Alexis Penot

The Fed and the ECB: why such an apparent difference in reactivity?

Purpose - The purpose of this paper is to try to understand the reasons for the differences in amplitude of monetary policy (MP) rate cycles in the USA and the euro area. Among the different candidates, the paper aims to test the role of economic structures, macroeconomic shocks, and MP behaviour. Design/methodology/approach - The paper starts by estimating vector autoregressive models both for the USA and the euro area to identify the economic structures, the MP rules, and the macroeconomics shocks of both areas. Then, it runs counterfactual simulations (by injecting European Central Banks (ECB) monetary rule in the US model for example) to examine which factors had the most significant impact on differences in MP activism (measured by the variance of interest rates). Findings - The paper finds that differences implied by MP rules alone cannot explain the dissimilarity of interest rates paths. In the same way, while cyclical shocks are different in each area, they do not suffice to explain the factual divergences. Finally, it is the structural dissimilarities which essentially explain the difference in interest rate variances. Originality/value - The paper brings new informations on a controversial issue and it tends to reject the official explanations given by ECBs governor who points out differences in shocks.

Do regulations protect workers from occupational exposures to carcinogenic, mutagenic and reprotoxic (CMR) agents in France?

Objective This article explores the impact of regulations on the implementation of collective protections in France to occupational exposure to carcinogenic, mutagenic and reprotoxic (CMR) agents. Methods Individual data from the French national cross-sectional survey of occupational hazards conducted in 2010 were analysed. We investigated whether stricter regulations and longer exposures were associated with higher level of collective protection using multivariate logistic regressions. Results General ventilation, for which effect is limited as collective protection for CMR products, was present in 19% of situations involving CMR agents while isolation chambers, the most effective form of protection, were only very rarely implemented. Multilevel logistic regressions show that exposure situations to products classified as category 1 or 2 by the European Union do not have a higher probability of benefiting from a collective protection measures. Exposures to products with a Binding Occupational Exposure Limit Value selectively benefited from a better level of protection. Exposures to agents entered on the International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) list of proven or probable carcinogens benefited more from effective collective protections than products suspected to be carcinogens but not yet classified by IARC. Conclusions These results suggest that the dissemination of evaluations of carcinogens by the IARC translate into improved protective measures even though the IARC classification has no mandatory impact on regulations.

Inégalités d'exposition aux agents cancérogènes, mutagènes ou reprotoxiques (CMR) en milieu professionnel en France

Notre etude exploite l’edition 2010 de l’enquete Surveillance medicale des expositions aux risques professionnels (SUMER) pour dresser un etat des lieux des expositions des salaries francais aux agents CMR sur leur lieu de travail. Au total, 2,2 millions de personnes, soit 10,2% des salaries, ont ete exposes a un ou plusieurs produits CMR lors de la semaine precedant leur visite medicale. Parmi eux, 70000 connaissaient une multi-exposition sur leur lieu de travail, ce qui porte a 3,5 millions le nombre de situations d’expositions recensees en 2010. Les situations des expositions a l’amiante ne representent que 2,3% des expositions aux produits CMR, soit 10 fois moins que les expositions aux gaz d’echappement diesel. Nos resultats montrent qu’il existe des emplois et des profils de salaries qui cumulent les prejudices sur le marche du travail, y compris de forts risques d’exposition a des produits dangereux pour la sante. Il s’agit notamment des ouvriers, des travailleurs de nuit et des salaries a contrats precaires, qui devraient donc constituer des cibles prioritaires pour les mesures de prevention.