Is greater equality a threat to the economy?

Efling and ASÍ present a lecture by economists from Britain.We commonly hear that raising the lowest wages threatens the economy. Sometimes this view is even presented as an absolute truth.Not all economists agree. Alexander Guschanski and Rafael Wildauer, economics lecturers at the University of Greenwich, will present how equality can have positive economic effects. Katrín Ólafsdóttir, who lectures business administration at the University of Reykjavík, will facilitate an open discussion after the presentation.The lecture will take place in English in the lecture hall of the National Museum of Iceland from 12-13 o’clock on Friday, September 6.Alexander Guschanski joined the University as a lecturer in August 2018. He holds a BSc in Economics from the Free University of Berlin, an MA in Political Economy from Kingston University London and a PhD in Economics from the University of Greenwich.His research in labour economics focuses on the determinants of income distribution and unemployment. His research in international economics looks at the determinants of global imbalances. A large part of his empirical work is based on microeconometric analyses using industry- and firm-level data.Prior to joining the department of International Business and Economics at the University of Greenwich Rafael Wildauer worked as a Lecturer in Business Economics at Kingston University Business School. He holds a PhD in Economics from Kingston University (supervisor: Prof. Engelbert Stockhammer) and completed Bachelors and Masters degrees in Economics at the University of Vienna.Rafael Wildauer’s research focuses on four areas: First, the investigation of the effects of changes in the distribution of income on economic growth and the indebtedness of the household sector; second, statistical modelling of the distribution of household wealth based on survey data; third, the development of empirical stock flow consistent macroeconomic models for forecasting and structural policy analysis; and fourth, the analysis of national accounts, both with respect to the limitations which come with the attempt to measure household well-being instead of actual incomes and expenditures as well as the distortions in GDP and trade data due to corporate tax avoidance.