How Does Working-Time Flexibility Affect Workers' Productivity in a Routine Job? Evidence from a Field Experiment

52 Pages Posted: 9 Nov 2020 Last revised: 16 Apr 2023

See all articles by Marie Boltz

Marie Boltz

University of Strasbourg

Bart Cockx

Ghent University - Department of Economics; Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA); CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute); IRES, Université Catholique de Louvain; ROA Maastricht University

Ana Maria Diaz

Catholic University of Louvain (UCL); Pontifical University Javeriana Inicio - Faculty of Economics and Business Administration

Luz Salas

Pontifical University Javeriana Cali

Abstract

We conducted an experiment in which we hired workers under different types of contracts to evaluate how flexible working time affects on-the-job productivity in a routine job. Our approach breaks down the global impact on productivity into sorting and behavioral effects. We find that all forms of working-time flexibility reduce the length of workers' breaks. For part-time work, these positive effects are globally counterbalanced. Yet arrangements that allow workers to decide when to start and stop working increase global productivity by as much as 50 percent, 40 percent of which is induced by sorting.

Keywords: labor market flexibility, productivity, flexible work arrangements, work-life balance, part-time work

JEL Classification: J21, J22, J23, J24, J33

Suggested Citation

Boltz, Marie and Cockx, Bart L. W. and Diaz, Ana Maria and Diaz, Ana Maria and Salas, Luz, How Does Working-Time Flexibility Affect Workers' Productivity in a Routine Job? Evidence from a Field Experiment. IZA Discussion Paper No. 13825, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=3726427 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.3726427

Marie Boltz (Contact Author)

University of Strasbourg

61, avenue de la foret noire
Strasbourg, Alsace 3000
France

Bart L. W. Cockx

Ghent University - Department of Economics ( email )

Ghent, B-9000
Belgium

Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA)

P.O. Box 7240
Bonn, D-53072
Germany

CESifo (Center for Economic Studies and Ifo Institute)

Poschinger Str. 5
Munich, DE-81679
Germany

IRES, Université Catholique de Louvain

Place Montesquieu, 3
Louvain-la-Neuve
Belgium

ROA Maastricht University ( email )

P.O. Box 616
Maastricht, MD6200
Netherlands

Ana Maria Diaz

Catholic University of Louvain (UCL) ( email )

Place Montesquieu, 3
Louvain-la-Neuve, 1348
Belgium

Pontifical University Javeriana Inicio - Faculty of Economics and Business Administration ( email )

Colombia

Luz Salas

Pontifical University Javeriana Cali ( email )

Cl 40 6-23
Bogota, CO Valle del Cauca 11001
Colombia

Do you have negative results from your research you’d like to share?

Paper statistics

Downloads
35
Abstract Views
260
PlumX Metrics