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Taxation and labor force participation: the case of Italy

Author

Listed:
  • Fabrizio Colonna

    (Bank of Italy)

  • Stefania Marcassa

    (Universit� de Cergy-Pontoise)

Abstract

Women�s labor force participation is lowest in Italy among the OECD countries. Moreover, the participation rate of married women is positively correlated with their husbands' income. We show that high tax rates together with tax credits and transfers raise the burden for two-earner households, generating disincentives to work. We estimate a structural labor supply model for women and use the estimated parameters to simulate the effects of alternative revenue-neutral tax systems. We find that joint taxation implies a drop in the participation rate. Conversely, provisions for a working tax credit and gender-based taxation boost it; the effects of the former are concentrated among women with little schooling.

Suggested Citation

  • Fabrizio Colonna & Stefania Marcassa, 2013. "Taxation and labor force participation: the case of Italy," Questioni di Economia e Finanza (Occasional Papers) 191, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    • Handle: RePEc:bdi:opques:qef_191_13
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    Cited by:

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    2. Colombino Ugo & Narazani Edlira, 2013. "Designing a Universal Income Support Mechanism for Italy: An Exploratory Tour," Basic Income Studies, De Gruyter, vol. 8(1), pages 1-17, July.
    3. Ugo Colombine, 2013. "A new equilibrium simulation procedure with discrete choice models," International Journal of Microsimulation, International Microsimulation Association, vol. 6(3), pages 25-49.
    4. Dalila De Rosa & Gloria Di Caprera & Francesco Figari & Carlo Fiorio & Pasquale Giacobbe & Marco Manzo & Elena Miola & Giorgio Mongelli & Chiara Subrizi, 2023. "L’Assegno Unico e Universale e la revisione dell’IRPEF nel 2022: un’analisi di equità ed efficienza per famiglie di lavoratori dipendenti," Working Papers wp2023-19, Ministry of Economy and Finance, Department of Finance.
    5. Giulia M Dotti Sani & Stefani Scherer, 2018. "Maternal Employment: Enabling Factors in Context," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 32(1), pages 75-92, February.
    6. Colombino, Ugo & Narazani, Edlira, 2014. "Closing the Gender Gap: Gender Based Taxation, Wage Subsidies or Basic Income?," Department of Economics and Statistics Cognetti de Martiis. Working Papers 201412, University of Turin.
    7. Ciani, Emanuele, 2016. "Retirement, pension eligibility and home production," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 38(C), pages 106-120.
    8. Rolf Aaberge & Ugo Colombino, 2014. "Labour Supply Models," Contributions to Economic Analysis, in: Handbook of Microsimulation Modelling, volume 127, pages 167-221, Emerald Group Publishing Limited.
    9. Bachmann, Ronald & Bechara, Peggy & Cim, Merve & Kramer, Anica, 2018. "Working women and labour market inequality. Research project for the Wilfried Martens Centre for European Studies: Final report - July 2018," RWI Projektberichte, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, number 195939.
    10. Pacifico, Daniele & Browne, James & Fernandez, Rodrigo & Immervoll, Herwig & Neumann, Dirk & Thévenot, Céline, 2018. "Faces of Joblessness in Italy: A People-Centred Perspective on Employment Barriers and Policies," IZA Discussion Papers 11768, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    female labor force participation; taxation.;

    JEL classification:

    • J21 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Force and Employment, Size, and Structure
    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply
    • H31 - Public Economics - - Fiscal Policies and Behavior of Economic Agents - - - Household

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