The Impact of temperature on productivity and labor supply: Evidence from Indian manufacturing

E. Somanathan, Rohini Somanathan, Anant Sudarshan () and Meenu Tewari
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E. Somanathan: Indian Statistical Institute, Delhi
Anant Sudarshan: University of Chicago
Meenu Tewari: University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Authors registered in the RePEc Author Service: E. Somanathan

Discussion Papers from Indian Statistical Institute, Delhi

Abstract: Cross-country studies have found that hotter years are associated with lower output in poor countries. Using high-frequency micro-data from manufacturing firms in India, we show that worker heat stress can substantially explain this correlation. Ambient temperatures have non-linear effects on worker productivity, with declines on hot days of 4 to 9 percent per degree rise in temperature. Sustained heat also increases absenteeism. Similar temperature induced productivity declines are replicated in annual plant output from a national panel. Our estimates imply that warming between 1971 and 2009 may have decreased manufacturing output in India by at least 3 percent relative to a no-warming counterfactual.

Keywords: temperature; heat stress; worker productivity; climate change (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J22 J24 Q54 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 50 pages
Date: 2015-11
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (33)

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Related works:
Journal Article: The Impact of Temperature on Productivity and Labor Supply: Evidence from Indian Manufacturing (2021)
Working Paper: The impact of temperature on productivity and labor supply: Evidence from Indian manufacturing (2021)
Working Paper: THE IMPACT OF TEMPERATURE ON PRODUCTIVITY AND LABOR SUPPLY - EVIDENCE FROM INDIAN MANUFACTURING (2015)
Working Paper: The Impact of Temperature on Productivity and Labor Supply: Evidence from Indian Manufacturing (2015)
Working Paper: The Impact of Temperature on Productivity and Labor Supply: Evidence from Indian Manufacturing (2014)
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