Ongoing Research
Report on Minimum Income schemes in Europe
Sponsored by Caritas Europe and co-authored with Massimo Aprea, Michela Braga, Michele Raitano
"Productivity and Substitutability: a New View on Immigrant Assimilation"
Co-authorship with Joseph-Simon Görlach (Bocconi University and IGIER)
Working Abstract: Immigrants’ assimilation is often measured by wage growth, confound- ing two forces: an adaptation of skills that raises immigrants’ productivity, and increasing substitutability with earlier immigrants and natives, putting downward pressure on wages. We decompose wage growth and estimate these components for the U.S. Since immigration and emigration are en- dogenous to wage growth, we instrument immigrant numbers with economic conditions in countries of origin. Results show that both skill growth and substitutability progress as migrants assimilate, that skill growth exceeds wage growth, and that small positive short-run effects of immigration on natives’ wages dissipate as immigrants become more substitutable.
"Skilled but Precarious: Wage Effects of Liberalization in Skill-Enhancing Contracts"
Working Abstract: With the growing focus on skills, dual contracts such as internships and apprenticeships are being promoted as hybrid training-working opportuni- ties for young workers to enter the labor market. Workers, however, also have a preference for job stability and do not value these training contracts equally. In this paper, I focus on the effect of the expansion of more precari- ous opportunities, such as internships, on the wage of more stable long-term contracts, such as apprenticeships. I develop a simple model whereby two effects can be simultaneously at play when new legislation increases the share of precarious contracts that can be activated: 1) a selection effect in- creases the aver- age wage of permanent contracts since the most productive workers are offered a permanent contract; 2) a dumping effect decreases the average wage since entrant workers are willing to bargain lower wages in ex- change for the stability of a permanent contract. Using the latest legislative change to internships in Italy, I am able to exploit interregional variation and estimate the overall effect on apprenticeship wages, revealing that the dumping effect is prevalent.
"Skill Heterogeneity in Labor Mobility: the Key Role of Education for EU Integration"
Working Abstract: Unlike the US, Canada and other countries, the European Union has been experiencing a rising rate of inter-State migration in the past several years. In this paper, I explore the patterns of migration within the European Union, differentiating by skill level, and I show that the trend is due in particular to the rising migration rate of high-skilled workers. After showing that the common explanations advanced for migration rate patterns in other countries cannot explain this peculiarity of rising EU migration, I show that a significant cause instead is the streamlining of higher education, through the Bologna Process, and in particular the mutual recognition of qualifications from other EU countries. Focusing on select EU-15 countries, I find an impact of degree recognition as high as a 43% yearly rise in high-skilled migration in the first few years after the adoption of the common qualification framework. The results are robust to different measures of migration and specifications.
Published Research
Papers and Policy Briefs
Galeone, P. (2025). "Skill Overkill: The EU Needs More Than Just More Training". IEP@BU Policy Brief n.38, March 2025.
Galeone, P., & Gros, D. (2024). Invertire la piramide: istruzione e declino demografico. Bancaria monthly, ed. 2024 n. 9, ISSN 0005-4623.
Galeone, P. & Privinzano, L. (2024). "From Data to Action: an Evidence-Based Approach to Anti-Poverty in the EU". Policy Brief Bocconi, november 2024.
Galeone, P., & Gros, D. (2024). "Monetary Policy and Regime Shifts in the Inflation Process". Available at SSRN 4700374.
Galeone, P., & Gros, D. (2023). "Discussion on monetary policy in the face of supply shocks: the role of inflation expectations." European Central Bank, Sintra Forum proceedings,
Articles on economic news outlets:
"Agricoltori e ambientalisti contro l’accordo Ue-Mercosur". with J. Christopher Proctor and Romain Svartzman. Rivista ECO, 2/2025.
"Make America Alone Again: il protezionismo di Trump pesa su fisco e disuguaglianze". Affari e Finanza, La Repubblica, 25 feb 2025.
"What (Doesn’t) Change with the New Migration Pact". Rivista ECO, 4/2024.
"Regime shifts and the last mile of disinflation", with Daniel Gros. VoxEU, 13 dec 2023.
"Interest rates: the ugly dilemma facing Europe’s central banks – and why it’s a mistake to cut too soon", with Daniel Gros. The Conversation,
"Inflation has affected the UK, US and Europe differently – here’s what this means for interest rates", with Daniel Gros. The Conversation, 29 nov 2023.
"Fact Checking: Russia e sanzioni", with Eleonora Tafuro Ambrosetti, Matteo Villa, Francesco Rocchetti. ISPI institute, jan 2019.