Enhancing Job Opportunities

This publication examines labour market developments and policies for promoting job opportunities and reducing unemployment in the countries of eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union during their transition from centrally planned to market economies. Issues discussed include: how the transition process has affected the labour market and those hardest hit by developments; the progress of different countries in the region, and public policy options for job creation.

Foreword

xiii

Acknowledgments

xvii

Acronyms and Abbreviations

xix

Overview

1

(60)

Changing Labor Markets in the Region

5

(14)

The Drivers of Labor Demand during the Transition

19

(5)

The Role of the Region's Policy and Institutions

24

(15)

The Policy Challenge: Promoting Job Creation in the Region

39

(22)

Main Labor Market Developments during the Transition

61

(46)

An Economically Diverse Region with Differing Labor Markets

61

(2)

Unemployment and Underemployment: Major Economic and Social Problems

63

(25)

Rebounding Real Wages, but Widening Wage Differentials

88

(5)

The Changing Nature of Jobs during the Transition

93

(4)

Labor Market Outcomes: Disappointing during the Transition?

97

(2)

Summary: Key Stylized Facts on Labor Market Transition in the Region

99

(8)

Macroeconomic Policy, Output, and Employment: Is There Evidence of Jobless Growth?

107

(18)

The Employment-Output Link during the Different Phases of the Transition

108

(6)

Any Role for Macropolicy to Influence the Employment-Output Link?

114

(4)

Summing Up: Employment Prospects in CEE and CIS Countries

118

(7)

Restructuring, Productivity, and Job Creation

125

(30)

The Required Transformation of the Transition Economies and Progress So Far

126

(5)

What Is the Role of Firm Restructuring and the Entry and Exit of Firms for Job Creation?

131

(6)

What Is the Role of Firm Restructuring and the Entry and Exit of Firms for Productivity and Output Growth?

137

(10)

What Drives Restructuring of Existing Firms?

147

(2)

How Many Firms Enter and Exit the Market in Transition Countries?

149

(2)

Summing Up: Entry Conditions and Incentives to Create Jobs Are Essential for Improving Job Creation in the Region

151

(4)

The Investment Climate and Job Creation

155

(38)

Importance of Investment Climate for Job Creation

157

(1)

Employers' Views on the Major Obstacles to Firms' Operation and Growth in the Region

158

(9)

The Impact of Investment Climate on Job Creation in the Region

167

(6)

Investment Climate: International Comparisons and Variations within the Region

173

(10)

Summing Up: Promoting a Better Investment Climate to Foster Job Creation

183

(10)

Labor Market Policy and Institutions: Combining Protection with Incentives for Job Creation

193

(50)

The Role of Labor Market Policies and Institutions

194

(1)

The Divergent Paths of Wage Determination during the Transition

194

(15)

Employment Protection Legislation Remains Strict despite Reforms, Although Enforcement Is Variable

209

(8)

Taxes on Labor

217

(4)

The Role of Passive and Active Labor Market Programs

221

(12)

Summing Up: The Challenge of Labor Policy Reforms in Transition Economies

233

(10)

Bibliography

243

(16)

Index

259

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Enhancing Job Opportunities

Summary

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials