American Economic Journal:
Economic Policy
ISSN 1945-7731 (Print) | ISSN 1945-774X (Online)
Guaranteed Employment in Rural India: Intrahousehold Labor and Resource Allocation Consequences
American Economic Journal: Economic Policy
(pp. 34–77)
Abstract
I investigate the intrahousehold labor and resource allocation consequences of an employment guarantee targeting rural households in India. The guarantee insures household earnings, replacing women as added workers and shutting down a motive for saving. Despite sizable program-job take-up, the guarantee decreases participation in other working activities and, thus, labor force participation of married women and total time worked by their husbands. The guarantee accounts for up to 30 percent of a recent countrywide decrease in rural female labor force participation. Though it increases household consumption, the guarantee reduces the command of women's household earnings and, thereby, their well-being.Citation
García, Jorge Luis. 2026. "Guaranteed Employment in Rural India: Intrahousehold Labor and Resource Allocation Consequences." American Economic Journal: Economic Policy 18 (2): 34–77. DOI: 10.1257/pol.20220332Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- D13 Household Production and Intrahousehold Allocation
- G51 Household Finance: Household Saving, Borrowing, Debt, and Wealth
- I32 Measurement and Analysis of Poverty
- J16 Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
- J22 Time Allocation and Labor Supply
- J68 Mobility, Unemployment, and Vacancies: Public Policy
- O12 Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development