Zimmermann, Laura V. <br/><br/>
Why Guarantee Employment? Evidence from a Large Indian Public-Works Program 

 -  Economic Development and Cultural Change  2024 
 - 2031-2067 
<br/><br/> Most countries implement safety net programs for poor households. A widespread concern is that such programs crowd out private-sector jobs, but they could also affect workers' job choice. This paper analyzes the first-year employment impacts of the world's largest public-works program, India's National Rural Employment Generation Scheme (NREGS), using a novel regression-discontinuity design. It focuses on districts treated in phase 2 of the NREGS rollout, which excludes poorer districts that were already treated. The results show that there is little evidence of a crowding out of private-sector jobs. Instead, male workers move from work for pay to family employment, which is driven by smallholder farmers. 
<br/><br/><label>ISSN: </label>0013-0079 
<br/><br/><label>Subjects--Topical Terms: </label><br/> Family Employment<br/> Poor Households<br/> Private-Sector Jobs<br/> Public-Works Program<br/>Guarantee Employment