@article{CaliendoKuennMahlstedt2017, author = {Caliendo, Marco and K{\"u}nn, Steffen and Mahlstedt, Robert}, title = {The return to labor market mobility}, series = {Journal of Public Economics}, volume = {148}, journal = {Journal of Public Economics}, publisher = {Elsevier}, address = {Lausanne}, issn = {0047-2727}, doi = {10.1016/j.jpubeco.2017.02.008}, pages = {136 -- 151}, year = {2017}, abstract = {In many European countries, labor markets are characterized by high regional disparities in terms of unemployment rates on the one hand and low geographical mobility among the unemployed on the other hand. In order to counteract the geographical mismatch of workers, the German active labor market policy offers a subsidy covering moving costs to incentivize unemployed job seekers to search/accept jobs in distant regions. Based on administrative data, this study provides the first empirical evidence on the impact of this subsidy on participants' prospective labor market outcomes. We use an instrumental variable approach to take endogenous selection based on observed and unobserved characteristics into account when estimating causal treatment effects. We find that unemployed job seekers who participate in the subsidy program and move to a distant region receive higher wages and find more stable jobs compared to non-participants. We show that the positive effects are (to a large extent) the consequence of a better job match due to the increased search radius of participants.}, language = {en} } @article{CaliendoMahlstedtMitnik2017, author = {Caliendo, Marco and Mahlstedt, Robert and Mitnik, Oscar A.}, title = {Unobservable, but unimportant? The relevance of usually unobserved variables for the evaluation of labor market policies}, series = {Labour economics : an international journal}, volume = {46}, journal = {Labour economics : an international journal}, publisher = {Elsevier}, address = {Amsterdam}, issn = {0927-5371}, doi = {10.1016/j.labeco.2017.02.001}, pages = {14 -- 25}, year = {2017}, language = {en} } @phdthesis{Mahlstedt2017, author = {Mahlstedt, Robert}, title = {Essays on job search behavior and labor market policies}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-397081}, school = {Universit{\"a}t Potsdam}, pages = {252}, year = {2017}, abstract = {Persistently high unemployment rates are a major threat to the social cohesion in many societies. To moderate the consequences of unemployment industrialized countries spend substantial shares of their GDP on labor market policies, while in recent years there has been a shift from passive measures, such as transfer payments, towards more activating elements which aim to promote the reintegration into the labor market. Although, there exists a wide range of evidence about the effects of traditional active labor market policies (ALMP) on participants' subsequent labor market outcomes, a deeper understanding of the impact of these programs on the job search behavior and the interplay with long-term labor market outcomes is necessary. This allows policy makers to improve the design of labor market policies and the allocation of unemployed workers into specific programs. Moreover, previous studies have shown that many traditional ALMP programs, like public employment or training schemes, do not achieve the desired results. This underlines the importance of understanding the effect mechanisms, but also the need to develop innovative programs that are more effective. This thesis extends the existing literature with respect to several dimensions. First, it analyzes the impact of job seekers' beliefs about upcoming ALMPs programs on the effectiveness of realized treatments later during the unemployment spell. This provides important insights with respect to the job search process and relates potential anticipation effects (on the job seekers behavior before entering a program) to the vast literature evaluating the impact of participating in an ALMP program on subsequent outcomes. The empirical results show that training programs are more effective if the participants expect participation ex ante, while expected treatment effects are unrelated to the actual labor market outcomes of participants. A subsequent analysis of the effect mechanisms shows that job seekers who expect to participate also receive more information by their caseworker and show a higher willingness to adjust their search behavior in association with an upcoming ALMP program. The findings suggest that the effectiveness of training programs can be improved by providing more detailed information about the possibility of a future treatment early during the unemployment spell. Second, the thesis investigates the effects of a relatively new class of programs that aim to improve the geographical mobility of unemployed workers with respect to the job search behavior, the subsequent job finding prospects and the returns to labor market mobility. To estimate the causal impact of these programs, it is exploited that local employment agencies have a degree of autonomy when deciding about the regional-specific policy mix. The findings show that the policy style of the employment agency indeed affects the job search behavior of unemployed workers. Job seekers who are assigned to agencies with higher preferences for mobility programs increase their search radius without affecting the total number of job applications. This shift of the search effort to distant regions leads to a higher probability to find a regular job and higher wages. Moreover, it is shown that participants in one of the subsidy programs who move to geographically distant region a earn significantly higher wages, end up in more stable jobs and face a higher long-run employment probability compared to non-participants. Third, the thesis offers an empirical assessment of the unconfoundedness assumption with respect to the relevance of variables that are usually unobserved in studies evaluating ALMP programs. A unique dataset that combines administrative records and survey data allows us to observe detailed information on typical covariates, as well as usually unobserved variables including personality traits, attitudes, expectations, intergenerational information, as well as indicators about social networks and labor market flexibility. The findings show that, although our set of usually unobserved variables indeed has a significant effect on the selection into ALMP programs, the overall impact when estimating treatment effects is rather small. Finally, the thesis also examines the importance of gender differences in reservation wages that allows assessing the importance of special ALMP programs targeting women. In particular, when including reservation wages in a wage decomposition exercise, the gender gap in realized wages becomes small and statistically insignificant. The strong connection between gender differences in reservation wages and realized wages raises the question how these differences in reservation wages are set in the first place. Since traditional covariates cannot sufficiently explain the gender gap in reservation wages, we perform subgroup analysis to better understand what the driving forces behind this gender gap are.}, language = {en} } @article{CaliendoMahlstedtvandenBergetal.2022, author = {Caliendo, Marco and Mahlstedt, Robert and van den Berg, Gerard J. and Vikstr{\"o}m, Johan}, title = {Side effects of labor market policies}, series = {The Scandinavian journal of economics}, volume = {125}, journal = {The Scandinavian journal of economics}, number = {2}, publisher = {Wiley-Blackwell}, address = {Oxford}, issn = {0347-0520}, doi = {10.1111/sjoe.12514}, pages = {339 -- 375}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Labor market policies, such as training and sanctions, are commonly used to bring workers back to work. By analogy to medical treatments, exposure to these tools can have side effects. We study the effects on health using individual-level population registers on labor market outcomes, drug prescriptions, and sickness absence, comparing outcomes before and after exposure to training and sanctions. Training improves cardiovascular and mental health, and lowers sickness absence. This is likely to be the result of the instantaneous features of participation, such as the adoption of a more rigorous daily routine, rather than improved employment prospects. Benefits sanctions cause a short-run deterioration of mental health.}, language = {en} } @techreport{CaliendoMahlstedtvandenBergetal.2020, type = {Working Paper}, author = {Caliendo, Marco and Mahlstedt, Robert and van den Berg, Gerard J. and Vikstr{\"o}m, Johan}, title = {Side Effects of Labor Market Policies}, series = {CEPA Discussion Papers}, journal = {CEPA Discussion Papers}, number = {22}, issn = {2628-653X}, doi = {10.25932/publishup-47883}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-478839}, pages = {33}, year = {2020}, abstract = {Labor market policy tools such as training and sanctions are commonly used to help bring workers back to work. By analogy to medical treatments, the individual exposure to these tools may have side effects. We study effects on health using individual-level population registers on labor market events outcomes, drug prescriptions and sickness absence, comparing outcomes before and after exposure to training and sanctions. We find that training improves cardiovascular and mental health and lowers sickness absence. The results suggest that this is not due to improved employment prospects but rather to instantaneous features of participation such as, perhaps, the adoption of a more rigorous daily routine. Unemployment benefits sanctions cause a short-run deterioration of mental health, possibly due higher stress levels, but this tapers out quickly.}, language = {en} } @techreport{CaliendoKuennMahlstedt2022, type = {Working Paper}, author = {Caliendo, Marco and K{\"u}nn, Steffen and Mahlstedt, Robert}, title = {The Intended and Unintended Effects of Promoting Labor Market Mobility}, series = {CEPA Discussion Papers}, journal = {CEPA Discussion Papers}, issn = {2628-653X}, doi = {10.25932/publishup-53522}, url = {http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus4-535229}, pages = {49}, year = {2022}, abstract = {Subsidizing the geographical mobility of unemployed workers may improve welfare by relaxing their financial constraints and allowing them to find jobs in more prosperous regions. We exploit regional variation in the promotion of mobility programs along administrative borders of German employment agency districts to investigate the causal effect of offering such financial incentives on the job search behavior and labor market integration of unemployed workers. We show that promoting mobility - as intended - causes job seekers to increase their search radius, apply for and accept distant jobs. At the same time, local job search is reduced with adverse consequences for reemployment and earnings. These unintended negative effects are provoked by spatial search frictions. Overall, the unconditional provision of mobility programs harms the welfare of unemployed job seekers.}, language = {en} }