The Employment and Output Effects of Short-Time Work in Germany
Working Paper 23688
DOI 10.3386/w23688
Issue Date
We study the employment and output effects of the short-time work (STW) policy in Germany between 2009 and 2010. This intervention facilitated reductions in hours worked per employee with the goal of preventing layoffs. Using confidential German micro-level data we estimate a search model with heterogeneous multi-worker firms as a basis for policy analysis. Our findings suggest that STW can prevent increases in unemployment during a recession. However, the policy leads to a decrease in the allocative efficiency of the labor market, resulting in significant output losses. These effects arise from a reduction in the vacancy filling rate resulting from the policy intervention.