Who Works More Hours Per Week: Rich or Poor Countries?

Research has established that more people work in poorer countries than in richer countries. But recent research shows that people in poorer countries also work more hours than those in richer countries. This implies that differences in labor productivity are even larger than previously thought.

Alexander Bick, an assistant economics professor at Arizona State University, discussed these findings in his paper “How Do Average Hours Worked Vary with Development? Cross-Country Evidence and Implications,” presented at the St. Louis Advances in Research (STLAR) Conference on April 7-8. In the video above, he discussed his work in an interview with St. Louis Fed Vice President and Economist David Andolfatto.

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