Download or read book EMU Challenges European Labor Markets written by Rüdiger Soltwedel and published by International Monetary Fund. This book was released on 1999-09-01 with total page 51 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This paper discusses the challenges that European Monetary Union (EMU) poses for European labor markets, emphasizing in particular the regional dimension of the European unemployment problem. The authors argue that the inability of labor markets to adjust to shocks is largely a regional problem within EMU member countries, requiring structural reforms to enhance labor market flexibility but also a decentralization of competencies and greater diversity of labor market outcomes. Any attempt to successfully reform European labor markets and “make them fit for EMU” has to take into account the regional–and even a more decentralized firm–perspective.