Research statements

My research seeks to advance our understanding of the intersection of macroeconomics and labour economics. In particular, I am interested in how labour market policies affect labour market outcomes. Aggregate productivity has been stagnant for a few decades now¹²³⁴. What role do labour market polices play in addressing this concern? Furthermore, how does the heterogeneous behavioral response to labour market policies at the micro-data level give rise to the macro economic outcomes we observe.

Labour market policies: The labor market is witness to various kinds of imperfections that impede competitive outcomes. From search costs to monopsonies. One of the most far-reaching developments in labour economic research has been the use of quasi-experimental designs to evaluate policy outcomes and effectiveness.

Minimum wages were first introduced in the US at the state level in late 19th century at the state-level but would get struck down fairly quickly. The first federal minimum wage law was introduced in 1938, and since the 2000s the states have been the primary drivers of minimum wage policy. While the literature tends to focus on the demand effects of these policies, little work has been done to address the supply response to minimum wages. In Effects of minimum wages on reservation wages I use quasi-experimental methods along with a little known, but nationally relevant data source to find minimum wage increases are associated with a rise in reservation wages. This increase rises with the increase in minimum wages and the response elasticity varies between 0.44 to 0.82 in magnitude.

In Effects of UI generosity on unemployment I study the impact of the CARES act using Burning Glass data with an extended Diamond-Mortensen-Pissarides model (first developed in @gallant2020temporary). This model accounts for the heterogeneity among the unemployed on the basis of their attachment to their employers. This heterogeneity became pronounced during the 2020 pandemic recession which saw some workers get furloughed, and others laid-off or exit the labour force. Failure to account for this heterogeneity can been seen in the 2020 Beveridge curve which is downward sloping and inelastic, unlike the Beveridge curve in most recessions, which is backwards bending. Using this model I compare the unemployment in states that terminated enhanced UI early with the states that didn’t and I find that states that terminated the augmented UI early saw a rise in aggregate search effort.

In a separate project with Jay Kang, I use panel data from the UK to study the effects of university tuition hikes on major choices by young Britons. In 2017, the 2010 UK Coalition government introduced policy changes to higher education funding that effectively tripled university tuition fees from £3000 to £9000 per year. The estimate of debt from the Institute of Fiscal Studies for students following this policy change is over £44000. Thus, we plan to study the effects of this policy shock on the human capital investment decisions made by young Britons.

Macroeconomic outcomes Beyond the microeconomic realm, my research extends to the macroeconomic consequences of diverse labour market policies. I am interested in exploring how the aggregate effects of these policies resonate through the economy, affecting employment, and productivity.

I am working on incorporating some of my previous findings to simulate policy experiments. I’d like to use a survival analysis model with a job-search model on my reservation wage data to study the effect of a $15 minimum wage on unemployment spell duration in Spell duration response to minimum wage shocks.

The common theme underlining my work is a strong sense of empirical motivation. I combine dynamic modelling techniques and rich data, I aim to provide nuanced insights into the causal relationships between labour market polices, microeconomic responses, and macroeconomic outcomes.