ABSTRACT
J. J. Lee’s energetic presentation provided an excellent introduction to the conference. In providing a historical perspective to Irish unemployment, Lee highlighted three issues of specific importance to Ireland: values and vested interests; unavailability of information; and long term unemployment and culture of poverty. More generally, Lee highlighted the presence of strong cultural, economic, political and social vested interests in Ireland and suggested a link between these interests and the apparent willingness of the Irish to accept unemployment. Unemployment is examined in the context of a contrast between the neoclassical and post-Keynesian/institutionalist (PKI) approaches to the functioning of labour markets. The post-Keynesian part of the PKI label stems from an emphasis on demand deficiency as being the most important factor in explaining unemployment. The return to a Bretton Woods type accord is beyond the scope of Irish domestic policy but it would have been interesting to hear the PKI’s view of European Monetary Union and its effect on Irish unemployment.
