Essays on Income Distribution and Labor Relations in Post-WWII Italy, 1951-1991.

This doctoral thesis develops four essays that fundamentally highlight the importance of income distribution and labor relations dynamics in shaping economic and historical events in Italy during the period 1950–1990. All the essays are interconnected by this perspective and exploit a regional or provincial focus. In the thesis, the concept of income distribution is not only related to the “classical” struggle between wage and profit but also encompasses a broader perspective. While the first and second essays are more traditionally framed, focusing on the measurement of income inequality and the impact of income distribution – shaped by labor relations – on inflation, the third and fourth essays expand the concept of income distribution to include the formation of the hidden economy and the occupational health and safety (OHS).