Unlocking Labor Markets: Dynamics with Search and Matching Models Training Course

Introduction

Traditional competitive models of labor markets often assume instantaneous and frictionless job matching, a simplification that overlooks the fundamental realities of unemployment and job vacancies. In contrast, search and matching theory provides a powerful framework that acknowledges the inherent frictions in labor markets – the time and resources it takes for workers to find suitable jobs and for firms to fill open positions. This approach offers a more realistic and nuanced understanding of how unemployment, vacancies, and wages are determined in equilibrium.

This intensive training course is meticulously designed to equip participants with a comprehensive and practical understanding of labor market dynamics through the lens of search and matching models. From mastering the core concepts of matching functions and wage bargaining to applying these models to analyze policy interventions such as unemployment benefits and hiring subsidies, you will gain the expertise to rigorously assess labor market phenomena. This empowers you to conduct cutting-edge research, inform evidence-based labor policies, and contribute to addressing persistent challenges like unemployment and skill mismatches in the modern economy.

Target Audience

  • Labor economists and researchers.
  • Policymakers and government officials in labor ministries, central banks, and statistical agencies.
  • Macroeconomists interested in labor market frictions.
  • Academics and graduate students (Master's and PhD) in economics, public policy, or quantitative methods.
  • Data analysts working with labor market data.
  • HR professionals and consultants interested in the economics of recruitment and retention.
  • Professionals from international organizations (e.g., ILO, World Bank) focused on employment and labor policy.
  • Anyone interested in the theoretical and empirical underpinnings of unemployment.

Duration: 10 days

Course Objectives

Upon completion of this training course, participants will be able to:

  • Understand the fundamental assumptions and components of search and matching models.
  • Grasp the concept of frictional unemployment and its distinction from other types of unemployment.
  • Analyze the role of matching functions in determining the flow of new jobs.
  • Comprehend different approaches to wage bargaining within a search and matching framework.
  • Evaluate the impact of various labor market policies (e.g., unemployment insurance, hiring subsidies) using these models.
  • Develop practical skills in solving and simulating basic search and matching models.
  • Navigate empirical applications of search and matching theory to real-world labor market data.
  • Formulate evidence-based recommendations for improving labor market efficiency and outcomes.

Course Content

  1. Introduction to Labor Market Frictions and Unemployment
  • Limitations of the perfectly competitive labor market model
  • Types of unemployment: frictional, structural, cyclical
  • Empirical facts about labor markets: job flows, worker flows, Beveridge curve
  • The necessity of search and matching models
  • Overview of the Diamond-Mortensen-Pissarides (DMP) framework
  1. The Worker's Search Problem (McCall Model)
  • Sequential search and optimal stopping rules
  • Reservation wages: determinants and implications
  • Costs of search and unemployment benefits
  • The value of unemployment and employment
  • Dynamic programming techniques for solving the worker's problem
  1. The Firm's Vacancy Posting Problem
  • Cost of posting a vacancy (hiring costs)
  • Value of a filled job and a vacant job
  • Optimal vacancy creation decision by firms
  • Firm heterogeneity and its impact on vacancy posting
  • Implications for job creation and destruction
  1. The Matching Function
  • Definition and properties of the matching function (e.g., Cobb-Douglas)
  • Inputs: unemployed workers and job vacancies
  • Outputs: successful matches (new hires)
  • Returns to scale and elasticities of the matching function
  • Congestion externalities and thick-market externalities
  • Empirical estimation of the matching function
  1. Wage Determination in Frictional Labor Markets
  • Beyond perfect competition: surplus sharing and bargaining
  • Nash bargaining solution in the context of worker-firm matches
  • Factors influencing bargaining power: unemployment benefits, outside options, productivity
  • The wage curve and its empirical evidence
  • Wage dispersion in search and matching models
  1. The Basic DMP Model: Equilibrium and Dynamics
  • Bringing together worker search, firm posting, and matching
  • Steady-state equilibrium of unemployment and vacancies
  • Dynamics of employment and unemployment flows
  • Labor market tightness and its role in the model
  • Solving for equilibrium in the basic DMP model
  1. Policy Analysis with Search and Matching Models
  • Impact of unemployment insurance on unemployment duration and equilibrium unemployment
  • Effects of hiring subsidies and firing costs on job creation and destruction
  • Minimum wages and their implications for employment and wages
  • Active labor market policies: job search assistance, training programs
  • Labor market reforms and their anticipated outcomes
  1. Extensions of Search and Matching Models
  • On-the-job search and job-to-job transitions
  • Heterogeneity of workers and firms: skills, productivity, locations
  • Directed search models: workers direct their search to specific firms/vacancies
  • Sorting and matching quality
  • Aggregate shocks and business cycle fluctuations in labor markets
  1. Empirical Applications and Calibration
  • Structural estimation of search and matching models
  • Calibration of model parameters to match empirical moments
  • Use of microdata (e.g., job flows, worker flows, wage data) to inform models
  • Critiques of the quantitative performance of standard DMP models
  • Addressing the "Shimer puzzle" (volatility of unemployment)
  1. Contemporary Issues and Future Research
  • Automation, AI, and the future of work: implications for search and matching
  • Labor market polarization and skill-biased technological change
  • The gig economy and non-standard employment in a search framework
  • Global labor markets and international migration
  • Policy challenges in the face of evolving labor market dynamics.

CERTIFICATION

  • Upon successful completion of this training, participants will be issued with Macskills Training and Development Institute Certificate

TRAINING VENUE

  • Training will be held at Macskills Training Centre. We also tailor make the training upon request at different locations across the world.

AIRPORT PICK UP AND ACCOMMODATION

  • Airport pick up and accommodation is arranged upon request

TERMS OF PAYMENT

Payment should be made to Macskills Development Institute bank account before the start of the training and receipts sent to info@macskillsdevelopment.com

For More Details call: +254-114-087-180

 

 unlocking Labor Markets: Dynamics With Search And Matching Models Training Course in Kenya
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