DIW Economic Bulletin

Does Better, Cheaper Day Care Make for More Satisfied Parents?

Following the major expansion of day care provision in Germany in recent years, the quality of these programs has increasingly also been the subject of public debate. When evaluating the quality of German day care centers, experts have frequently concluded that there is considerable room for improvement. Apart from consider¬ing expert opinions, it is also interesting to look at how parents rate the ...

Costs of "Family Working-Time Benefits Model" (Familienarbeitszeit) Manageable in the Short Term: Six Questions to Kai-Uwe Müller

The "Family Working-Time Benefits Model" (Familienarbeitszeit): Giving Mothers More Time for Work, Giving Fathers More Time for Family

Two years ago, DIW Berlin introduced “Familienarbeitszeit”, which offers wage replacement for families in which both partners decide to take on reduced full-time employment (working hours amount¬ing to roughly 80 percent of a full-time job, henceforth referred to as “three-quarters employment”). This study investigates further developments of this model: Apart from a more generous wage replacement ...

Ganzes Heft

The Price of Oil Is Having a Stronger Impact on the Ruble's Exchange Rate Than Are the Sanctions: Seven Questions to Konstantin Kholodilin

The Ruble between the Hammer and the Anvil: The Impact of Oil Prices and Economic Sanctions

The Russian economy is tightly woven into the global economy, and is therefore highly dependent on the development of exchange rates. Since 2014, the ruble has fallen by more than 50 percent against the US dollar. The de¬valuation goes hand in hand with the Western sanctions that were imposed due to the political tensions between Russia and Ukraine. At the same time, the decline in oil prices may also ...

Ganzes Heft

No Decline in Investment in Public-Sector Energy and Water Supply

A considerable share of public investment comes not only from public budgets but also from public utility companies. One major area of investment is energy and water supply, where the utility companies have substantial fixed assets in the form of distribution infrastructure. Using new microdata which has not been analyzed before, the present report shows that—unlike with the core public budgets—public ...

Large and Lasting Regional Disparities in Municipal Investments

The regional dispersion of local public investment in Germany is very uneven. Even a comparison between the states shows considerable differences in gross investment. Municipalities in Bavaria currently invest more than three times as much per capita as those in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania. There are even greater differences between districts and independent cities, both nationwide and within the ...

Local Public Infrastructure Showing Signs of Wear and Tear

Investment in public infrastructure is essential to ensure competitiveness and create growth potential. Although Germany certainly has a well-developed infrastructure compared to other countries, local public infrastructure has been in decline for many years now. This means that current levels of investment are not sufficient to offset this decline, and the infrastructure is becoming increasingly outdated ...

Investing in Germany! Six Questions to Marcel Fratzscher

Overcoming Weaknesses in Municipal Investment

Ganzes Heft

East-West Gap in Private Research, Development, and Innovation in Germany: Research-Intensive Industries and Larger Companies Represented Weakly: Five Questions to Alexander Eickelpasch

Structural Differences at the Root of East-West Gap in Research, Development, and Innovation in Germany

Over the past two decades, research and development (R&D) activities in eastern Germany have increased substantially, albeit to a lesser extent than in western Germany. Furthermore, R&D in eastern Germany was primarily conducted by research in the government sector and less so by universities and businesses. In 2013, overall, R&D activities in eastern Germany reached 86 percent of the western German ...

Ganzes Heft

I Find the Term "Quota Woman" Unobjective: Eight Questions to Norma Schmitt

Towards a Gender Quota

In 2016, a fixed gender quota will come into force in Germany, affecting the supervisory boards of listed companies that also have employee representation (full codetermination).1 By as early as September 30, 2015, however, all companies will be obliged to set a self-imposed target quota – even companies that meet just one of these criteria; i.e., either listed or subject to codetermination. A variety ...

Ganzes Heft

Germany Particularly Affected by Current Influx of Refugees: Five Questions to Karl Brenke