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Labor Regulations and the Cost of Corruption: Evidence from the Indian Firm Size Distribution

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Listed:
  • Amrit Amirapu

    (University of Kent)

  • Michael Gechter

    (Pennsylvania State University)

Abstract

In this paper, we estimate the costs associated with an important suite of labor regulations in India by taking advantage of the fact that these regulations apply only to firms above a size threshold. Using distortions in the firm size distribution together with a structural model of firm size choice, we estimate that the regulations increase firms' unit labor costs by 35%. This estimate is robust to potential misreporting on the part of firms and enumerators. We also document a robust positive association between regulatory costs and exposure to corruption, which may explain why regulations appear to be so costly in developing countries.

Suggested Citation

  • Amrit Amirapu & Michael Gechter, 2020. "Labor Regulations and the Cost of Corruption: Evidence from the Indian Firm Size Distribution," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 102(1), pages 34-48, March.
    • Handle: RePEc:tpr:restat:v:102:y:2020:i:1:p:34-48
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    6. Nihar Shembavnekar, 2018. "Did India’s economic reforms generate jobs? Essays on economic liberalisation, labour market flexibility and employment in the Indian manufacturing sector (1990-2006)," Economics PhD Theses 0917, Department of Economics, University of Sussex Business School.
    7. Pubali Chakraborty & Kanika Mahajan, 2023. "Firm Size and Female Employment," Working Papers 103, Ashoka University, Department of Economics.
    8. Natalie Bau & Adrien Matray, 2023. "Misallocation and Capital Market Integration: Evidence From India," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 91(1), pages 67-106, January.
    9. Jonathan Colmer, 2021. "Temperature, Labor Reallocation, and Industrial Production: Evidence from India," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 13(4), pages 101-124, October.
    10. Chaudhary,Sarur & Sharma,Siddharth, 2022. "The Impact of Lifting Firing Restrictions on Firms : Evidence from a State-Level Labor Law Amendment," Policy Research Working Paper Series 10039, The World Bank.
    11. Diti Goswami & Sourabh Bikas Paul, 2020. "Labor Reforms in Rajasthan: A boon or a bane?," Papers 2012.01016, arXiv.org.
    12. Anindya S. Chakrabarti & Shekhar Tomar, 2024. "Multi‐plant firms and the heavy tail of firm size distribution," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 57(3), pages 1028-1041, August.
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    14. Sugam Agarwal & Smruti Ranjan Behera, 2022. "Geographical concentration of knowledge and technology-intensive industries in India: empirical evidence from establishment-level analysis," Indian Economic Review, Springer, vol. 57(2), pages 513-552, December.
    15. Dhammika Dharmapala & Vikramaditya S. Khanna, 2019. "Stock Market Reactions to India's 2016 Demonetization," Journal of Empirical Legal Studies, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 16(2), pages 281-317, June.
    16. Krekó, Judit & Telegdy, Álmos, 2022. "The Effects of a Disability Employment Quota When Compliance Is Cheaper than Defiance," IZA Discussion Papers 15726, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    17. Daniel Schwab, 2020. "Labor protection laws and the drain on productivity: Evidence from India," Review of Development Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 24(2), pages 383-401, May.
    18. Das, Satadru & Ghosh, Saurabh & Mazumder, Debojyoti & Tushavera, Jitendra, 2023. "Impact of COVID-19 shock on a segmented labour market: Analysis using a unique panel dataset," MPRA Paper 116780, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    19. Andrew Kerr & Bruce McDougall, 2020. "What is a firm census in a developing country? An answer from Ghana," SALDRU Working Papers 262, Southern Africa Labour and Development Research Unit, University of Cape Town.
    20. Md. Harun Ur Rashid & Afzal Ahmad & Muhammad Saleh Abdullah & Monir Ahmmed & Serajul Islam, 2022. "Doing Business and Tax Evasion: Evidence from Asian Countries," SAGE Open, , vol. 12(4), pages 21582440221, October.
    21. Pavel Chakraborty & Rahul Singh & Vidhya Soundararajan, 2021. "Import Competition, Formalization, and the Role of Contract Labor," Working Papers 332157179, Lancaster University Management School, Economics Department.

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