The Effect of Pollution on Worker Productivity: Evidence from Call-Center Workers in China

Tom Chang, Joshua Graff Zivin, Tal Gross and Matthew Neidell

No 22328, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: We investigate the effect of pollution on worker productivity in the service sector by focusing on two call centers in China. Using precise measures of each worker’s daily output linked to daily measures of pollution and meteorology, we find that higher levels of air pollution decrease worker productivity by reducing the number of calls that workers complete each day. These results manifest themselves at commonly found levels of pollution in major cities throughout the developing and developed world, suggesting that these types of effects are likely to apply broadly. When decomposing these effects, we find that the decreases in productivity are explained by increases in time spent on breaks rather than the duration of phone calls. To our knowledge, this is the first study to demonstrate that the negative impacts of pollution on productivity extend beyond physically demanding tasks to indoor, white-collar work.

JEL-codes: J22 J24 Q51 Q53 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016-06
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-cna, nep-eff, nep-ene, nep-env and nep-lma
Note: EEE EH LS
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (27)

Published as Tom Y. Chang & Joshua Graff Zivin & Tal Gross & Matthew Neidell, 2019. "The Effect of Pollution on Worker Productivity: Evidence from Call Center Workers in China," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, vol 11(1), pages 151-172.

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Related works:
Journal Article: The Effect of Pollution on Worker Productivity: Evidence from Call Center Workers in China (2019)
Working Paper: The Effect of Pollution on Worker Productivity: Evidence from Call-Center Workers in China (2016)
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