Taxes on labour supply

9 important questions on Taxes on labour supply

Taxes have two effects, name them

Substitution effect: the fall in price of leisure induces one to work less
income effect: the fall in income leads one to buy less of all normal goods, including leasure

What are two limitations of the labour supply theory?

1 It assumes free adjustment of hours worked. Firms may want all workers to work the same hours, perhaps because of production complementarities.

2 overtime pay rules: workers in most jobs must legally be paid 1.5 times their regular hourly pay if they work more than 40 hours per week

What is the general conclusion on primary and secondary earners labour supply elasticity?

primary = 0.1, secondary = 0.1 - 0.5
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Name quasi experimental evidence of the elasticity of labor supply

Eissa (1995) looks at how labor supply changes as tax policy changes. Studied the Tax Reform Act of 1986. Reduced marginal tax rates for very high earners but not middle or low earners. Compared wives of very high earners to wives of moderately high income mean.
Secondary earners elasticity: 0.8

Why is hours worked a narrow measure of labor supply response?

it misses

1. effort on the job
2. occupation or career choice
3. human capital investment

What is Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) and what are its two goals?

A federal income tax policy that subsidizes the wages of low earners

1. redistribution of resources to lower-income groups
2. increases in the amount of labor supplied by these groups

What are 3 effects of the EITC?

1. Labor force participation: it has increased the LFP of single mothers
2. Hours of work: No effect, conditional on working
3. Married Couples: Married mens labor supply appears not to respond to EITC

--> supports redistribution without reducing labor supply, hence goals reached

Define tax wedges and a solution for it

Any difference between pre- and post-tax returns to an activity caused by taxes.

Solution: tax home work by imputing earnings, make child care tax-deductible

What are the three options to solve the not taxed child care?

1. the status quo lowers social efficiency by deterring mothers from market work
2. taxing home work makes the most economic sense, but is an administrative nightmare
3. subsidies to market work reduces the overall efficiency of the tax system

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