International Trade Responses to Labor Market Regulations
利用欧洲大型贸易项目数据，发现最低工资和工资税等劳动力市场规制显著影响劳动密集型服务贸易，贸易弹性大于1，表明出口竞争力部分取决于国内劳动力政策。
This paper demonstrates that labor market regulations, such as minimum wages or payroll taxes, shape trade competition in labor-intensive activities. I exploit data from a large European trade program where firms from different countries supply labor services at the same location but face different payroll taxes and minimum wage rules. Country case studies and model-consistent gravity estimates show large trade responses to tax and regulatory reforms, with an elasticity of trade in services to labor costs larger than one. The results imply that absent regulatory and fiscal harmonization, export competitiveness depends, in part, on domestic labor market policies.