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May 1981

Discussion of the Hamermesh Paper, "Transfers, Taxes and the NAIRU"

by Fredric Raines

Daniel Hamermesh has undertaken an extensive survey of what we know about the impact of income maintenance programs on employment, unemployment, and labor force participation. Reflected in this paper is an awesome amount of research, both that of others and his own. And, on balance, he has done an excellent job of synthesizing this literature. He is, certainly, the resident expert in this area among us. If this conference is a supply-side harvest, we may note that Hamermesh has been busy tilling the fields and gathering the crops.