Welcome to the ESRI's monthly eNewsletter, with information on our events, publications, and new projects. If you require any further information on the ESRI's activities please visit our website at www.esri.ie, or email admin@esri.ie.

FORTHCOMING EVENTS

ESRI Seminars
ESRI Seminars usually take place on Thursdays at 4 p.m. in the ESRI at Sir John Rogerson's Quay, unless stated otherwise. No booking is required. Please note that Seminar dates may change. Please check the web site regularly, at www.esri.ie.

ESRI Research Seminar "Contract Parameters’ Impacts on Coal Prices"
Date: 05/02/2009
Time: 4 pm
Speaker: Ian Lange, University of Stirling (http://www.econ.stir.ac.uk/People/staff/Lange/lange.htm)  

ESRI Research Seminar "Housing Benefits and the Irish Tax Benefit System"
Date: 26/2/2009
Time: 4 pm
Speaker: Philip Hayes, NUI Galway, Teagasc and CPA. 

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6th Euroframe Conference on Economic Policy Issues in the EU "Causes and Consequences of the Current Financial Crisis: what lessons for European Union countries?

Venue: London; Date: 12/06/2009. Click for further details.

Call for Papers
Abstracts should be submitted by e-mail before 13 March to catherine.mathieu@ofce.sciencespo.fr. Full papers should be received by e-mail by 25 May. Download details (pdf)

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PUBLICATIONS

Annual Policy Report on Migration and Asylum 2007: Ireland
Joyce, C., ESRI Survey & Statistical Report Series 005, Report for the European Commission Directorate-General Justice, Freedom and Security, December 2008.

Annual Policy Report on Asylum and Migration Statistics for Ireland (2006)
Joyce, C., ESRI Survey and Statistical Report Series 010, Report prepared for the European Commission Directorate-General Justice, Freedom and Security and published by the ESRI, December 2007.

Consumer Sentiment Index
Latest KBC Ireland/ESRI Consumer Sentiment Index report. January 2009.

Permanent tsb/ESRI House Price Index.
Latest permanent tsb/ESRI House Price Index report, January 2009.

"Economic Costs of Extratropical Storms Under Climate Change: An Application of FUND"
Narita, D. (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), Tol, R.S.J., Anthoff, D., ESRI Working Paper No. 274, Dublin: ESRI, January 2009.

"Projecting the Future Numbers of Migrant Workers in the Health and Social Care Sectors in Ireland"
Barrett, A., Rust, A. (NUIG), ESRI Working Paper No. 275, Dublin: ESRI, January 2009.

"The Games We Used to Play: An Application of Survival Analysis to the Sporting Life-course"
Lunn, P., ESRI Working Paper No. 272, Dublin: ESRI, January 2009.

"The Impact of Flexible Working Arrangements on Work-life Conflict and Work Pressure in Ireland"
Russell, H., O’Connell, P.J., McGinnity, F. (2009), Special Issue of Gender, Work and Organization, 'Work/Life Balance: A Matter Of Choice?', Vol. 16, No. 1, January 2009.

"The Macro-Economic Impact of Changing the Rate of Corporation Tax"
Conefrey, T., Fitz Gerald, J., ESRI Working Paper No. 273, Dublin: ESRI, January 2009.

"Understanding Cross-Country Differences in Exporter Premia: Comparable Evidence for 14 Countries"
Ruane, F., Haller, S., Non-ESRI authors: Pertl, L., Schiavo, S., Muuls, M., Pisu, M., Álvarez, R., Jaramillo, P., López, R.A., Van Biesebroeck, J., Brandt, L., Zhang, Y., Fernandes, A.M., Isgut, A., Jørgensen, R., Kaiser, U., Bellone, F., Jabbour, L., Musso, P., Nesta, L., Fryges, H., Wagner, J., Castellani, D., Serti, F., Tomasi, C., Zanfei, A., Damijan, J. P., Kostevc, C., Polanec, S., Fariñas, J. C., Jabbour, L., Máñez, J.A., Martin, A., Rochina, M. E., Sanchis, J.A., Andersson, M., Johansson, S., Greenaway, D., Kneller, R, Görg, H., Review of World Economics, Vol. 144, No 4, December 2008, pp.596-635, DOI: 10.1007/s10290-008-0163-y, Published online 20 January 2009, Berlin: Springer.

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FORTHCOMING PUBLICATIONS

(Please note that the publication dates of forthcoming publications may change. Please check the ESRI web site at www.esri.ie).

"Assessing the Incidence and Wage Effects of Overskilling in the Australian Labour Market"
Mavromaras, K (University of Melbourne), McGuinness, S., King, F. Y. (University of Melbourne), The Economic Record, March 2009.

"Assessing Vulnerability of Selected Sectors Under Environmental Tax Reform: The Issue of Pricing Power"
Fitz Gerald, J., Keeney, M. (Central Bank of Ireland), Scott, S., Journal of Environmental Planning and Management, Vol. 52, Issue 1, 2009.

"Changing Returns to Education during a Boom? The Case of Ireland"
McGuinness, S., McGinnity, F. and O'Connell, P. J., in Labour: Review of Labour Economics and Industrial Relations, Vol. 23, No. 1, March 2009.

"Overskilling, Job Insecurity and Career Mobility: Evidence from Australia"
McGuinness, S., Wooden, M. (University of Melbourne), Industrial Relations: a Journal of Economy and Society, April 2009.

"'The Balancing Act' - Irish Part-time Undergraduate Students in Higher Education"
Darmody, M., Fleming, B. (UCD), Irish Educational Studies, Vol. 28, March 2009.

"The Impact of Multinational Entry on Domestic Market Structure and Investment"
Haller, S., International Review of Economics and Finance, Vol. 18, 2009, pp. 52-62, DOI: 10.1016/j.iref.2008.02.004, February 2009.

"Tax Structure and Female Labour Supply: Evidence from Ireland"
Callan, T., van Soest, A., Walsh, J.R., LABOUR: Review of Labour Economics and Industrial Relation, Vol. 23, No. 1, March 2009.

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NEW PROJECTS

Determinants and Consequences of Skill Mismatch and Policy Implications

Seamus McGuinness, Philip J.O'Connell, (ESRI), Peter Sloane, (University of Swansea), Nigel O'Leary, (University of Swansea), Kostas Mavromaras (University of Melbourne).

This research is being undertaken for the European Centre for the Development of Vocational Training (Cedefop) on the determinants and consequences of skill mismatch and policy implications. The research programme will last for four years and will involve a collaboration between researchers at the ESRI, Swansea University and The University of Melbourne. In the initial phase of the study the researchers will investigate: 1. A taxonomy of mismatch to include over and undereducation, over and underskilling, labour shortages and skills obsolescence. 2. What are the links between skill mismatch experienced at the level of the individual, the level of the firm and the economy? 3. The most appropriate approach to assessing the impacts of skill mismatch. 4. The extent to which job mismatch represents a serious concern for policy makers. Three subsequent studies will be commissioned based on the findings and recommendations of this initial research.

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Monitoring Quality of Life in Europe - Lot 4: Social Exclusion

Richard Layte (PI), Christopher T. Whelan, Bertrand Maitre, (ESRI), Tony Fahey, Evaluator (UCD)

The last two decades have witnessed a transformation of the European debate around social progress and how we measure it. Since the early 1990s, the concept of social inclusion/exclusion has become increasingly important as the focus of social policy, a priority highlighted at the Maastricht summit and further underlined by Lisbon Treaty. This project, commissioned by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions, will use data from the 31 countries in the European Quality of Life Survey 2007/2008 and the 28 countries in the 2003 survey to examine the relationship between perceived social exclusion and living conditions across a range of national contexts and the crucial role played by labour market participation. The report will also examine whether patterns of social support mediate the relationship between living conditions and social exclusion and whether these factors impact on mental health. The final report is scheduled for delivery in September 2009.

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Monitoring Quality of Life in Europe - Lot 2: Subjective well-being

Dorothy Watson (PI) (ESRI), Claire Wallace (University of Aberdeen), Florian Pichler (University of Surrey), Ruut Veenhoven (Evaluator, Erasmus University Rotterdam), Heinz Herbert-Noll (Evaluator, GESIS, Mannheim), Tony Fahey, Evaluator, (UCD).

International organisations such as the European Commission and the OECD are increasingly recognising the need to move beyond a narrow focus on economic indicators in measuring social progress. Indicators of subjective well-being (SWB) have a key role to play in international research on social progress for a number of reasons: they can (a) ensure an appreciation of the values and goals of culturally diverse groups (b) point to the emerging objective conditions (typically more amenable to intervention) where national and European targets need to be set (c) provide a guide to the types of non-economic social phenomena that can provide benefits that extend beyond those directly involved and (d) focus attention on positive mental health as a key element of social cohesion. This project, commissioned by the European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions, will use data from the 31 countries in the European Quality of Life Survey 2007/2008 and the 28 countries in the 2003 survey to track changes in both subjective well-being and objective quality of life and the relationship between these two dimensions. The final report is scheduled for delivery in September 2009.

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Pregnancy Discrimination at Work

Helen Russell, Dorothy Watson

Studies elsewhere in Europe show that a significant proportion of women experience a range of negative or unfair treatment in the workplace during pregnancy. This can range from the extreme of dismissal, through experiences such as unequal access to promotion, unsuitable workloads to more subtle forms of unfair treatment. The Crisis Pregnancy Agency have commissioned the ESRI to undertake a comprehensive study of women’s experiences of pregnancy at work with a view to assessing levels of pregnancy related discrimination in Ireland. The first stage of the research involves the review of the relevant national and international literature on pregnancy related discrimination and the preparation of an outline of Irish legislation and EU Directives governing maternity and employment protection. The outline of the legislative context will include an assessment of decisions of the Equality Tribunal concerning pregnancy related cases over the last ten years. The first phase of the research also involves the design and pilot of a survey instrument to examine women’s experiences of employment during pregnancy and their careers/experiences post-birth.

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OTHER NEWS

Vacancy

The ESRI has a vacancy for an Energy Economist. For further details and to download the application form please visit the website at http://www.esri.ie/job_opportunities/.

Subscription to the Quarterly Economic Commentary

The ESRI Quarterly Economic Commentary (QEC) is the essential reference on the Irish economy. For further details and to subscribe visit the ESRI website, or email membership@esri.ie.

Fraudulent Emails

We have had reports of individuals receiving emails purporting to come from the ESRI offering either employment or the chance to earn money. These are fraudulent. The Institute does not recruit people in this way. Please bring any such emails to our attention, by emailing admin@esri.ie. For further details visit our website.

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The Economic and Social Research Institute, Whitaker Square, Sir John Rogerson's Quay, Dublin 2. Tel: +353 1 8632000; Fax: +353 1 8632100; Email: admin@esri.ie; Website: www.esri.ie.