Workweek Reduction and Women's Job Turnover: Evidence from Labor Legislation in South Korea

This study examines whether a workweek reduction impacts job turnover behavior of workers, with a particular focus on female worker's turnover. To assess the causal relationship, I exploit the introduction of South Korea's workweek reduction policy as a natural experiment. Using individual longitudinal data, I estimate a job turnover model that distinguishes job-to-job transition from job-to-nonemployment transition. The estimates reveal that, for women, mandating a 40-hour workweek significantly decreases the probability of making a job-tononemployment transition and thus raises the probability of staying in the job. The impacts of a work-hour reduction are salient among married women.