Research & Publications Office to host seminar titled ‘The Implications of Labor Market Heterogeneity for Unemployment Insurance Design’ on March 14
The session will be led by Prof. Kurt See, National University of Singapore
10 March, 2026, Bangalore: The Research & Publications Office at IIM Bangalore will host a seminar titled, ‘The Implications of Labor Market Heterogeneity for Unemployment Insurance Design’ by Kurt See, Economics area, National University of Singapore, on March 14, 2026, at 11:20 AM in Classroom P12.
The seminar examines how differences across workers in earnings, wealth, and unemployment duration influence unemployment insurance (UI) policies. Using individual-level estimates of UI eligibility, take-up, and replacement rates, the research documents how access to and participation in unemployment insurance vary significantly across workers.
Building on these insights, the study extends a widely used economic framework that combines an incomplete-markets model with a frictional labor market. The findings suggest that when labor market heterogeneity and workers’ choices to take up unemployment insurance are incorporated, the optimal UI policy becomes substantially more generous.
The analysis also highlights the role of endogenous UI take-up, which involves a utility cost: only individuals who value unemployment insurance the most choose to participate. The research finds that the welfare gains from better ensuring these workers outweigh the potential losses associated with increased take-up, offering new perspectives for designing more effective unemployment insurance policies.
About the Speaker
Kurt See is an Assistant Professor of Economics at the National University of Singapore. Before joining NUS, he served as a Principal Researcher at the Bank of Canada. His research focuses on labor economics and macroeconomics, with particular interest in labor market dynamics and policy design.
Research & Publications Office to host seminar titled ‘The Implications of Labor Market Heterogeneity for Unemployment Insurance Design’ on March 14
The session will be led by Prof. Kurt See, National University of Singapore
10 March, 2026, Bangalore: The Research & Publications Office at IIM Bangalore will host a seminar titled, ‘The Implications of Labor Market Heterogeneity for Unemployment Insurance Design’ by Kurt See, Economics area, National University of Singapore, on March 14, 2026, at 11:20 AM in Classroom P12.
The seminar examines how differences across workers in earnings, wealth, and unemployment duration influence unemployment insurance (UI) policies. Using individual-level estimates of UI eligibility, take-up, and replacement rates, the research documents how access to and participation in unemployment insurance vary significantly across workers.
Building on these insights, the study extends a widely used economic framework that combines an incomplete-markets model with a frictional labor market. The findings suggest that when labor market heterogeneity and workers’ choices to take up unemployment insurance are incorporated, the optimal UI policy becomes substantially more generous.
The analysis also highlights the role of endogenous UI take-up, which involves a utility cost: only individuals who value unemployment insurance the most choose to participate. The research finds that the welfare gains from better ensuring these workers outweigh the potential losses associated with increased take-up, offering new perspectives for designing more effective unemployment insurance policies.
About the Speaker
Kurt See is an Assistant Professor of Economics at the National University of Singapore. Before joining NUS, he served as a Principal Researcher at the Bank of Canada. His research focuses on labor economics and macroeconomics, with particular interest in labor market dynamics and policy design.