Small Differences That Matter ((NBER) National Bureau of Economic Research Comparative Labor Markets(CHUP)) (NBER Comparative Labor Markets) (National Bureau of Economic Research - Comparative Labor Markets S., Vol 1)

by Richard B. Freeman

David Card (Editor), Richard B Freeman (Editor), and Richard B Freeman (Harvard University, USA) (Editor)

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This volume, the first in a new series by the National Bureau of Economic Research that compares labour markets in different countries, examines social and labour market policies in Canada and the United States during the 1980s. It shows that subtle differences in unemployment compensation, unionization, immigration policies, and income maintenance programmes have significantly affected economic outcomes in the two countries. Examples of these differences include the following: Canada's social safety net, more generous than the American one, produced markedly lower poverty rates in the 1980s. Canada saw a smaller increase in earnings inequality than the United States did, in part because of the strength of Canadian unions, which have twice the participation that US unions do. Canada's unemployment figures were much higher than those in the United States, not because the Canadian economy failed to create jobs but because a higher percentage of non-working time was reported as unemployment. These disparities have become noteworthy as policy makers cite the experiences of the other country to support or oppose particular initiatives.
  • ISBN10 1282004786
  • ISBN13 9781282004788
  • Publish Date 1 January 2009 (first published 1 November 1993)
  • Publish Status Active
  • Out of Print 3 June 2015
  • Publish Country US
  • Imprint University of Chicago Press
  • Pages 277
  • Language English