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Protection for Whom? The Political Economy of Protective Labor Laws for Women

Author

Listed:
  • Matthias Doepke
  • Hanno Foerster
  • Anne Hannusch
  • Michèle Tertilt

Abstract

During the first half of the twentieth century, many US states enacted laws restricting women’s labor market opportunities, including maximum hours restrictions, minimum wage laws, and night-shift bans. The era of so-called protective labor laws came to an end in the 1960s as a result of civil rights reforms. In this paper, we investigate the political economy behind the rise and fall of these laws. We argue that the main driver behind protective labor laws was men’s desire to shield themselves from labor market competition. We spell out the mechanism through a politico-economic model in which singles and couples work in different sectors and vote on protective legislation. Restrictions are supported by single men and couples with male sole earners who compete with women for jobs. We show that the theory’s predictions for when protective legislation will be introduced are well supported by US state-level evidence.

Suggested Citation

  • Matthias Doepke & Hanno Foerster & Anne Hannusch & Michèle Tertilt, 2025. "Protection for Whom? The Political Economy of Protective Labor Laws for Women," CRC TR 224 Discussion Paper Series crctr224_2025_686, University of Bonn and University of Mannheim, Germany.
    • Handle: RePEc:bon:boncrc:crctr224_2025_686
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    File URL: https://www.crctr224.de/research/discussion-papers/archive/dp686
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Martha J Bailey & Thomas Helgerman & Bryan A Stuart, 2024. "How the 1963 Equal Pay Act and 1964 Civil Rights Act Shaped the Gender Gap in Pay," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 139(3), pages 1827-1878.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    protective legislation; political economy; women's rights; labor market competition; structural transformation; family economics; gender;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • D13 - Microeconomics - - Household Behavior - - - Household Production and Intrahouse Allocation
    • D72 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Political Processes: Rent-seeking, Lobbying, Elections, Legislatures, and Voting Behavior
    • D78 - Microeconomics - - Analysis of Collective Decision-Making - - - Positive Analysis of Policy Formulation and Implementation
    • E24 - Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics - - Consumption, Saving, Production, Employment, and Investment - - - Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity
    • J12 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Marriage; Marital Dissolution; Family Structure
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • N30 - Economic History - - Labor and Consumers, Demography, Education, Health, Welfare, Income, Wealth, Religion, and Philanthropy - - - General, International, or Comparative
    • O10 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - General
    • O43 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Growth and Aggregate Productivity - - - Institutions and Growth

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