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The Effect of Hurricane Katrina on the Labor Market Outcomes of Evacuees

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Author Info
Jeffrey A. Groen () (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Anne E. Polivka () (U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics)
Abstract

We use data from the Current Population Survey collected both before and after Hurricane Katrina to estimate the impact of Katrina on the labor market outcomes of evacuees. Our estimates are based on a difference-in-differences strategy that compares evacuees to all residents of Katrina-affected areas prior to Katrina, with a control group consisting of individuals who originally resided outside the areas affected by the storm. We estimate that Katrina had substantial effects on the labor market outcomes of evacuees over the 13-month period immediately following Katrina. However, our estimates suggest that the effects of Katrina diminished substantially over time as evacuees recovered from the hurricane and adjusted to new economic and social conditions. Evacuees who did not return to their pre-Katrina areas have fared much worse in the labor market than have those who returned. Differences in individual and family characteristics account for some of the differences in outcomes between returnees and non-returnees. We present evidence that non-returnees have fared much worse in the labor market primarily because they came from areas that experienced greater housing damage due to the storm and thus were more likely to have had their lives severely disrupted.

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Paper provided by U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics in its series Working Papers with number 415.

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Length: 30 pages
Date of creation: Mar 2008
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Handle: RePEc:bls:wpaper:ec080010

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Related research
Keywords: Hurricane Katrina; Job Displacement; Geographic Mobility; Employment;

Find related papers by JEL classification:
J61 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, and Vacancies - - - Geographic Labor Mobility; Immigrant Workers
J21 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure
Q54 - Agricultural and Natural Resource Economics; Environmental and Ecological Economics - - Environmental Economics - - - Climate; Natural Disasters

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References listed on IDEAS
Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.:
  1. Jacob L. Vigdor, 2007. "The Katrina Effect: Was There a Bright Side to the Evacuation of Greater New Orleans?," NBER Working Papers 13022, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  2. Alberto Abadie & Alexis Diamond & Jens Hainmueller, 2007. "Synthetic Control Methods for Comparative Case Studies: Estimating the Effect of California's Tobacco Control Program," NBER Working Papers 12831, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
    Other versions:
  3. Kletzer, Lori G, 1998. "Job Displacement," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 12(1), pages 115-36, Winter. [Downloadable!] (restricted)
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Cited by:
(explanations, Please report citation or reference errors to , or , if you are the registered author of the cited work, log in to your RePEc Author Service profile, click on "citations" and make appropriate adjustments.)

  1. Jeffrey A. Groen & Anne E. Polivka, 2009. "Going Home after Hurricane Katrina: Determinants of Return Migration and Changes in Affected Areas," Working Papers 428, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. [Downloadable!]
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This page was last updated on 2009-11-22.


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