Toward a Theory of Vacancies.

The authors attempt to further characterize the search strategies of the employer. In this article, they discuss how characteristics of the employer or conditions that the employer faces affect the optimal search strategies and the probability of filling a vacancy in each period. Semiparametric and parametric methods are used to estimate hazard rates of filling vacancies. The results suggest that, for the given sample of vacancies, the general form of the hazard function is nonmonotonic. Additionally, the results suggest that those employers who have advance notice of the vacancy may search longer than those employers who do not. Copyright 1998 by University of Chicago Press.