Preferences, Inequities, and Incentives in the Substitute Teacher Labor Market

Matthew Kraft, Megan Lane Conklin and Grace T. Falken

No 30714, NBER Working Papers from National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc

Abstract: We examine the labor supply decisions of substitute teachers – a large, on-demand market with broad shortages and inequitable supply. In 2018, Chicago Public Schools implemented a targeted bonus program designed to reduce unfilled teacher absences in largely segregated Black schools with historically low substitute coverage rates. Using a regression discontinuity design, we find that incentive pay substantially improved coverage equity and raised student achievement. Changes in labor supply were concentrated among Black and Hispanic substitutes from nearby neighborhoods with experience in incentive schools. Wage elasticity estimates suggest incentives would need to be 50% of daily wages to close fill-rate gaps.

JEL-codes: I21 I24 J23 J33 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022-12
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-hrm, nep-lma and nep-ure
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