The Beveridge Curve in the OECD Before and After the Crisis

This paper tests the existence of a Beveridge Curve across the economies of nine OECD countries from 1980 to 2011, investigating the impact of various kinds of structural factors (technological progress, globalisation, oil prices) and of the current recession on the Curve. Technological progress (R&D intensity) shifts the Curve outwards, producing evidence in support of the creative destruction effect. Globalisation and unfavourable oil price shocks also shift the Curve outwards, worsening the unemployment-vacancies trade-off. Structural relationships seem to be stable enough in the 2008-2011 period, suggesting that the current crisis mainly implied moves along the Curve.