Exporting and Female Labor Market Outcomes in Georgia

Claire Honore Hollweg and Anne Beline Chua Ong Lopez

No 9432, Policy Research Working Paper Series from The World Bank

Abstract: Using firm-level data for Georgia, the paper estimates the quasi-elasticity of employment andwages with respect to the share of exports in total sales, to explore whether changes in the structure of sales(exporting versus selling to the domestic market) matter for labor market outcomes. The methodology uses exogenousfluctuations in exchange rates combined with firms' initial exposure to various markets as instrumentalvariables to identify a causal effect. The results differentiate employment levels and average wages by genderand consider whether export destination or the competiveness of economies matters for the magnitude of this elasticity.The data are from the National Statistics Office of Georgia Statistics Survey of Enterprises merged with customs datafor 2006-17. The instrumental variables regression results show that the act of exporting improves female employmentbut reduces overall average wages and female wages. Increasing exports to the European Union as well ashigh-income countries drives this positive result for female employment, whereas exporting to upper-middle-incomecountries is found to have a negative relationship with female employment.

Keywords: Rural Labor Markets; International Trade and Trade Rules; Labor Markets; Plastics & Rubber Industry; Textiles; Apparel & Leather Industry; Pulp & Paper Industry; Food & Beverage Industry; Common Carriers Industry; Construction Industry; Business Cycles and Stabilization Policies; General Manufacturing (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020-10-08
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-int and nep-tra
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