Econ Papers Daily / 期刊论文
工时错配
Work Hours Mismatch
摘要
We apply a revealed preference approach to administrative data from Washington to show that constraints on work hours are widespread: Workers have limited discretion over hours at a given employer, and there is substantial mismatch of workers who prefer long hours to employers that provide short hours. Voluntary job transitions imply a ratio of the marginal rate of substitution of earnings for hours to the wage rate of 0.5–0.6 for prime‐age workers. The average absolute deviation between observed and optimal hours is about 15%, and low‐wage workers face particularly acute constraints on hours. On average, observed hours tend to be less than preferred levels, and workers would require a 12% higher wage with their current employer to be as well off as with an employer offering ideal hours. These findings suggest that hour constraints are an equilibrium feature of the labor market because long‐hour jobs are costly to employers.
中文摘要
我们运用显示性偏好方法分析华盛顿州的行政数据，揭示工作时间约束普遍存在：员工在给定雇主处对工作小时数的自主权有限，且偏好长工时的员工与提供短工时的雇主之间存在显著错配。自愿职业转换表明，对于主要劳动年龄工人，收入对工时的边际替代率与工资率之比为0.5至0.6。观测工时与最优工时之间的平均绝对偏差约为15%，而低工资工人面临尤为严峻的工时约束。平均而言，观测工时往往低于偏好水平，工人若要与提供理想工时的雇主获得同等福利，需在当前雇主处获得高出12%的工资。这些发现表明，工时约束是劳动力市场的均衡特征，因为长工时岗位对雇主而言成本高昂。