More Bad News for Smokers? The Effects of Cigarette Smoking on Labor Market Outcomes

26 Pages Posted: 21 Jul 2000 Last revised: 29 Nov 2022

See all articles by Phillip B. Levine

Phillip B. Levine

Wellesley College; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

Tara A. Gustafson

Brattle Group

Ann D. Velenchik

Wellesley College

Date Written: September 1995

Abstract

This paper uses data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth to examine the effect of smoking on wages and employment. The panel nature and household structure of these data enable us to implement methods to account for differences in observed and unobserved individual characteristics that may be correlated with both smoking and wages. Changes in wages associated with changes in smoking behavior and models that utilize sibling comparisons are estimated to address the potential heterogeneity problem. Estimates from alternative specifications all indicate that smoking reduces wages by roughly 4-8%. No robust, statistically significant effect on employment is observed.

Suggested Citation

Levine, Phillip B. and Gustafson, Tara A. and Velenchik, Ann D., More Bad News for Smokers? The Effects of Cigarette Smoking on Labor Market Outcomes (September 1995). NBER Working Paper No. w5270, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=225334

Phillip B. Levine (Contact Author)

Wellesley College ( email )

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Tara A. Gustafson

Brattle Group

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Ann D. Velenchik

Wellesley College

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Wellesley, MA 02181
United States

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