(1) The basic problem in OECD countries is the tax void. (2) A tax system with an exemption is more transparant than a system with a tax credit. (3) Exemption should be at the level of the net minimum wage so that such workers can work at net = gross. (4) A tax credit is a sufficient but not a...

This article is about the link between people’s subjective well-being, defined as an evaluation of one’s own life, and productivity. Our aim is to test the hypothesis that subjective well-being contributes to productivity using a two step approach: first, we establish whether subjective...

The article analyzes the requirement recently formulated by different parties of the accession process: the candidate countries should raise their wage level close to the average of the EU even before they join the union. The authors show that wage convergence, defined this way, has no...

There is no way around it: each theory rests on a tiny set of foundational propositions. Standard economics rests on behavioral axioms. After a long intellectual detour it should be clear by now that behavioral axioms are the wrong formal departure point. Being beyond repair, they have to be...

The demographic database of Eurostat and of Us Census of Bureau are explored and the main facts are extracted and described. This paper is completely self-standing but is also part of a more general analysis dedicated to the functioning and sustainability of pay-as-you-go to finance the welfare...

Ontario's private sector has had zero productivity growth in the latest six year period. Ontario performed much worse than the rest of Canada or the United States. This is obviously a cause for concern. Productivity is an important measure of progress in the economy, as it is associated with...

In this study, I analyze the characteristics of trading firms in the Spanish service sector. I reveal that half of the service firms in Spain operate only in their local markets, whereas one-third of the examined service firms trade with non-local areas of Spain, and fewer than 20% of Spanish...

This paper documents the variation in economic characteristics across voyages during the trans-Atlantic slave trade. Dispersion in output, measured as slaves disembarked, is highest across Portuguese voyages, lower across French voyages, and lowest across British voyages. We use a structural...

For effective economic growth, intentional “creation” of unemployment is required to be followed up by its «elimination». From Okun’s law one can infer an interesting corollary: growing unemployment without reducing GDP increases the economy’s potential. This corollary can be proved...

This paper analyzes the relationship between export status and productivity in a major service exporter, Spain, during 2001-2007. I find that exporters in the services sector are 37% more productive than non-exporters. This productivity premium is larger for firms that supply...