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Economies
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From Permacrisis to Technological Breakthrough: Prospects for the Global Economy...
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From Permacrisis to Technological Breakthrough: Prospects for the Global Economy Post-COVID-19

A special issue of Economies (ISSN 2227-7099). This special issue belongs to the section "Labour and Education".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: 30 June 2025 | Viewed by 8526

Special Issue Editor

Dr. Francesco Schettino

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Dipartimento di Economia, Università degli Studi della Campania Luigi Vanvitelli, Naples, Italy
Interests: innovation; income distribution; economic development; economic history

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

On the 10 May 2023, after around 766 million cumulative COVID-19 cases worldwide and nearly 7 million deaths from the disease, the WHO officially declared the end of COVID-19 as a Global Health Emergency. Despite enormous efforts relying mainly on expansionary fiscal policies (NextGenerationEU, Biden stimulus, etc.), the GDP growth rate forecasts are not satisfactory, especially for advanced countries. The global economic contradictions preceding the emergence of the pandemic appear to present similar characteristics now. A shrinking middle class, income inequality, inflation, unemployment, job insecurity, and relative as well as absolute poverty are issues that do not seem to have left the contemporary world. This aside, in the background, the challenge of technological “leapfrogging”— represented by the adoption of AI and related innovations (the metaverse, etc.)—can potentially create new scenarios. The aim of this Special Issue is to identify what the prospects are for the world economic system after a health crisis of unprecedented dimensions and the dawn of new technological change that could substantially alter the main features of the capitalist mode of production. Contributions relating to studies on income distribution, the labor market, wages, technological change, and growth, from both empirical and theoretical perspectives, will be considered.

Dr. Francesco Schettino
Guest Editor

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Keywords

  • capitalist crisis
  • IA and big data
  • innovation and new technologies
  • functional and personal income distribution
  • global distribution of income and poverty
  • polarization and the middle class
  • wealth distribution and concentration
  • social and class conflicts

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Published Papers (4 papers)

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Research

27 pages, 1844 KiB  
Article
Shipyard Manpower Digital Recruitment: A Data-Driven Approach for Norwegian Stakeholders
by Bogdan Florian Socoliuc, Andrei Alexandru Suciu, Mădălina Ecaterina Popescu, Doru Alexandru Plesea and Florin Nicolae
Economies 2025, 13(1), 16; https://doi.org/10.3390/economies13010016 - 11 Jan 2025
Viewed by 1373
Abstract
This study examines the effectiveness of digital recruitment platforms in addressing labor shortages within Norway’s shipbuilding and ship-repair industry. Through a data analysis of 446 job applications over a 12-month period, this study evaluates key recruitment metrics, including application response times (ARTs), candidate [...] Read more.
This study examines the effectiveness of digital recruitment platforms in addressing labor shortages within Norway’s shipbuilding and ship-repair industry. Through a data analysis of 446 job applications over a 12-month period, this study evaluates key recruitment metrics, including application response times (ARTs), candidate acceptance rates (CARs), and the impact of machine learning on hiring outcomes. The findings reveal that specialized digital platforms can significantly improve recruitment efficiency, with 70% of applications being received within 24 h, highlighting the platforms’s great potential for time-sensitive sectors. Additionally, pre-vetting candidates enhances hiring precision, achieving a CAR of 90% and reducing mismatches. The application of machine learning algorithms provides predictive insights that support real-time adjustments to job postings, optimizing recruitment strategies. This study contributes uniquely to the literature on cross-border digital recruitment, aligning with the European Union goals of sustainable labor mobility and economic resilience. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Permacrisis to Technological Breakthrough: Prospects for the Global Economy Post-COVID-19)
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27 pages, 2739 KiB  
Article
Productivity and Wages in South Africa
by Brian Tavonga Mazorodze
Economies 2024, 12(12), 330; https://doi.org/10.3390/economies12120330 - 2 Dec 2024
Viewed by 1573
Abstract
The world has experienced rapid productivity growth in the last three decades, but has this growth reflected in wages? In theory, under certain conditions, workers earn their marginal product so that productivity growth feeds into wages on a one-to-one basis. Given the contradictory [...] Read more.
The world has experienced rapid productivity growth in the last three decades, but has this growth reflected in wages? In theory, under certain conditions, workers earn their marginal product so that productivity growth feeds into wages on a one-to-one basis. Given the contradictory literature, this paper revisited the productivity–wage relationship in South Africa using an industry-level panel dataset comprising 74 industries observed between 1993 and 2023. Using several estimators, four main findings are observed. First, productivity is found to have grown faster than wages. Second, the observed productivity–wage divergence partly reflects the squeezing of workers for profits. Third, productivity growth mostly outpaced the wages of low-skilled workers, workers on short-term contracts, and informal workers. Fourth, productivity growth largely undermined take-home pay compared to fringe benefits. These results imply that although boosting productivity growth may be important, its achievement may not lead to broad-based wage gains in South Africa unless the government pursues policies that realign productivity and the pay of low-skilled workers, informal workers, and workers on short-term contracts. Such policies may include sector-based incentives for businesses that improve wage conditions, increased union support in high-growth industries, improved regulation of the informal sector, and vocational training for low-skilled workers. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Permacrisis to Technological Breakthrough: Prospects for the Global Economy Post-COVID-19)
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32 pages, 396 KiB  
Article
Underestimating the Pandemic: The Impact of COVID-19 on Income Distribution in the U.S. and Brazil
by Federica Alfani, Fabio Clementi, Michele Fabiani, Vasco Molini and Francesco Schettino
Economies 2024, 12(9), 235; https://doi.org/10.3390/economies12090235 - 3 Sep 2024
Viewed by 1715
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed individuals to various risks, including job loss, income reduction, deteriorating well-being, and severe health complications and death. In Brazil and the U.S., as well as in other countries, the initial response to the pandemic was marked by governmental [...] Read more.
The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed individuals to various risks, including job loss, income reduction, deteriorating well-being, and severe health complications and death. In Brazil and the U.S., as well as in other countries, the initial response to the pandemic was marked by governmental underestimation, leading to inadequate public health measures to curb the spread of the virus. Although progressively mitigated, this approach played a crucial role in the impacts on local populations. Therefore, the principal aim of this paper is to evaluate the impact of COVID-19 and, indirectly, of the policies adopted by the U.S. and the Brazilian governments to prevent pandemic diffusion on income distribution. Utilizing available microdata and employing novel econometric methods (RIF-regression for inequality measures) this study shows that growth in COVID-19 prevalence significantly exacerbates economic disparities. Furthermore, the impact of COVID-19 on inequality has increased over time, suggesting that this negative impact has been intensifying. In the U.S., results indicate that working from home, the inability to work, and barriers to job-seeking significantly increase inequalities. Although further data are necessary to validate the hypothesis, this preliminary evidence suggests that the pandemic has significantly contributed to increased inequality in these two countries already characterized by increasing polarization and significant social disparities. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Permacrisis to Technological Breakthrough: Prospects for the Global Economy Post-COVID-19)
27 pages, 828 KiB  
Article
The Widening of the North–South Divide: Debt Sustainability in a World Weakened by COVID-19
by Sandra Bernardo, Maria Luísa Vasconcelos and Fátima Rocha
Economies 2024, 12(2), 42; https://doi.org/10.3390/economies12020042 - 6 Feb 2024
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2899
Abstract
This research compares the global debt trends in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on economies that frame the North and South divide. The research centers on debt ratios, which serve as indicators of countries’ ability to finance recovery and development projects. [...] Read more.
This research compares the global debt trends in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic, focusing on economies that frame the North and South divide. The research centers on debt ratios, which serve as indicators of countries’ ability to finance recovery and development projects. The study period runs from 2015 to 2022 and follows the IMF’s country classification, which divides the world into advanced economies (AE) and emerging market and developing economies (EMDE). The research employs panel data regressions to assess three key debt ratios—external debt to Gross Domestic Product (GDP), external debt to exports, and public debt to GDP—against various pandemic-related indicators and control variables. The analysis provides three major contributions. Firstly, an examination of external and public debt burdens is conducted, showing that escalated external and public debt burdens in EMDE contrast with increasing public debt in AE, primarily due to fiscal stimulus. Secondly, it is argued that the ongoing pandemic has intensified the widening economic gap between the North (AE) and the south (EMDE). Thirdly, a review is presented of both orthodox and heterodox policies identified in existing literature that are considered capable of mitigating external vulnerabilities in EMDE. Findings highlight the critical need for multifaceted measures to address debt vulnerability and promote sustainable economic recovery in a post-pandemic world. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue From Permacrisis to Technological Breakthrough: Prospects for the Global Economy Post-COVID-19)
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