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Articles 1 - 30 of 43
Full-Text Articles in Labor Economics
Transforming Unemployment Insurance For The Twenty-First Century: A Comprehensive Guide To Reform, Stephen A. Wandner
Transforming Unemployment Insurance For The Twenty-First Century: A Comprehensive Guide To Reform, Stephen A. Wandner
Upjohn Press
This book proposes options and recommendations for comprehensive reform of the unemployment insurance program that was initiated as a social insurance program by the Social Security Act of 1935. It documents the development of the program and its decline since the 1970s. Reform proposals and recommendations are synthesized from reforms suggested by policy analysts and researchers over many decades.
Why Are Unemployment Insurance Claims So Low?, Christopher J. O'Leary, Kenneth J. Kline, Thomas A. Stengle, Stephen A. Wandner
Why Are Unemployment Insurance Claims So Low?, Christopher J. O'Leary, Kenneth J. Kline, Thomas A. Stengle, Stephen A. Wandner
Employment Research Newsletter
No abstract provided.
Why Are Unemployment Insurance Claims So Low?, Christopher J. O'Leary, Kenneth J. Kline, Thomas A. Stengle, Stephen A. Wandner
Why Are Unemployment Insurance Claims So Low?, Christopher J. O'Leary, Kenneth J. Kline, Thomas A. Stengle, Stephen A. Wandner
Upjohn Institute Working Papers
In this paper, we examine the reasons why unemployment insurance (UI) claims have declined so dramatically over the past three decades. The fall in the UI claims rate is concerning because it suggests a reduced countercyclical effectiveness of the UI program. Additionally, weekly initial UI claims are regarded as an important leading indicator of aggregate economic activity, so their meaning has changed. We use a Oaxaca (1973) decomposition approach to identify the main factors for the decline in claims. The procedure suggests what the level of claims would have been later in the period, had values of variables or parameters …
Why Are Unemployment Insurance Claims So Low?, Christopher J. O'Leary, Kenneth J. Kline, Thomas A. Stengle, Stephen A. Wandner
Why Are Unemployment Insurance Claims So Low?, Christopher J. O'Leary, Kenneth J. Kline, Thomas A. Stengle, Stephen A. Wandner
Upjohn Institute Policy and Research Briefs
No abstract provided.
Michigan Unemployment Insurance: Background For Planning Analysis, Christopher J. O'Leary
Michigan Unemployment Insurance: Background For Planning Analysis, Christopher J. O'Leary
Presentations
No abstract provided.
Unemployment Insurance: Fix It And Fund It, Christopher J. O'Leary, David E. Balducchi, Ralph E. Smith
Unemployment Insurance: Fix It And Fund It, Christopher J. O'Leary, David E. Balducchi, Ralph E. Smith
Upjohn Institute Policy Papers
During the 2020–2021 pandemic, the federal-state unemployment insurance (UI) system in the United States nearly reached the breaking point. The surge in joblessness was matched in history only by the Great Depression of the 1930s. Congress hurriedly crafted temporary pandemic benefit assistance programs to fill benefit and eligibility gaps in state-run UI programs, handing them off to capacity-starved state UI agencies that fitfully served millions of workers and employers. After years of policy neglect and contraction, state UI programs have low benefit recipiency, meager earnings replacement rates, and inadequate benefit financing. It is time for comprehensive federal UI reform legislation, …
How Federal Pandemic Relief Helped Replenish State Unemployment Reserves, Christopher J. O'Leary, Kenneth J. Kline
How Federal Pandemic Relief Helped Replenish State Unemployment Reserves, Christopher J. O'Leary, Kenneth J. Kline
Employment Research Newsletter
No abstract provided.
How Federal Pandemic Relief Helped Replenish State Unemployment Reserves, Christopher J. O'Leary, Kenneth J. Kline
How Federal Pandemic Relief Helped Replenish State Unemployment Reserves, Christopher J. O'Leary, Kenneth J. Kline
Upjohn Institute Policy Papers
Unemployment insurance (UI) is a joint federal-state program that pays temporary partial earnings replacement to involuntarily unemployed workers while they seek reemployment. During the COVID-19 pandemic, UI claims surged and became a primary source for income replacement for workers who lost their jobs. However, despite previous federal incentives for states to shore up their UI funding reserves, the scale of claims during the pandemic was unprecedented, and the federal government needed to step in to help pay not only for direct, expanded benefits but for additional assistance to states themselves. Although this effort helped backstop the successful operation of states’ …
States Lack Adequate Unemployment Insurance Reserves, Christopher J. O'Leary
States Lack Adequate Unemployment Insurance Reserves, Christopher J. O'Leary
Upjohn Institute Policy and Research Briefs
No abstract provided.
State Unemployment Insurance Reserves Are Not Adequate, Christopher J. O'Leary, Kenneth J. Kline
State Unemployment Insurance Reserves Are Not Adequate, Christopher J. O'Leary, Kenneth J. Kline
Upjohn Institute Working Papers
Regular unemployment insurance (UI) benefits are paid from reserves held in state accounts at the U.S. Treasury. The Great Recession exhausted the majority of UI reserve accounts, and not all states have rebuilt reserves. We examine the adequacy of current state and systemwide UI reserves to weather a mild, moderate, or severe recession in the coming months. Our results suggest that a recession as severe as the average of those occurring since 1975 would cause 18 states to exhaust UI reserves. Our simulations account for the fact that several states have cut benefit generosity since the Great Recession ended. Results …
Lessons From The American Federal-State Unemployment Insurance System For A European Unemployment Benefits System, Christopher J. O'Leary, Burt S. Barnow, Karolien Lenaerts
Lessons From The American Federal-State Unemployment Insurance System For A European Unemployment Benefits System, Christopher J. O'Leary, Burt S. Barnow, Karolien Lenaerts
Upjohn Institute Working Papers
The federal-state system of unemployment insurance (UI) in the United States was established by the Social Security Act of 1935 during the Great Depression. Under the program, states provide temporary partial wage replacement to involuntarily unemployed workers with significant labor force attachment. The federal government induced states to establish UI programs through two means: 1) a uniform federal tax imposed on employer payrolls, with a 90 percent reduction granted in states operating approved UI programs, and 2) grants to states to administer their programs. The system has evolved into a collection of separate state programs adapted to different regional, economic, …
A Comparative Analysis Of Unemployment Insurance Financing Methods, Wayne Vroman, Elaine Maag, Christopher J. O'Leary, Stephen A. Woodbury
A Comparative Analysis Of Unemployment Insurance Financing Methods, Wayne Vroman, Elaine Maag, Christopher J. O'Leary, Stephen A. Woodbury
External Papers and Reports
No abstract provided.
Evaluating Public Employment Programs With Field Experiments: A Survey Of American Evidence, Christopher J. O'Leary
Evaluating Public Employment Programs With Field Experiments: A Survey Of American Evidence, Christopher J. O'Leary
Upjohn Institute Working Papers
Research in the 1970s based on observational data provided evidence consistent with predictions from economic theory that paying unemployment insurance (UI) benefits to involuntarily jobless workers prolongs unemployment. However, some scholars also reported estimates that the additional time spent in subsidized job search was productive. That is, UI receipt tended to raise reemployment wages after work search among the unemployed. A series of field experiments in the 1980s investigated positive incentives to overcome the work disincentive effects of UI. These were followed by experiments in the 1990s that evaluated the effects of restrictions on UI eligibility through stronger work search …
Are State Unemployment Insurance Reserves Sufficient For The Next Recession?, Christopher J. O'Leary, Kenneth J. Kline
Are State Unemployment Insurance Reserves Sufficient For The Next Recession?, Christopher J. O'Leary, Kenneth J. Kline
Upjohn Institute Working Papers
Regular state unemployment insurance (UI) benefits are paid from state reserves held in unemployment trust fund accounts at the U.S. Treasury. Employers covered by the federal-state UI system make contributions to reserve accounts based on taxable wages. The federal government provides incentives for forward funding of benefits to support UI as an automatic macroeconomic stabilizer in the economy. However, the Great Recession exhausted UI reserves for the majority of states, and not all of them have yet replenished those reserves. Based on patterns observed over the past 40 years, in this paper we simulate the effects on state and systemwide …
Financing Unemployment Insurance, Wayne Vroman, Stephen A. Woodbury
Financing Unemployment Insurance, Wayne Vroman, Stephen A. Woodbury
Journal Articles
Following the Great Recession, most states’ unemployment insurance (UI) trust funds became insolvent, requiring the states to borrow from the U.S. Treasury to finance benefit payments. This article describes the basics of UI financing and reviews the origins of the financial crisis facing the federal-state UI system. It then examines the main components of the UI payroll tax—the taxable wage base and the experience-rated payroll tax—and considers how these might be modified to avoid future widespread insolvency. We conclude with some speculative remarks on the future of UI financing.
Financing Unemployment Insurance, Wayne Vroman, Stephen A. Woodbury
Financing Unemployment Insurance, Wayne Vroman, Stephen A. Woodbury
Upjohn Institute Working Papers
Following the Great Recession, most states’ unemployment insurance (UI) trust funds became insolvent, requiring the states to borrow from the U.S. Treasury to finance benefit payments. This article describes the basics of UI financing and reviews the origins of the financial crisis facing the federal-state UI system. It then examines the main components of the UI payroll tax—the taxable wage base and the experience-rated payroll tax—and considers how these might be modified to avoid future widespread insolvency. We conclude with some speculative remarks on the future of UI financing.
Unemployment Insurance, Stephen A. Woodbury
Unemployment Insurance, Stephen A. Woodbury
Upjohn Institute Working Papers
Unemployment insurance (UI) provides temporary income support to workers who have lost their jobs and are seeking reemployment. This paper reviews the origins of the federal-state UI system in the United States and outlines its principles and goals. It also describes the conditions for benefit eligibility, the benefits themselves, and their financing through the UI payroll tax. The UI system is complex and includes many interested parties, including employers, worker advocates, state UI administrators, and the federal government. These parties’ differing views have led to controversies over benefit eligibility, adequacy, and whether the states or federal government should bear primary …
A Changing Federal-State Balance In Unemployment Insurance?, Christopher J. O'Leary
A Changing Federal-State Balance In Unemployment Insurance?, Christopher J. O'Leary
Employment Research Newsletter
No abstract provided.
North Carolina's Unemployment Insurance System: A Simulation And Policy Analysis, Christopher J. O'Leary, James Van Erden
North Carolina's Unemployment Insurance System: A Simulation And Policy Analysis, Christopher J. O'Leary, James Van Erden
Reports
The W.E. Upjohn Institute for Employment Research (Upjohn) in partnership with the Center for Employment Security Education and Research (CESER) in the National Association of State Workforce Agencies (NASWA) has been contracted by the North Carolina Department of Commerce (Department) to develop options for improving the North Carolina unemployment insurance (UI) benefit financing system. The work will also review alternative financial management strategies to regain and maintain solvency of the North Carolina account in the Unemployment Trust Fund (UTF) and to service debt to the federal government under Title XII of the US Social Security Act.
Benefit Payment Costs Of Unemployment Insurance Modernization: Estimates Based On Kentucky Administrative Data, Christopher J. O'Leary
Benefit Payment Costs Of Unemployment Insurance Modernization: Estimates Based On Kentucky Administrative Data, Christopher J. O'Leary
Upjohn Institute Working Papers
The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) of 2009 provided financial incentives for UI modernization. The financial incentive is the state share of $7 billion available nationwide. States can receive one-third of their allocation by having an alternate base period (ABP) for monetary determination of UI eligibility that includes the most recently completed calendar quarter. States can receive the remaining two-thirds of their allocation for having two of four additional program features: 1) UI eligibility while seeking only part-time work, 2) UI eligibility after job separations due to harassment or compelling family reasons, 3) continuation of UI benefits for at …
Unemployment Compensation Throughout The World: A Comparative Analysis, Wayne Vroman, Vera Brusentsev
Unemployment Compensation Throughout The World: A Comparative Analysis, Wayne Vroman, Vera Brusentsev
Upjohn Press
The authors book that contains a contemporary perspective and review of UC programs in numerous countries throughout the world.
Alternative Measures Of State Ui Systems, Christopher J. O'Leary, Robert Tannenwald, Wei-Jang Huang, Pei Zhu
Alternative Measures Of State Ui Systems, Christopher J. O'Leary, Robert Tannenwald, Wei-Jang Huang, Pei Zhu
Upjohn Institute Working Papers
Comparisons among state unemployment insurance (UI) systems can be misleading. Frequently quoted indicators of benefit generosity, tax cost, and adherence to the experience-rating principle are influenced by the relative economic conditions of states. Such comparisons thereby obscure underlying structural differences in state UI systems. A business considering alternative states in which to locate a production facility should be cautious when interpreting UI information in an economic developer's marketing pitch. This paper offers alternative indicators based on how representative firms, with a well specified unemployment experience, would fare in different states. The authors use a micro-simulation approach to model the experiences …
Topics In Unemployment Insurance Financing, Wayne Vroman
Topics In Unemployment Insurance Financing, Wayne Vroman
Upjohn Press
Vroman warns that states are more at risk for insolvency in the late 1990s than they were in 1990 and that a repetition of widespread and large-scale borrowing of the past is a distinct possibility. He bases this statement on an empirical study that examines historical levels of states' UI trust fund balances between recessions, and the specific methods used to finance trust fund blanaces. These methods include traditional means of financing, tax-base indexing, state reserve funds, and "flexible" financing such as solvency taxes and legislative response mechanisms. In addition, he addresses the tradeoffs of financing UI debt by either …
An Evaluation Of The Washington State Unemployment Insurance Earnings Deduction Experiment, Christopher J. O'Leary
An Evaluation Of The Washington State Unemployment Insurance Earnings Deduction Experiment, Christopher J. O'Leary
Reports
No abstract provided.
Unemployment Insurance Policy In New England: Background And Issues, Robert Tannenwald, Christopher J. O'Leary
Unemployment Insurance Policy In New England: Background And Issues, Robert Tannenwald, Christopher J. O'Leary
Upjohn Institute Working Papers
Most states have exhausted their unemployment insurance (UI) trust fund and borrowed from the federal government at least once during the past 35 years. Under such circumstances, states are required by law to raise UI taxes to replenish their trust funds and to pay off their debts to the federal government. Since higher UI taxes increase employer costs, replenishment forces states into a trade-off between economic competitiveness and trust fund adequacy. Competitive pressures have raised questions about prevailing standards of adequacy and the speed at which they should be attained. Consequently, several states are contemplating tax reductions despite low reserves. …
Unemployment Insurance In The United States: Analysis Of Policy Issues, Christopher J. O'Leary Editor, Stephen A. Wandner Editor
Unemployment Insurance In The United States: Analysis Of Policy Issues, Christopher J. O'Leary Editor, Stephen A. Wandner Editor
Upjohn Press
This book presents 15 original essays that reflect the state of knowledge on policy issues critical to the performance and success of the nation's UI system. The essays are based on program data, enabling the authors to provide analyses on and recommendations for issues at the forefront of the UI policy debate. Topics include coverage, eligibility, adequacy and duration of benefits, labor market attachment, benefit financing, fraud and abuse, the intersection of UI with other income maintenance programs, federal-state relations (including devolution), and more.
Collected Findings And Recommendations, 1994-1996, U.S. Advisory Council On Unemployment Compensation
Collected Findings And Recommendations, 1994-1996, U.S. Advisory Council On Unemployment Compensation
External Papers and Reports
No abstract provided.
Suggested Rules For An Unemployment Insurance Law For Poland, Christopher J. O'Leary
Suggested Rules For An Unemployment Insurance Law For Poland, Christopher J. O'Leary
Upjohn Institute Technical Reports
No abstract provided.
Defining Federal And State Roles In Unemployment Insurance: A Report To The President And Congress, U.S. Advisory Council On Unemployment Compensation
Defining Federal And State Roles In Unemployment Insurance: A Report To The President And Congress, U.S. Advisory Council On Unemployment Compensation
External Papers and Reports
No abstract provided.
Unemployment Insurance In The United States, Benefits, Financing, And Coverage: A Report To The President And Congress, U.S. Advisory Council On Unemployment Compensation
Unemployment Insurance In The United States, Benefits, Financing, And Coverage: A Report To The President And Congress, U.S. Advisory Council On Unemployment Compensation
External Papers and Reports
No abstract provided.