Downward Nominal Wage Rigidity Meets the Zero Lower Bound

Staff Working Papers from Bank of Canada

Abstract: We add downward nominal wage rigidity to a standard New Keynesian model with sticky prices and wages, where the zero lower bound on nominal interest rates is allowed to bind. We find that wage rigidity not only reduces the frequency of zero bound episodes but also mitigates the severity of corresponding recessions. As a result, previous studies abstracting from the presence of wage rigidity may have overemphasized the need for increasing the inflation target to offset the costs associated with hitting the zero bound. Moreover, our findings add to the recent debate on the presumed benefits of wage flexibility that has arisen in the aftermath of the Great Recession.

Keywords: Inflation targets; Labour markets; Monetary policy framework (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: E24 E32 E52 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 44 pages
Date: 2017
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-mac
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (8)

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Journal Article: Downward Nominal Wage Rigidity Meets the Zero Lower Bound (2023)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:bca:bocawp:17-16

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