The Effect of Pollution on Worker Productivity: Evidence from Call-Center Workers in China

35 Pages Posted: 13 Jun 2016 Last revised: 5 Jul 2024

See all articles by Tom Chang

Tom Chang

University of Southern California - Marshall School of Business - Finance and Business Economics Department

Joshua Graff Zivin

School of Global Policy and Strategy; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

Tal Gross

Columbia University - Department of Health Policy and Management

Matthew Neidell

Columbia University; University of Chicago - Department of Economics and CISES; PERC - Property and Environment Research Center

Multiple version iconThere are 3 versions of this paper

Date Written: June 2016

Abstract

We investigate the effect of pollution on worker productivity in the service sector by focusing on two call centers in China. Using precise measures of each worker’s daily output linked to daily measures of pollution and meteorology, we find that higher levels of air pollution decrease worker productivity by reducing the number of calls that workers complete each day. These results manifest themselves at commonly found levels of pollution in major cities throughout the developing and developed world, suggesting that these types of effects are likely to apply broadly. When decomposing these effects, we find that the decreases in productivity are explained by increases in time spent on breaks rather than the duration of phone calls. To our knowledge, this is the first study to demonstrate that the negative impacts of pollution on productivity extend beyond physically demanding tasks to indoor, white-collar work.

Suggested Citation

Chang, Tom and Graff Zivin, Joshua and Gross, Tal and Neidell, Matthew, The Effect of Pollution on Worker Productivity: Evidence from Call-Center Workers in China (June 2016). NBER Working Paper No. w22328, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2794774

Tom Chang (Contact Author)

University of Southern California - Marshall School of Business - Finance and Business Economics Department ( email )

Marshall School of Business
Los Angeles, CA 90089
United States

Joshua Graff Zivin

School of Global Policy and Strategy ( email )

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National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

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Tal Gross

Columbia University - Department of Health Policy and Management ( email )

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Matthew Neidell

Columbia University ( email )

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University of Chicago - Department of Economics and CISES ( email )

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PERC - Property and Environment Research Center

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