TY  - RPRT
        AU  - Bargain, Olivier B.
AU  - Orsini, Kristian
AU  - Peichl, Andreas
        TI  - Comparing Labor Supply Elasticities in Europe and the US: New Results
        PY  - 2012/Jul/
        PB  - Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)
        CY  - Bonn
        T2  - IZA Discussion Paper
        IS  - 6735
        UR  - https://www.iza.org/publications/dp6735
        AB  - We suggest the first large-scale international comparison of labor supply elasticities for 17 European countries and the US, separately by gender and marital status. Measurement differences are netted out by using a harmonized empirical approach and comparable data sources. We find that own-wage elasticities are relatively small and much more uniform across countries than previously thought. Differences exist nonetheless and are found not to arise from different tax-benefit systems or demographic compositions across countries. Thus, we cannot reject that countries have genuinely different preferences. Three other results, important for welfare analysis, are consistent over all countries: the extensive (participation) margin dominates the intensive (hours) margin; for singles, this leads to larger labor supply responses in low-income groups; income elasticities are extremely small everywhere. Finally, the results for cross-wage elasticities in couples are opposed between regions, consistent with complementarity in spouses' leisure in the US versus substitution in spouses' household production in Europe.
        KW  - taxation
KW  - elasticity
KW  - household labor supply
KW  - Europe
KW  - US
        ER  -