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Do Wages Compensate for Anticipated Working Time Restrictions? Evidence from Seasonal Employment in Austria

Author

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  • Del Bono, Emilia

    () (ISER, University of Essex)

  • Weber, Andrea

    () (Central European University)

Abstract

In this paper we investigate the existence of compensating wage differentials across seasonal and non seasonal jobs, which arise due to anticipated working time restrictions. We build on a theoretical model by Abowd and Ashenfelter (1981), which links the compensating wage differential to variation in individual unemployment through the effect of the unemployment insurance and the compensated labor supply elasticity. Since the Austrian labor market is characterized by an unusually high share of seasonal employment, our data provides the ideal setting in which to empirically test this model. We use the very rich information contained in the Austrian administrative records to derive a flexible definition of seasonal employment based on observed regularities in employment patterns. We find that employers pay on average a positive wage differential of about 11% for seasonal jobs and that the unemployment insurance system contributes a similar amount.

Suggested Citation

  • Del Bono, Emilia & Weber, Andrea, 2006. "Do Wages Compensate for Anticipated Working Time Restrictions? Evidence from Seasonal Employment in Austria," IZA Discussion Papers 2242, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp2242
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Alfred Stiglbauer & Florian Stahl & Rudolf Winter-Ebmer & Josef Zweimüller, 2003. "Job Creation and Job Destruction in a Regulated Labor Market: The Case of Austria," Empirica, Springer;Austrian Institute for Economic Research;Austrian Economic Association, vol. 30(2), pages 127-148, June.
    2. Li, Elizabeth H, 1986. "Compensating Differentials for Cyclical and Noncyclical Unemployment: The Interaction between Investors' and Employees' Risk Aversion," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 4(2), pages 277-300, April.
    3. Lalive, Rafael, 2003. "Did We Overestimate the Value of Health?," Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, Springer, vol. 27(2), pages 171-193, October.
    4. John M. Abowd & Orley C. Ashenfelter, 1981. "Anticipated Unemployment, Temporary Layoffs, and Compensating Wage Differentials," NBER Chapters, in: Studies in Labor Markets, pages 141-170, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. Assaad, Ragui & Tunali, Insan, 2002. "Wage formation and recurrent unemployment," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 9(1), pages 17-61, February.
    6. Nicole M. Fortin, 2006. "Higher-Education Policies and the College Wage Premium: Cross-State Evidence from the 1990s," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 96(4), pages 959-987, September.
    7. Hamermesh, Daniel S & Wolfe, John R, 1990. "Compensating Wage Differentials and the Duration of Wage Loss," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 8(1), pages 175-197, January.
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    11. Moretti, Enrico, 2000. "Do Wages Compensate for Risk of Unemployment? Parametric and Semiparametric Evidence from Seasonal Jobs," Journal of Risk and Uncertainty, Springer, vol. 20(1), pages 45-66, January.
    12. Helmut Hofer & Karl Pichelmann & Andreas-Ulrich Schuh, 2001. "Price and quantity adjustments in the Austrian labour market," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 33(5), pages 581-592.
    13. Garen, John, 1988. "Compensating Wage Differentials and the Endogeneity of Job Riskiness," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 70(1), pages 9-16, February.
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    labor supply elasticity; wage differentials; seasonal employment; fixed effects panel estimation;

    JEL classification:

    • J22 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Time Allocation and Labor Supply
    • J3 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs
    • C23 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Single Equation Models; Single Variables - - - Models with Panel Data; Spatio-temporal Models

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