Thesis (doctoral)--Universität Konstanz, 2008. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 159-176).

This paper examines the distributional effects of international trade in a general equilibrium model with heterogeneous agents and a welfare state redistributing income. The redistribution scheme is financed by a progressive income tax and gives the same absolute transfer to all individuals. Ceteris paribus, international trade leads to an increase in income per capita but also to higher income inequality on two fronts. Inter-group inequality between managers and workers increases, and intra-group inequality within the group of managers goes up as well. We show that for constant tax rates, there is an endogenous increase in the size of the welfare state that works against the increase in inequality, yet cannot offset it. The paper also sheds light on the conditions under which trade can actually lead to a Pareto improvement.

This paper investigates the effects of international trade in a general equilibrium model with heterogeneous firms where a welfare state redistributes income. We look at a very stylised progressive non-distortionary redistribution scheme. We show that for a given tax rate international trade increases income per capita, but also leads to higher income inequality. Two aspects of income inequality are examined. First, inter-group inequality between managers and workers is considered. Second, intra-group inequality within the group of managers is investigated. For a given tax rate the size of the welfare state and therefore the transfer per capita increases when going from autarky to trade. This second-round effect counteracts the primary increase in inequality, yet cannot outweigh it. Since the redistribution scheme is non-distortionary, it is possible to decrease trade-induced inequality by increasing the tax rate without jeopardising the gains from trade.

This paper examines the effects of a unilateral reform of the redistribution policy in an economy open to international trade. We set up a general equilibrium trade model with heterogeneous agents allowing for country asymmetries. We show that under international trade compared to autarky, a unilateral tax increase leads to a less pronounced decline in aggregate real income in the reforming country, while income inequality is reduced to a larger extent for sufficiently small initial tax rates. We highlight as a key mechanism a tax-induced reduction in the market size of the reforming country relative to its trading partner, resulting in a firm selection effect towards exporting. From the perspective of a non-reforming trading partner, the unilateral redistribution policy reform resembles a unilateral increase in trade costs leading to a deterioration of terms-of-trade and a decline in both aggregate real income and inequality.

This paper investigates the effects of international trade in a general equilibrium model with heterogeneous firms where a welfare state redistributes income. We look at a very stylised progressive non-distortionary redistribution scheme. We show that for a given tax rate international trade increases income per capita, but also leads to higher income inequality. Two aspects of income inequality are examined. First, inter-group inequality between managers and workers is considered. Second, intra-group inequality within the group of managers is investigated. For a given tax rate the size of the welfare state and therefore the transfer per capita increases when going from autarky to trade. This second-round effect counteracts the primary increase in inequality, yet cannot outweigh it. Since the redistribution scheme is non-distortionary, it is possible to decrease trade-induced inequality by increasing the tax rate without jeopardising the gains from trade.

This paper examines the distributional effects of international trade in a general equilibrium model with heterogeneous agents and a welfare state redistributing income. The redistribution scheme is financed by a progressive income tax and gives the same absolute transfer to all individuals. Ceteris paribus, international trade leads to an increase in income per capita but also to higher income inequality on two fronts. Inter-group inequality between managers and workers increases, and intra-group inequality within the group of managers goes up as well. We show that for constant tax rates, there is an endogenous increase in the size of the welfare state that works against the increase in inequality, yet cannot offset it. The paper also sheds light on the conditions under which trade can actually lead to a Pareto improvement.

Diese Dissertation umfasst drei Aufsätze zu Mindestlöhnen, zum Arbeitsangebot sowie zu öffentlichen Finanzen. Der Fokus liegt auf den Entwicklungen in Deutschland innerhalb der letzten zwei Jahrzehnte. Der erste Aufsatz untersucht Beschäftigungseffekte des Mindestlohns in einem Modell der Sucharbeitslosigkeit. Das Modell bildet Heterogenität auf Arbeitnehmer- und Arbeitgeberseite ab und schränkt die Richtung der Beschäftigungseffekte ein. Es erlaubt eine unterschiedliche Frequenz der Stellensuche von Beschäftigten und Arbeitslosen und modelliert die Rekrutierungsintensität der Unternehmen. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass die Arbeitslosigkeit eine nicht-monotone Funktion des Mindestlohns ist. Die Auswirkungen von verschiedenen Mindestlöhnen unterscheiden sich stark nach Arbeitsmarktsegmenten. Der zweite Aufsatz befasst sich mit Trends im Arbeitsangebotsverhalten in Deutschland. Dazu werden diskrete Wahlmodelle des Arbeitsangebots für die Jahre von 1998 bis 2018 geschätzt. Die implizierten Arbeitsangebotselastizitäten haben in den letzten zwei Jahrzehnten zugenommen, insbesondere für Paare und für alleinstehende Männer. Eine Zerlegungsanalyse zeigt, dass Veränderungen in der Demografie nur eine geringe Rolle bei der Verschiebung der Eigen- und Kreuzlohnelastizitäten von Männern spielen, da der größte Teil der Veränderungen durch Präferenzen oder Arbeitsmarktrestriktionen bedingt ist. Bei Frauen hingegen spielen demografische Veränderungen eine größere Rolle für den Anstieg der Elastizitäten. Der dritte Aufsatz befasst sich mit den deutschen Staatsfinanzen sowie mit Reformen aufgrund der Finanzkrise 2008/2009. Der Aufsatz stellt die makroökonomische Situation und die Entwicklung der Krise in Deutschland dar und beleuchtet die Bedeutung für die öffentlichen Finanzen. In dem Aufsatz werden zudem die Verteilungswirkungen der Reformen im Steuer- und Transfersystem mithilfe von Mikrosimulationen untersucht. / This dissertation consists of three essays on the minimum wage, labour supply, and public finances. The selected essays focus on the German experience and developments over the last two decades. The first essay is an analysis of unemployment effects of the German minimum wage in an empirical equilibrium job search model. The estimated model with worker and firm heterogeneity does not restrict the sign of employment effects a priori; it allows for different job offer arrival rates for the employed and the unemployed and lets firms optimally choose their recruiting intensity. Results show that unemployment is a non-monotonic function of the minimum wage level, and effects differ strongly by labour market segment. The second essay is on the topic of labour supply elasticities in Germany. In order to analyse recent trends in labour supply in Germany, a static discrete choice model of unitary household labour supply is estimated for each year 1998 to 2018. Findings are that own-wage labour supply elasticities implied by the models have increased over the last two decades, especially for couples, and for single males. A decomposition analysis shows that compositional changes in demographics play only a minor role in the shift in males' own- and cross-wage elasticities, since most of the changes in elasticities are driven by preferences or labour market restrictions. For females, changes in composition play a bigger role in the rise of elasticities. The third essay reviews German public finances through the financial crisis 2008/2009. The essay starts with a presentation of the macroeconomic situation and how the crisis unfolded in Germany, before focusing on the situation of the public finances. Finally, the distributional effects of policy responses to the financial crisis are analysed on the individual level using microsimulation.

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