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Financing constraints and unemployment: Evidence from the Great Recession

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  • Duygan-Bump, Burcu
  • Levkov, Alexey
  • Montoriol-Garriga, Judit

Abstract

This paper shows that financing constraints of small firms were one of the drivers of unemployment dynamics during the 2007–2009 recession in the United States. Specifically, workers in small firms were more likely to become unemployed during the 2007–2009 recession than comparable workers in large firms, but only if they were employed in industries with high financing needs. We find very similar results for the 1990–1991 recession, but not for the 2001 recession, where only the former was associated with a reduction in loan supply. The findings support the credit constraints hypothesis and underscore the role of bank lending in explaining labor market activity.

Suggested Citation

  • Duygan-Bump, Burcu & Levkov, Alexey & Montoriol-Garriga, Judit, 2015. "Financing constraints and unemployment: Evidence from the Great Recession," Journal of Monetary Economics, Elsevier, vol. 75(C), pages 89-105.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:moneco:v:75:y:2015:i:c:p:89-105
    DOI: 10.1016/j.jmoneco.2014.12.011
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    Keywords

    Great Recession; Firm size; Financial dependence; Unemployment;

    JEL classification:

    • E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity
    • E44 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Money and Interest Rates - - - Financial Markets and the Macroeconomy
    • G20 - Financial Economics - - Financial Institutions and Services - - - General

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