IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/p/aep/anales/4210.html
   My bibliography  Save this paper

The E↵ect of Working Hours on Health

Author

Listed:
  • Inés Berniell
  • Jan Bietenbeck

Abstract

Does working time a↵ect workers’ health? We study this question in the context of a French reform which reduced the standard workweek from 39 to 35 hours, at constant earnings. Our empirical analysis exploits arguably exogenous variation in the reduction of working time across employers, which was driven by the institutional features of the reform. We find that shorter working hours reduce smoking and increase self-reported health, and that these impacts are concentrated among blue-collar workers. In contrast, white-collar workers’ body mass index decreases with reduced working time.

Suggested Citation

  • Inés Berniell & Jan Bietenbeck, 2019. "The E↵ect of Working Hours on Health," Asociación Argentina de Economía Política: Working Papers 4210, Asociación Argentina de Economía Política.
    • Handle: RePEc:aep:anales:4210
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://aaep.org.ar/works/works2019/berniell.pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Richard K. Crump & V. Joseph Hotz & Guido W. Imbens & Oscar A. Mitnik, 2009. "Dealing with limited overlap in estimation of average treatment effects," Biometrika, Biometrika Trust, vol. 96(1), pages 187-199.
    2. Dominique Goux & Eric Maurin & Barbara Petrongolo, 2014. "Worktime Regulations and Spousal Labor Supply," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 104(1), pages 252-276, January.
    3. Mikael Lindahl, 2005. "Estimating the Effect of Income on Health and Mortality Using Lottery Prizes as an Exogenous Source of Variation in Income," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 40(1).
    4. Joseph G. Altonji & Todd E. Elder & Christopher R. Taber, 2005. "Selection on Observed and Unobserved Variables: Assessing the Effectiveness of Catholic Schools," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 113(1), pages 151-184, February.
    5. Matthieu Chemin & Etienne Wasmer, 2009. "Using Alsace-Moselle Local Laws to Build a Difference-in-Differences Estimation Strategy of the Employment Effects of the 35-Hour Workweek Regulation in France," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 27(4), pages 487-524, October.
    6. Douglas L. Miller & Marianne E. Page & Ann Huff Stevens & Mateusz Filipski, 2009. "Why Are Recessions Good for Your Health?," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 99(2), pages 122-127, May.
    7. Henry Saffer & Karine Lamiraud, 2012. "The effect of hours of work on social interaction," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 10(2), pages 237-258, June.
    8. Schaller, Jessamyn & Stevens, Ann Huff, 2015. "Short-run effects of job loss on health conditions, health insurance, and health care utilization," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 43(C), pages 190-203.
    9. Costa-Font, Joan & de Miera Juarez, Belen Saenz, 2018. "Working Times and Overweight: Tight Schedules, Weaker Fitness?," IZA Discussion Papers 11702, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    10. Philippe Askenazy, 2013. "Working time regulation in France from 1996 to 2012," Cambridge Journal of Economics, Cambridge Political Economy Society, vol. 37(2), pages 323-347.
    11. Hamermesh, Daniel S. & Kawaguchi, Daiji & Lee, Jungmin, 2017. "Does labor legislation benefit workers? Well-being after an hours reduction," Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, Elsevier, vol. 44(C), pages 1-12.
    12. Christopher J. Ruhm, 2000. "Are Recessions Good for Your Health?," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 115(2), pages 617-650.
    13. Lepinteur, Anthony, 2019. "The shorter workweek and worker wellbeing: Evidence from Portugal and France," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 58(C), pages 204-220.
    14. repec:hal:spmain:info:hdl:2441/10198 is not listed on IDEAS
    15. Lallukka, Tea & Lahelma, Eero & Rahkonen, Ossi & Roos, Eva & Laaksonen, Elina & Martikainen, Pekka & Head, Jenny & Brunner, Eric & Mosdol, Annhild & Marmot, Michael & Sekine, Michikazu & Nasermoaddeli, 2008. "Associations of job strain and working overtime with adverse health behaviors and obesity: Evidence from the Whitehall II Study, Helsinki Health Study, and the Japanese Civil Servants Study," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 66(8), pages 1681-1698, April.
    16. Frijters, Paul & Haisken-DeNew, John P. & Shields, Michael A., 2005. "The causal effect of income on health: Evidence from German reunification," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 24(5), pages 997-1017, September.
    17. Daniel Sullivan & Till von Wachter, 2009. "Job Displacement and Mortality: An Analysis Using Administrative Data," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 124(3), pages 1265-1306.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Berniell, Inés & Bietenbeck, Jan, 2020. "The effect of working hours on health," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 39(C).
    2. Hannes Schwandt, 2018. "Wealth Shocks and Health Outcomes: Evidence from Stock Market Fluctuations," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 10(4), pages 349-377, October.
    3. Otto Lenhart, 2017. "The Role of Economic Shocks on Health: Evidence from German Reunification," Southern Economic Journal, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 84(1), pages 275-296, July.
    4. Elira Kuka, 2020. "Quantifying the Benefits of Social Insurance: Unemployment Insurance and Health," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 102(3), pages 490-505, July.
    5. Costa-Font, Joan & de Miera Juarez, Belen Saenz, 2018. "Working Times and Overweight: Tight Schedules, Weaker Fitness?," IZA Discussion Papers 11702, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    6. Lídia Farré & Francesco Fasani & Hannes Mueller, 2018. "Feeling useless: the effect of unemployment on mental health in the Great Recession," IZA Journal of Labor Economics, Springer;Forschungsinstitut zur Zukunft der Arbeit GmbH (IZA), vol. 7(1), pages 1-34, December.
    7. Benedicte Apouey & Andrew E. Clark, 2015. "Winning Big but Feeling no Better? The Effect of Lottery Prizes on Physical and Mental Health," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 24(5), pages 516-538, May.
    8. Costa-Font, J.; & Saenz de Miera Juarez, B., 2021. "Working the Weight Out? Working Time Reduction and Overweight," Health, Econometrics and Data Group (HEDG) Working Papers 21/18, HEDG, c/o Department of Economics, University of York.
    9. Nizalova, Olena & Norton, Edward C., 2021. "Long-term effects of job loss on male health: BMI and health behaviors," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 43(C).
    10. Jérôme Adda & Yarine Fawaz, 2020. "The Health Toll of Import Competition," The Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 130(630), pages 1501-1540.
    11. Alexander Ahammer & Dominik Grübl & Rudolf Winter-Ebmer, 2020. "The health externalities of downsizing," CDL Aging, Health, Labor working papers 2020-05, The Christian Doppler (CD) Laboratory Aging, Health, and the Labor Market, Johannes Kepler University Linz, Austria.
    12. Broughel, James & Viscusi, Kip, 2017. "Death by Regulation: How Regulations Can Increase Mortality Risk," Working Papers 06864, George Mason University, Mercatus Center.
    13. Bassanini, Andrea & Caroli, Eve, 2014. "Is work bad for health? The role of constraint vs choice," CEPREMAP Working Papers (Docweb) 1402, CEPREMAP.
    14. repec:dau:papers:123456789/12483 is not listed on IDEAS
    15. Gathmann, Christina & Huttunen, Kristiina & Jenström, Laura & Saaksvuori, Lauri & Stitzing, Robin, 2020. "Job Loss and Health Spillovers in the Family," VfS Annual Conference 2020 (Virtual Conference): Gender Economics 224634, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    16. Schwandt, Hannes & Wachter, Till von, 2020. "Socioeconomic Decline and Death: Midlife Impacts of Graduating in a Recession," IZA Discussion Papers 12908, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    17. John Gathergood & Eleonora Fichera, 2012. "House Prices, Home Equity and Health," Discussion Papers 12/07, University of Nottingham, School of Economics.
    18. McInerney, Melissa & Mellor, Jennifer M. & Nicholas, Lauren Hersch, 2013. "Recession depression: Mental health effects of the 2008 stock market crash," Journal of Health Economics, Elsevier, vol. 32(6), pages 1090-1104.
    19. Eleonora Fichera & John Gathergood, 2016. "Do Wealth Shocks Affect Health? New Evidence from the Housing Boom," Health Economics, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 25(S2), pages 57-69, November.
    20. Hannes Schwandt & Till M. von Wachter, 2020. "Socio-Economic Decline and Death: The Life-Cycle Impacts of Recessions for Labor Market Entrants," NBER Working Papers 26638, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    21. Clark, Andrew E. & D’Ambrosio, Conchita & Rohde, Nicholas, 2021. "Prenatal economic shocks and birth outcomes in UK cohort data," Economics & Human Biology, Elsevier, vol. 41(C).

    More about this item

    Keywords

    working hours; health; smoking; BMI;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • I10 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - General
    • I12 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Health - - - Health Behavior

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:aep:anales:4210. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Juan Manuel Quintero (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/aaeppea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.