RIEB Discussion Paper Series No.2020-26

RIEB Discussion Paper Series No.2020-26

Title

Urbanization Effects on Job Search Decision

Abstract

This study examines the effect of urban agglomeration on a non-working individual's decision to search for a job using Japanese microdata. According to the results, urban agglomeration raises the probability of job search for less-educated men, suggesting that it raises the offer wages or decreases the out-of-pocket cost of job search. Urban agglomeration also encourages unmarried women to search for a job, whereas the effect is not significant for married women. It, however, discourages married women with children from searching, suggesting that life events, such as marriage and childbirth, raise women's value of household production, especially in urban areas.

Keywords

Local labor market; Agglomeration (dis)economies; Life event; Japan

JEL Classification

J64, R11, R23

Inquiries

Yudai HIGASHI
Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences, Okayama University
3-1-1, Tsushima-naka, Kita-ku, Okayama 700-8530, Japan
Junior Research Fellow, RIEB, Kobe University
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