Daiji Kawaguchi

Previous studies have pointed to the existence of barriers at the entry of self-employed sectors, such as liquidity constraints. In many countries, policies are directed toward removing these barriers in order to promote entrepreneurial activity. This paper examines whether such barriers exist by examining the amount of rent enjoyed by self-employed workers; if there are no barriers between the self-employed sector and the salary/wage sector, self-employed workers should not enjoy rents. Examina

Graduating from a school during a time of adverse economic conditions has a persistent, harmful effect on workers’ subsequent employment opportunities. An analysis of panel data from OECD countries during the 1960–2010 periods reveals that a worker who experiences a 1 percentage point higher unemployment rate while the worker is 16–24 years old has a 0.14 percentage point higher unemployment rate at ages 25–29 years and 0.03 percentage points higher at ages 30–34 years. The persistence of this n

This paper tests the morale theory of nominal wage rigidity, according to which firms resist making nominal cuts to workers' pay even in adverse economic conditions because such cuts hurt worker morale and productivity. The authors analyze data from an employer-employee survey they conducted in Japan in 2000. That year coincided with a rare spell of deflationary recession, which, the authors argue, is a good setting in which to study how nominal pay cuts affect morale. They find that a nominal a