ABSTRACT. This paper presents a review of the literature on negative impacts of labor regulation, the economic effects of labor laws, the role of labor regulations in improving workers’ welfare, the risks workers encounter in the labor market, and the potential benefits of labor regulation. This paper aims to analyze and discuss institutionalized patterns of labor market and occupational entry, new challenges for labor market regulation, the way labor laws interact with the economy, the operation of labor laws, and the economic impact of labor legislation. The mainstay of the paper is formed by an analysis of the different roles skills can play in the labor market, connections between skill acquisition and occupational labor markets, and the de- regulation of the labor market in the developed world. pp. 191–196
JEL Classification: R23, F16, J21
Keywords: labor regulation, occupational entry, flexicurity system