Ludo Visschers inaugural lecture

Professor Ludo Visschers, Personal Chair in Economics, will deliver his inaugural lecture "Unemployment, Switching Occupations, and the Business Cycle” on Tuesday the 9th of May. The lecture will commence at 5pm in the Project Room 1.06 50 George Square, EH8 9LH.

Recessions and booms give rise to distinctly different patterns of career changing among unemployed workers. Are downturns the times that unemployed workers, by necessity, more often start new careers; or do they change careers more often in expansions, by opportunity? Some theories indicate one answer, other theories the opposite answer.

We will start by looking at the empirical data patterns, and further investigate whether and how career switching among the unemployed relates to structural shifts in the economy. We will also investigate a theoretical framework that can help us understand important aspects of the interrelation between the duration of workers' unemployment spells and their decisions to change careers, and how this affects behaviour in downturns and in booms.