ROCKWOOL Foundation Berlin

🧠 Research Insight How can collective bargaining balance flexibility for firms with protection for workers? Research by Christian Dustmann, Bernd Fitzenberger and Lorenzo Incoronato examines evidence from Germany and Italy. 🔍 Greater flexibility can help firms adapt and preserve jobs, but may also lead to lower wages. In Italy, the effects depend on local labor market conditions and employers’ wage-setting power. 📢 The bottom line: Flexibility can support employment, but effective wage protection remains essential. 🔗 Read the full Research Insight: buff.ly/0mXmv0y

🎓️ Today we had the pleasure to host Prof. Michael Keane (Johns Hopkins University) at the RFBerlin Applied Economics Seminar series, where he presented on "Human Capital and Optimal Taxation"! Click the link for more info on events at RFBerlin 🔗 buff.ly/qosqIX2

🗞️ The weekly release of our Discussion Paper Series! You find more here: buff.ly/B8AMvLL

RFBerlin Director Christian Dustmann presented "Understanding Immigration's Labor Market Effects" at the Immigration Policy Lab's Science of International Migration Seminar (SIMS) series! Watch his full talk here: buff.ly/U0s37A4

⏳ Just a few weeks left to submit to the RFBerlin Migration Forum 2027. We welcome research on migration, integration, economic competitiveness, and more. 📅 Submission deadline: 8 November rfberlin.com/event/migration…

Next week Tuesday 27 October, we welcome Michael Keane, Wm. Polk Carey Distinguished Professor at Johns Hopkins Carey Business School to Berlin for our Applied Economics Seminar Series! 📄 He will give a seminar on "Human Capital and Optimal Taxation", exploring how investments in skills shape the design of tax policies and why shifting from income to consumption taxes could benefit society. 📷 : buff.ly/JV9sSfY

With closing remarks by RFBerlin Director Christian Dustmann today's workshop comes to an end. Thank you to everyone involved, it was an inspiring day! 🎉

To close off the day, we are pleased to welcome our keynote speaker Prof. W. Bentley MacLeod (@Yale, @Columbia), with his talk on "What are the implications of computational complexity for law and economics?".

Before we have our last coffee break, RFBerlin Deputy Director Alexandra Spitz-Oener (HU Berlin) presents on "AI and the Transformation of Firm Work".

Now, RFBerlin Senior Research Officers Izabela Wnuk-Soares and Jakob Wegmann present in turn. First we have Izabela on "Immigration and Employment in Long-Term Care: Evidence from EU Enlargement", followed by Jakob on "Diversity in Small Samples".

We resume after the lunch break with a presentation on "Routes to Retirement: Pension Design, Health, and Occupation" by RFBerlin Associate Courtney Brell from @EconUCL

Up next we have Jérôme Adda, (@Unibocconi & Project Leader RFBerlin) presenting "Structural Change, Occupational Choice, and Health Outcomes" and RFBerlin Deputy Director Hyejin Ku (@EconUCL, RFBerlin) speaking on "The China Shock in Science: Shoulders or Toes?".

Up next before the coffee break we have Stan de Ruijter van Steveninck of @EconUCL : Embodied Displacement: Suppliers’ Automation and Downstream Workers

After an opening address by deputy director Hyejin Ku, we start our RFBerlin Workshop on Topics in Applied Microeconomics with the first presentation by RFBerlin Project Leader Ines Helm on "Firm Expansion in Imperfect Labor Markets".

...and that's it! The RFBerlin Annual Public Lecture with Prof. Janet Currie was a big success! We want to thank everyone involved and look back on amazing event! 🎉

With a warm welcome by RFBerlin Director Christian Dustmann, we are excited to kick off the Annual Public Lecture with Prof. Janet Currie (Yale University) on Investing in Child Mental Health! 🎉 ➡️ In case you couldn't make it to the event, follow the lecture on our livestream: buff.ly/0WKUir1

🎓️ 𝗜𝘁'𝘀 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼𝗱𝗮𝘆! Prof. Janet Currie (Yale University) will deliver the RFBerlin Annual Public Lecture on "𝙄𝙣𝙫𝙚𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙣 𝘾𝙝𝙞𝙡𝙙 𝙈𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙡 𝙃𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙩𝙝: 𝙄𝙢𝙥𝙡𝙞𝙘𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙨 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙃𝙪𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝘾𝙖𝙥𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙡 𝘿𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙡𝙤𝙥𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩". It's going to take place at Humboldt University Berlin, Spandauer Straße 1, Lecture hall 201 at 16:00. ❗️Participation is 𝗙𝗥𝗘𝗘, registration is required. Make sure to secure your seat before it's too late! buff.ly/uY3WWVs ➡️ In case you're not in Berlin but still wish to attend, we have a livestream starting at 16:00: buff.ly/xxuTtxH We're super excited, hope to see you there! 🎉

📰 RFBerlin Director Christian Dustman was interviewed by WELT about the need for greater flexibility in the German labor market. He highlighted the importance of allowing firms to adapt to rapidly changing economic conditions, supporting longer fixed-term employment contracts and tax incentives that encourage workers to transition more quickly into new jobs. 🗞️ Read here: buff.ly/ZnDce0l