(LIS)²ER Research Associate (Post-doc, f/m) – Ref: 24-05

The LIS Cross-National Data Center in Luxembourg (LIS), and the Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research (LISER) are recruiting a Research Associate (Post-doc, f/m)

• Ref: 24-05
• 2 years fixed-term contract, full-time (40h/week)
• Joint position at LIS and LISER
• Work location: Belval (Luxembourg)
• Expected Start date: ideally on 1st June 2024, not later than 1st October 2024

(LIS)²ER Project Framework

The objective of the project is to develop a new data-driven knowledge base about policies to fight inequalities and to deepen our understanding of ‘what works’ in reducing inequalities, building upon almost 40 years of household data from middle-income and rich countries collected in the LIS Cross-National Data Center.

The structure of LIS data has at its core the exploitation of variations across countries and over time to describe and explore the roots of income and wealth inequality and poverty. One can look at policy variations through the same lenses: different countries pursue different policy goals with alternative policy instruments, and government turnover leads to changes in policy objectives and implementations over time within the same country. This project promotes research on variations in policy packages (welfare policies, tax policies, labour market regulation, educational policies) and on their impact of inequality and poverty.

The (LIS)2ER initiative therefore proposes to exploit the richness of the LIS data to study the effect of policy portfolios in place in different countries and different times on inequality and poverty. The candidate should be able to develop a research agenda on this thematic area, possibly addressing topics on the future of social protection in the context of technological transformation, population change or climate change. The current structure of the LIS Database, covering a large array of countries over a long-time span allows for studying the policy stances over the following domains:

• taxation (progressivity, income pooling, deductibility)
• unemployment subsidization
• social assistance
• pension provision
• family benefits

To complement this research agenda, the (LIS)2ER programme also hosts regular visitors to work on the LIS infrastructure on site and organize an annual conference in Luxembourg and regular research seminars.

Your Role

The successful candidate will be the principal investigator (PI) of the (LIS)2ER project ‑ a joint initiative of LIS and LISER aiming at fostering collaborative research projects, under supervision of senior researchers from both institutions.

The research associate will be tasked to :

• Develop the (LIS)2ER project as described above – notably by undertaking innovative research, co-organizing events and attending to LIS-LISER visitors ;
• Develop a distinctive research program in collaboration with researchers from LIS and LISER ;
• Disseminate results through scientific publications and reports ;
• Contribute to the submission of research proposals ;
• Attend scientific conferences and workshops.

Your Profile

• Ph.D. in Economics, Sociology, Political sciences or other relevant discipline ;
• Expertise in income/wealth inequality and poverty research, as well as knowledge of cross-country policy differences (welfare policies, labour market regulation, educational policies) ;
• Extensive experience in quantitative research (possibly including policy evaluation or computational data driven methods) ;
• Fluency in English (speaking and writing), any other language is considered as an asset.

What we offer

• A dynamic and international research environment with attractive working conditions and a stimulating work environment ;
• LISER employment contract and personal workspace at LIS (the project requires to work on both Institutes’ premises located on the same floor) ;
• Flexibility in the organisation of the working hours and the possibility of teleworking ;
• Competitive remuneration according to the Collective Labour Agreement in force (half of a 13th month salary, meal vouchers, etc.) ;
• Investment in career support and development (trainings, seminars, participation to international meetings and conferences) ;
• 32.5 days of annual leave for a full-time contract.

How to apply

Please submit your complete application via https://jobs.liser.lu/ by including the following documents:

• a full CV ;
• a short description of your research ideas in relation with the (LIS)2ER framework (2 pages max) ;
• 1 or 2 representative research papers or already published articles ;
• two letters of reference.

Deadline for applications: 17th March 2024 at midnight CET

Copies of relevant academic transcripts will be requested at some point during the selection process. All correspondence should be in English. Early application is encouraged as the applications are processed upon reception.

Why LISER?

LISER is a publicly funded research institute located in Luxembourg and dedicated to applied empirical research in economic, social and spatial sciences. The Institute attracts top researchers from all over the world and high-level student training is a vibrant part of the Institute’s activities. LISER staff consists of approx. 200 employees, about 60% of the staff being researchers; mainly from the fields of economics, geography and sociology. The vision of the institute is to be a socio-economic research institute internationally recognised, focused on scientific excellence and societal impact, able to contribute through multi-disciplinary and intersectoral research, in an active and inclusive way to a sustainable and inclusive society at national and international level.

The institute is located on the new Belval campus in the south of Luxembourg (Cité des Sciences, Luxembourg), which hosts the University of Luxembourg and a substantial part of the country’s publicly funded research facilities, i.e. LISER, the Luxembourg Income Study (LIS) cross-national data centre, the Luxembourg institutes of Health (LIH) and of Science and Technology (LIST). Information on research in Luxembourg is accessible via the national EURAXESS platform.

LIS and LISER are Equal Opportunity Employers