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The Causal Impacts of Child Labor Law in Brazil: Some Preliminary Findings

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  • Caio Piza
  • André Portela Souza

Abstract

This paper investigates the causal impact of the change in law of December 1998 that increased the minimum legal age of entry into the labor force from 14 to 16. We used a difference-in-differences (DD) approach to estimate the impact of this law change on labor force participation rates as a whole, as well as for the formal and informal sectors separately. Our results showed that the ban reduced participation rates for boys by 4 percentage points and that this effect was mostly driven by the informal sector. We found no effect on girls.

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  • Caio Piza & André Portela Souza, 2017. "The Causal Impacts of Child Labor Law in Brazil: Some Preliminary Findings," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 30(Supplemen), pages 137-144.
    • Handle: RePEc:oup:wbecrv:v:30:y:2017:i:supplement_1:p:s137-s144.
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    1. Patrick M. Emerson & André Portela Souza, 2011. "Is Child Labor Harmful? The Impact of Working Earlier in Life on Adult Earnings," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 59(2), pages 345-385.
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    Cited by:

    1. Caio Piza & André Portela Souza & Patrick M Emerson & Vivian Amorim, 2024. "The Short- and Longer-Term Effects of a Child Labor Ban," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 38(2), pages 351-370.
    2. Olivier Bargain & Delphine Boutin, 2021. "Minimum Age Regulation and Child Labor: New Evidence from Brazil," The World Bank Economic Review, World Bank, vol. 35(1), pages 234-260.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • J08 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - General - - - Labor Economics Policies
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply
    • J23 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Demand

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