A service of the

Editor's Choice

Mind the Gap!

On the occasion of the Equal Pay Day in Germany, we call your attention to the large number of articles on the gender wage gap and inequality that were published in Intereconomics:

Unlocking the Potential of Greater Female Employment in Europe by Lone Engbo Christiansen, Huidan Lin, Joana Maria Pereira, Petia Topalova and Rima Turk; Gender Inequality and Growth in Europe by Stephan Klasen and Anna Minasyan; The Gender Employment Gap: Costs and Policy Responses by Martina Bisello and Massimiliano Mascherini; Gender and Inequality: Austerity and Alternatives by Diane Perrons; Gender Equality in Decision-Making Positions: The Efficiency Gains by Paola Profeta; Economic Benefits of Gender Equality in the EU by Helena Morais Maceira; Closing the Gender Pay Gap in the EU by Jill Rubery; and coming soon... The Gender Pay Gap in EU Countries – New Evidence Based on EU-SES 2014 Data by Christina Boll and Andreas Lagemann (will be published end of March 2019).

Current Forum

Economic Convergence or Divergence in the EU?

On 9 October 2018, the 8th annual Intereconomics/CEPS conference took place in Brussels. In the current forum our conference participants share their insights into the trends and driving factors of convergence and divergence in Europe. The versatile contributions make clear that there cannot be a streightfoward answer and why it is, however, a question worth asking.

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Housing Market

Homebuyers, Liquitdity Constraints and Private Market Solutions - European Best Practices
https://archive.intereconomics.eu/year/2019/1/homebuyers-liquidity-constraints-and-private-market-solutions-european-best-practices/

Buying a home is the dream of a significant part of the European Population. But homeownership rates in the EU remain sluggish. Michael Voigtländer presents instruments to ease the access to homeownership such as equity release options, housing savings plans or promising alternatives like crowdlending.

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Quote of the Month

Fifteen Years of Convergence: East-West Imbalance and What the EU Should Do About it

"The real risks of labour mobility from East to West are not in the recipient countries but in the sending countries. A large percentage of workers who migrate from East-Central Europe to the West are overqualified for the jobs in which they find themselves."

From our article Fifteen Years of Convergence: East-West Imbalance and What the EU Should Do About it by László Andor.

Figure of the Month

Development of employment shares by job type across the EU

Development of employment shares by job type across the EU

This figure from Cristobal Ridao-Cano and Christian Bodewigs article How Can Europe Upgrade Its “Convergence Machine“? shows that technological transformation is happening all over Europe. However, not all regions, espacially in southern Europe, were able to translate this into opportunities to highly skilled employment.

Forum

Convergence roadmaps

"Giving the European Commission additional competences in areas where national economic policies generate considerable spillovers can be helpful, but may blur responsibilities and allow national politicians to blame ‘Europe’ for unsatisfying results, even if these results are primarily caused by shortcomings of national policies and the failure to implement necessary reforms," write Mathias Doll et al. The use of 'convergence roadmaps' would help Member States achieve targets by setting out specific time horizons and indicators.

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