Economic Transition and Private-Sector Labor Demand: Evidence from Urban China
52 Pages Posted: 13 Dec 2013 Last revised: 3 Jun 2022
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Economic Transition and Private-Sector Labor Demand: Evidence from Urban China
Economic Transition and Private-Sector Labor Demand: Evidence from Urban China
Economic Transition and Private-Sector Labor Demand: Evidence from Urban China
Date Written: December 2013
Abstract
This paper studies the policy determinants of economic transition and estimates the demand for labor in the infant private sector in urban China. We show that a reform that untied access to housing in urban areas from working for the state sector accounts for more than a quarter of the overall increase in labor supply to the private sector during 1986-2005. Using the reform to instrument for private-sector labor supply, we find that private-sector labor demand is very elastic. We provide suggestive evidence that the reform equalized wages across sectors and reduced private-sector rents.
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