding a job, but also for the quality of the job found. Choices still need to be made though: higher unemployment benefits, for example, increase the quality of the found job, but also the length of the period of unemployment. Activation measures boost the probability of finding a job quickly, but diminish its expected allowance. |
What can be learnt from the Dutch integration story?
17 November 2008
| In what social and economic areas is the gap between autochthones and immigrants closing? And in what areas nothing has changed? What factors are determining? This year report 2008 of the Dutch bureau for statistics is a source of inspiration about the actual situation of the social integration processes. And for a country like Belgium which is very close to the Netherlands according to the Migration Policy Index, this report can be an important source of inspiration on what to do, and what not to do. |
The Global Gender Gap
17 November 2008
| We hear a lot of talking on the wage disparities between men and women, about the low proportion of women in the higher political and economic realms, and about their growing access to education. But what is the actual situation today? This report from the World Economic Forum investigates gender inequalities in more than 115 countries, Belgium included. |
Low education level and position on the labour market
17 November 2008
| How can a low education level influence one’s working conditions and probability to keep a job? This report from the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions investigates how low-skilled workers position themselves on the labour market in the 27 EU member states. Not surprisingly, education and training has to be encouraged before and during one’s career, says the report. This way, we can stabilize the employment rate, improve social mobility and increase our economic competitivity. |
Brussels’ economic paradox
10 November 2008
| Economically, our capital seems to suffer from schizophrenia. On the one hand it accommodates the headquarters of Belgium’s most important businesses and the European institutions, but on the other hand Brussels is also known for its economic and social problems. This report gives an overview on Brussels’ key poverty indicators such as unemployment and housing, and notices that there are important differences between the municipalities of the Brussels region. Can this be related with the extra complicated fragmentation of competences in our capital city? |
Stimulating the profession of general practitioner (GP)
10 November 2008
| The profession of GP could become a bottleneck profession. Given the estimated growth in demand for healthcare in the future this is bad news. So what factors influence attraction, recruitment and professional loyalty of GPs in Belgium then? This is the key question in this report from the Belgian Health Care Knowledge Centre. Recommendations towards the medical faculties, the working conditions and the job’s financial aspects are also made, since these appear to be decisive for GPs (to be) in the exercise of their profession. |
Fiscal reform: impact on the consumption of Belgian households
10 November 2008
| The objective of the fiscal reform introduced in 2002 by the government Verhofstadt II was to reduce Belgian households’ taxes in order to stimulate Belgium’s macroeconomic activity. But has this fiscal policy yielded the expected results? This study from Regards Economiques of October 2008 analyses to which extend Belgian households’ consumption was influenced by this reform. |
Effect of tax reduction on job vacancy and unemployment
10 November 2008
| The unemployment rate in Belgium remains relatively high with respect to other European countries. However, some job vacancies are still open. This nota realized by the KUL analyses the possibility of reducing fiscal pressure in order to solve these two issues. It also makes a comparison between Belgium and Denmark by examining the influence some factors like education and transfers may have on the unemployment rate. |
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