Government Employment Guarantee, Labor Supply, and Firms’ Reaction: Evidence from the Largest Public Workfare Program in the World
利用印度企业数据，研究发现政府就业保障计划导致企业永久劳动力减少10%，企业通过增加机械化应对，但成本上升、利润和生产率下降，尤其影响低工资、低生产率和高销售波动的企业。
Abstract Using establishment-level data, we examine the impact of the Indian government’s employment guarantee program on labor and firm behavior. We exploit the staggered implementation of the program for identification and find that the program led to a 10% reduction in the permanent workforce in firms. Firms responded to the adverse labor-supply shock by resorting to increased mechanization. This significantly increased the firms’ cost of production, leading to a decline in net profits and productivity. These effects manifested primarily in firms paying low wages, firms having low labor productivity and greater sales volatility, and firms located in states with pro-employer labor regulations.