The International Trade Union Confederation (ITUC) has analyzed the IMF’s working documents from the past few years. The union points out that they do not match the recommendations the institution gave European countries before or during the crisis, which were sometimes the prerequisite for granting financial support when the crisis was at its peak in the euro area. It notably seems that the IMF never clearly established the benefits of labor market deregulation on employment. (Ref. 130275)
Forecasts. The ITUC reminds that the IMF started adding the unemployment issue to its analysis only in 2009. In September 2010, the international organization notably wondered about the consequences of “fiscal consolidation,” namely policies aiming to bring down public deficit and debts, which are likely to “lower incomes – hitting wage-earners more than others – and raise unemployment, particularly long-term unemployment.”
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