Doing It Right? The US Labour Market Response to the 1980s/1990s

In this paper I examine both the positive and negative aspects of the US labor market response to the economic world of the 1980s/1990s. I review the economic development that created difficulties in the US and other advanced economies post the first oil shock; consider how a decentralised labor market might be expected to respond to them; and summarise the American response. I conclude by assessing the social welfare consequences of the American response relative to that in Europe.