Job Search and Job Finding in a Period of Mass Unemployment: Evidence from High-Frequency Longitudinal Data

Alan Krueger and Andreas Mueller

No 5450, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: This paper presents findings from a survey of 6,025 unemployed workers who were interviewed every week for up to 24 weeks in the fall of 2009 and spring of 2010. Our main findings are: (1) the amount of time devoted to job search declines sharply over the spell of unemployment; (2) the self-reported reservation wage predicts whether a job offer is accepted or rejected; (3) the reservation wage is remarkably stable over the course of unemployment for most workers, with the notable exception of workers who are over age 50 and those who had nontrivial savings at the start of the study; (4) many workers who seek full-time work will accept a part-time job that offers a wage below their reservation wage; and (5) the amount of time devoted to job search and the reservation wage help predict early exits from Unemployment Insurance (UI).

Keywords: job search; unemployment insurance; reservation wage (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J64 J65 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 60 pages
Date: 2011-01
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-ias and nep-lab
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (169)

Published - published in: Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, 2011, 42 (1), 1-81

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