https://hdl.handle.net/10419/17 Fri, 30 Oct 2026 20:36:44 GMT 2026-10-30T20:36:44Z https://hdl.handle.net/10419/336769 Title: Minimum wages and provision of training Authors: Zigova, Katarina; Zwick, Thomas Abstract: We find a substantial and long-lasting positive effect of the introduction of regional minimum wages on training incidence and intensity. We apply a stacked difference-in-differences estimation to identify the dynamic effect of high minimum wages introduced in several Swiss cantons between 2018 and 2022. Employers invest more in formal training for retained employees during working hours, covering content beyond their main economic activity. We conclude that employers increase the productivity of their employees to retain the underlying rents. We carefully rule out confounding factors and offer an explanation for the difference between our and some earlier findings. Thu, 01 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://hdl.handle.net/10419/336769 2026-01-01T00:00:00Z https://hdl.handle.net/10419/336765 Title: Low barriers, high stakes: Formal and informal diffusion of AI in the workplace Authors: Arntz, Melanie; Baum, Myriam; Brüll, Eduard; Dorau, Ralf; Hartwig, Matthias; Matthes, Britta; Meyer, Sophie-Charlotte; Schlenker, Oliver; Tisch, Anita; Wischniewski, Sascha Abstract: Artificial intelligence (AI) is diffusing rapidly in the workplace, yet aggregate productivity gains remain limited. This paper examines the dual diffusion of AI - through both formal, employer-led and informal, employee-initiated adoption - as potential explanation. Using a representative survey of nearly 10,000 employees in Germany, we document a high extensive but low intensive margin of usage: while 64 percent use AI tools, only 20 percent use them frequently. This diffusion is strongly skill-biased and depends less on establishment and regional characteristics. While formality is associated with more frequent usage, training, AI-based supervision, and higher perceived productivity gains, it does not broaden access. These patterns suggest that widespread informal usage can coexist with limited productivity effects when complementary investments and organizational integration lag behind. Thu, 01 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://hdl.handle.net/10419/336765 2026-01-01T00:00:00Z https://hdl.handle.net/10419/336756 Title: The deadly consequences of labor scarcity: Evidence from hospitals Authors: Schlenker, Oliver Abstract: Healthcare systems worldwide face increasing nurse shortages, but the consequences remain poorly understood. This paper studies how nurse scarcity in hospitals affects care provision and patient health. I exploit the 2011 Swiss franc stabilization, which increased the salience to cross-border commute from Germany to Switzerland and led to an outflow of nurses in German hospitals depending on their distance to the border. Using rich universal patient-, hospital-, and county-level German and Swiss administrative data in a matched difference-in-differences design, I show that border hospitals lose around 12 percent of their nursing staff. This leads to lower care intensity and a reallocation of services towards urgent cases (triage) while healthcare demand or supply outside hospitals remains unchanged. Consequently, in-hospital mortality rises by 4.4 percent - concentrated among emergency and older patients - and life expectancy decreases by 0.28 statistical life years, with no evidence of offsetting gains in Switzerland. These results highlight that nurse scarcity shapes hospital production and widens health disparities across patients and regions. Thu, 01 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://hdl.handle.net/10419/336756 2026-01-01T00:00:00Z https://hdl.handle.net/10419/336770 Title: Taxonomy talks, credit walks: The EU's climate disclosure framework and bank lending Authors: Kirschenmann, Karolin; Koch, Felicitas; von Schickfus, Marie-Theres; Hainz, Christa Abstract: We study how mandatory climate-related disclosure affects bank lending using the phased introduction of the EU Taxonomy Regulation. Exploiting the staggered development and implementation of the regulation, we distinguish banks' responses to anticipated disclosure requirements from their responses to realized firm-level sustainability information. Using syndicated loan data from 2016 to 2025 and a loan-level difference-in-differences design, we show that banks adjust lending to regulated firms with greater Taxonomy-eligible exposure following the 2019 announcement, reallocating credit toward similarly exposed non-regulated firms. Once firms report alignment, higher alignment is associated with larger loan volumes. We further show that banks adjust contractual terms to manage transition risk. Thu, 01 Jan 2026 00:00:00 GMT https://hdl.handle.net/10419/336770 2026-01-01T00:00:00Z