Child Labor and Resistance to Change

Bellettini, Giorgio ; Berti Ceroni, Carlotta ; Ottaviano, Gianmarco I. P. (2003) Child Labor and Resistance to Change. DOI 10.6092/unibo/amsacta/625.
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Abstract

We study the interactions between technological innovation, investment in human capital and child labor. In our setting new technologies require new skills and new skills can be developed only through schooling. In a two-stage game, first firms decide on innovation, then households decide on education. In equilibrium the presence of inefficient child labor depends on parameters related to technology, parents’ altruism and the diffusion of firm property. When child labor exists, it is due to either firms reluctance to innovate or households’ unwillingness to educate or both. The optimal policy to eliminate child labor depends crucially on its underlying cause. We show that, in some cases, compulsory schooling laws or a ban on child labor are welfare reducing, while a subsidy to innovation is the right tool to eliminate child labor and increase welfare.

Abstract
Document type
Monograph (Working Paper)
Creators
CreatorsAffiliationORCID
Bellettini, Giorgio
Berti Ceroni, Carlotta
Ottaviano, Gianmarco I. P.
Keywords
child labor innovation
Subjects
DOI
Deposit date
17 Jun 2004
Last modified
17 Feb 2016 13:58
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