Publication: How to Overhaul the Labor Market : Political Economy of Recent Czech and Slovak Reforms
Loading...
Files in English
345 downloads
Date
2004
ISSN
Published
2004
Author(s)
Editor(s)
Abstract
The Czech and Slovak Republics – until 1993 two parts of former Czechoslovakia – offer a unique reform comparison. Even though Slovakia faced higher unemployment since early transition and it was subject to greater reform failures, the two countries experienced similar macroeconomic paths over the first decade of transition. However, since the currency crises of 1997(8), their depth of reforms has been very different, with Slovakia making major strides to improve the labor market. We suggest two explanations, one based on fiscal pressures, the other stemming from political developments. The Slovak reforms of 1998 to 2002 benefited from a window of opportunity created by pre-1998 policy failures. A small team of advisors working under an influential Cabinet member drafted and implemented many successful reforms in spite of resistance mounted by political opponents. After the 2002 electoral victory of pro-reform parties, the labor market administration has implemented a sweeping reform agenda, which benefits from the weakness of its opponents, notably the trade unions. In contrast, the post-1998 Czech governments are closely tied to trade unions and oppose radical reforms in the labor market despite rising fiscal pressures and unemployment.
Link to Data Set
Citation
“Jurajda, Štěpán; Mathernová, Katarína. 2004. How to Overhaul the Labor Market : Political Economy of Recent Czech and Slovak Reforms. © World Bank. http://hdl.handle.net/10986/9131 License: CC BY 3.0 IGO.”
Associated URLs
Associated content
Other publications in this report series
Journal
Journal Volume
Journal Issue
Collections
Related items
Showing items related by metadata.
Publication The Political Economy of Labor Reform in Colombia(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2004)The Colombian experience with labor market reform that began in 1990 and ended with the issuing of a new labor code in 2002 provides important lessons about the difficulties of implementing policy changes. A successful reform has to surpass a set of "deals," during the design phase, consensus building with civil society, submission to Congress and parliamentary debate, before it gets approved. The paper presents the story of two failed attempts by the Colombian government to produce these "deals." It shows what economic and social considerations created the need for reform, describes the actual policy changes implemented and evaluates their impact. The paper delves deep into the political aspects of the reform effort.Publication The Political Economy of Reform: Institutional Change as a Tool for Political Credibility(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2003)It can be argued that reforms aimed at increasing political transparency and accountability can reinforce political credibility and thereby increase political support within a democracy for the implementation of economic reforms. This paper reviews the political economy of economic reforms and explores the role of elections, transparency and accountability in the reform process.Publication Managing Labor Market Reforms: Case Study of Poland(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2004)When state socialism collapsed in Poland in 1989, Polish society hoped to rapidly establish well functioning democracy and efficient markets. This paper describes reforms to Poland's labor market, marked by a high unemployment rate, and labor market changes throughout the country's economic transformation. Labor law reforms were eased by the fact that the public opinion in Poland was favorable to deregulation; in part due to the perception that such changes would be advantageous to the society, and in part because no credible alternative existed. Polish mass media overwhelmingly supported labor law reforms and there were no voices calling for an alternative (for instance an interventionist approach) approach to try to reduce unemployment.Publication How Labor Market Policies Can Combine Workers' Protection and Job Creation : A Partial Review of Some Key Issues and Policy Options(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2004)To what extend have macro and structural reforms in many developing countries affected the labor market? Are current policy settings in the labor market adequate to cope with the current challenges of a more dynamic but also more risky economic environment? Are there examples of successful labor reforms that have combined greater adaptability with greater workers? protection? What can labor policy do when resources are scarce and informality looms large? These questions are addressed in this paper as part of an in-depth review of formal policy and institutional settings in the labor market of many developing and emerging economies. Also reported on is evidence of the effects of policy reforms on job creation and on the ability of workers to cope with shocks.Publication Slovak Republic : Living Standards, Employment, and Labor Market Study(Washington, DC, 2002-02)By most indicators the Slovak Republic has achieved a high level of human and social development. Despite the country's generally high living standards and overall level of development, there are families in Slovakia whose living conditions are below what is considered to be socially acceptable. By societal standards, these families and individuals are poor. The objective of this study is to analyze this poverty, so as to help design measures and policies to reduce it. The study also seeks to understand the phenomenon of unemployment--the main cause of poverty-and propose actions to alleviate it. The report is organized as follows: After Chapter 1, which explains the background of poverty and inequality in the Slovak Republic, Chapter 2 addresses the challenge of generating employment, including rising unemployment and inactivity, job reallocation during transition, the importance of the regional and skills mismatch, and conclusions and policy recommendations that enhance employment creation. Chapter 3 explores the role of the safety net system, particularly unemployment insurance and other forms of social assistance; presents a brief simulation analysis of the disincentives provided by unemployment insurance, social assistance, and social support; provides an empirical analysis of disincentive effects; and ends with a discussion of the policy implications. Chapter 4 focuses on the poverty and welfare of the Roma population. Finally Chapter 5 telescopes regional disparities.
Users also downloaded
Showing related downloaded files
Publication Changing the Face of the Waters : The Promise and Challenge of Sustainable Aquaculture(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2007)This study provides strategic orientations and recommendations for Bank client countries and suggests approaches for the Bank's role in a rapidly changing industry with high economic potential. It identifies priorities and options for policy adjustments, catalytic investments, and entry points for the Bank and other investors to foster environmentally friendly, wealth-creating, and sustainable aquaculture. The objectives of the study are to inform and provide guidance on sustainable aquaculture to decision makers in the international development community and in client countries of international finance institutions. The study focuses on several critical issues and challenges: 1) Harnessing the contribution of aquaculture to economic development, including poverty alleviation and wealth creation, to employment and to food security and trade, particularly for least developed countries (LDCs); 2) Building environmentally sustainable aquaculture, including the role of aquaculture in the broader suite of environmental management measures; 3) Creating the enabling conditions for sustainable aquaculture, including the governance, policy, and regulatory frameworks, and identifying the roles of the public and private sectors; and 4) Developing and transferring human and institutional capacity in governance, technologies, and business models with special reference to the application of lessons from Asia to Sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America.Publication Disease Control Priorities, Third Edition(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2016-04-06)This book focuses on maternal conditions, childhood illness, and malnutrition. Specifically, the chapters address acute illness and undernutrition in children, principally under age 5. It also covers maternal mortality, morbidity, stillbirth, and influences to pregnancy and pre-pregnancy. It also includes the transition to older childhood, in particular, the overlap and commonality with the child development volume.Publication Climate Change and Migration : Evidence from the Middle East and North Africa(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2014-07-15)Climate change is a major source of concern in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region, and migration is often understood as one of several strategies used by households to respond to changes in climate and environmental conditions, including extreme weather events. This study focuses on the link between climate change and migration. Most micro-level studies measure climate change either by the incidences of extreme weather events or by variation in temperature or rainfall. A few studies have found that formal and informal institutions as well as policies also affect migration. Institutions that make government more responsive to households (for example through public spending) discourage both international and domestic migration in the aftermath of extreme weather events. Migration is often an option of last resort after vulnerable rural populations attempting to cope with new and challenging circumstances have exhausted other options such as eating less, selling assets, or removing children from school. This study is based in large part on new data collected in 2011 in Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, Syria, and the Republic of Yemen. The surveys were administered by in-country partners to a randomly selected set of 800 households per country. It is also important to emphasize that neither the household survey results nor the findings from the qualitative focus groups are meant to be representative of the five countries in which the work was carried, since only a few areas were surveyed in each country. This report is organized as follows: section one gives synthesis. Section two discusses household perceptions about climate change and extreme weather events. Section three focuses on migration as a coping mechanisms and income diversification strategy. Section four examines other coping and adaptation strategies. Section five discusses perceptions about government and community programs.Publication Early Child Development, From Measurement to Action : A priority for Growth and Equity(Washington, DC: World Bank, 2007)The World Bank recently hosted a symposium on the priority of early child development (ECD) for economic growth and equity. The participants urged application of population-based tools and measures to assess the outcomes of children's early years and children's readiness for school. This study is derived from the symposium and is a valuable resource for policy makers, economists, donors, and investors, as well as researchers and practitioners in early child development. It summarizes the current neuroscience on early child development and major longitudinal studies, the rationale and urgency for greater investment, and countries' innovative funding strategies. The report consists of 15 chapters authored by ECD experts and leaders in the field. The chapters are grouped into five main parts relating to the: business imperative and societal benefits of ECD investments; lessons from evaluation of longitudinal ECD interventions; countries' experiences in monitoring ECD interventions; innovative approaches to countries' financing of ECD initiatives; and next steps on the ECD agenda for the next 5 years. A theme highlighted at the symposium and enlarged upon here is the urgent need for evidence- and population-based instruments and measures to monitor, evaluate, and compare ECD interventions over time and across settings.Publication Making Monitoring and Evaluation Systems Work : A Capacity Development Toolkit(World Bank, 2009)There are constant and growing pressures on governments and organizations around the world to be more responsive to demands from internal and external stakeholders for good governance, accountability and transparency, greater development effectiveness and delivery of tangible results. Governments, parliaments, citizens, the private sector, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), civil society, international organizations, and donors are all among stakeholders interested in better performance. As demands for greater accountability and results have grown, there is an accompanying need for useful and useable results-based monitoring and evaluation systems to support the management of policies, programs, and projects. Governments and other organizations have many different kinds of tracking systems as part of their management toolkits: good human resource systems, financial systems, and accountability systems. They also need good feedback systems. A results-based monitoring and evaluation (M&E) system is essentially such a feedback system; it is a management tool to measure and evaluate outcomes, providing information for governance and decision making. Many management systems have been missing a feedback component to enable them to track the consequences of actions. Building an M&E system gives decision-makers an additional management tool by providing feedback on performance as a basis for future improvement.