- level behavior of vacancies and hiring, ” nber working paper series 16265 ( cambridge, mass. : national bureau of economic research, august ), www. nber. org / papers / w16265. bis central bankers ’ speeches if this hypothesis is wrong and structural factors are in fact explaining much of the increase in long - term unemployment, then the scope for countercyclical policies to address this problem will be more limited. even if that proves to be the case, however, we should not conclude that nothing can be done. if structural factors are the predominant explanation for the increase in long - term unemployment, it will become even more important to take the steps needed to ensure that workers are able to obtain the skills needed to meet the demands of our rapidly changing economy. bis central bankers ’ speeches bis central bankers ’ speeches bis central bankers ’ speeches bis central bankers ’ speeches bis central bankers ’ speeches

in an employer - sponsored retirement plan. in addition, the heightened popularity of owning stocks probably reflects a broadened understanding of the potential benefits of equity investments and perhaps an increased tolerance for financial risk. also important, especially for investors of relatively modest means, is that mutual funds in particular have substantially reduced the cost of purchasing a diversified portfolio. despite the ease with which corporate equities can be traded directly nowadays through on - line brokerage accounts, for example - a recent survey found that two - thirds of stockholders first bought their equity shares through mutual funds. besides its financial risks and potential rewards, stock ownership imparts important corporate governance responsibilities. in fact, economic theories of firm behavior often stress the competing interests of management and ownership. with an ownership share in a business, every stock investor has a role in providing oversight on how that company is run. the egregious corporate scandals in the headlines last year have highlighted the need for responsible oversight by corporate boards and shareholders alike to check the behavior of management. so, as we look for solutions to corporate governance problems, we should not forget that every individual who owns stock has a role - perhaps a small one, but an important one. yet the growth in households'equity ownership has come with an ironic twist : while more households own shares of corporations, many of the new stockholders are unable to play a role in corporate governance. why? because americans have largely purchased their shares through pension funds, mutual funds, insurance companies, and other financial institutions. these financial intermediaries, which act as the agents for household investors, have generally not made much, if any, effort to make their governance policies transparent and responsive to the preferences of their investors. aizcorbe, ana, arthur kennickell, and kevin moore, " recent changes in u. s. family finances : evidence from the 1998 and 2001 survey of consumer finances, " federal reserve bulletin, vol. 89 ( january 2003 ), pp. 1 - 32, and federal reserve board staff calculations from the survey of consumer finances. see also investment company institute and securities industry association ( ici and sia ), equity ownership in america, 2002. aizcorbe, kennickell, and moore, " recent changes in u. s. family finances : evidence from the 1998 and 2001 survey of consumer finances. " ici and sia, equity ownership in america. ici and sia, equity ownership in america. so, as americans have been purchasing