Labour theory
Professor John Freebairn, Mrs Judy Rich and Mr Mike White
One 3-hour class per week * Second semester * Clayton * Prerequisite: ECO3710
Objectives To be familiar with the contrasting theoretical perspectives and the wide range of models that have been developed to explain wage, employment and productivity outcomes in Australia and overseas; to have an understanding of available data and use of that data by economists in analysing labour market outcomes; to be able to apply theoretical and empirical models of labour markets as building blocks in the analysis of macroeconomic performance of the international economy with particular reference to Australia.
Synopsis Models of a neoclassical flavour to explain sticky wages and the persistence of unemployment; different types of employment contracts, implicit contract models, efficiency wage models, and unions; post-Keynesian models of the labour market; corporatism as an approach to improved stagflation; empirical studies of Australia, European Union countries, and other European countries; the relationship between real wage changes and unemployment - debates over real unit labour costs and indexes of competitiveness.
Assessment Written (two 2000-word essays): 40% * Examination (3 hours): 60%