Assist. Prof. Felix König

How Technologies Change the Labor Market

During his visit, Felix Koenig will deliver three CES Lectures entitled: “How Technologies Change the Labor Market”. The course investigates the impact of technology on wages and employment, utilizing standard models to understand automation and the demand for skills. It examines evidence on specific technological waves – including industrial robotics, winner-take-all markets, and Artificial Intelligence – and explores how algorithmic recommendations and matching tools can reduce information frictions in the job search process.

Professor Koenig’s research focuses on labor economics, with a particular emphasis on the drivers of economic inequality, the impact of technical change on labor markets, and the determinants of wage setting. While visiting CES, Mr. Koenig will mainly work on two projects: 1) the labor market consequences of mandating paid time off, specifically examining how additional vacation days affect wages, employment, and labor market attachment for young parents, and 2) the dynamics of wage adjustments during labor shortages, focusing on why firms often fail to “surge” wages despite high demand and how automated tools can reduce the frictions that suppress price adjustments.

Felix Koenig is an Assistant Professor of Economics at Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz College. He holds a PhD and an MSc in Economics from the London School of Economics and a BA in Philosophy, Politics, and Economics from the University of Oxford. Before his academic career, he worked for the German Bundesbank. He is affiliated with the Centre for Economic Performance (CEP), the CESifo Research Network, the Institute for Labor Economics (IZA), and Rockwool Berlin.