Bio

Michael Irwin is a Senior Economist in the Financial Stability Department at the Bank of Canada. His interests include macroeconomics, household finance and labour. His research focuses on how credit markets and labour markets shape macroeconomic outcomes. He received his Ph.D. in Economics from the Ohio State University.

Research Field(s): Business Cycles Household Finance Labour Economics Macroeconomics Quantitative Macroeconomics

Staff working papers

The Impact of Unemployment Insurance and Unsecured Credit on Business Cycles

Staff Working Paper 2023-22 Michael Irwin
This paper studies how unsecured consumer credit impacts the extent to which unemployment insurance (UI) policies smooth aggregate consumption fluctuations over the business cycle. Using a general equilibrium real business cycle model, I find that unsecured credit amplifies the extent to which UI smooths cyclical consumption fluctuations.
Content Type(s): Staff research, Staff working papers Topic(s): Business fluctuations and cycles, Credit and credit aggregates, Economic models, Fiscal policy, Labour markets JEL Code(s): E, E2, E21, E24, E3, E32, E4, E44, E6, E62

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