Using Payroll Tax Variation to Unpack the Black Box of Firm-Level Production

A-Tier
Journal: Journal of the European Economic Association
Year: 2021
Volume: 19
Issue: 5
Pages: 2737-2764

Score contribution per author:

2.011 = (α=2.01 / 2 authors) × 2.0x A-tier

α: calibrated so average coauthorship-adjusted count equals average raw count

Abstract

This paper uses quasi-experimental variation in payroll tax rates in Finland to investigate how firms use their input factors. We find that higher payroll tax rates lead to large employment responses and have no effects on employee-level earnings. As payroll taxes increase, firms substitute away from low-skilled, routine, and manual workers. Higher firm-level payroll tax rates also slightly decrease the total output of firms. Our results imply that firm-level production and input factor choices are clearly affected by payroll taxes.

Technical Details

RePEc Handle
repec:oup:jeurec:v:19:y:2021:i:5:p:2737-2764.
Journal Field
General
Author Count
2
Added to Database
2026-01-24