The labor market outcomes of jurisdictional consolidation: Evidence from city–county mergers in China
研究2011-2018年中国市县合并对农民工和本地居民工资的影响，发现合并后农民工工资上涨3.1%，本地居民上涨10.4%，归因于经济增长和差异化劳动力需求。
In this paper, we examine the labor market outcomes of jurisdictional consolidation, focusing on the effect of city–county mergers in China between 2011 and 2018 on the wages of migrant workers and local residents. Under the merger reform, city districts were consolidated with nearby counties, expanding the jurisdiction under the centralized control of the prefecture government. Using a staggered difference-in-differences approach, we find that wages increased by 3.1% for migrant workers and 10.4% for local residents in consolidated jurisdictions. We attribute these effects to local economic growth and the resulting differentiated labor demand for migrant and local workers.