Employing the unemployed of Marienthal: Evaluation of a guaranteed job program

We evaluate a guaranteed job program launched in 2020 in Austria. Our evaluation is based on three approaches, pairwise matched randomization, a pre-registered synthetic control at the municipality level, and a comparison to individuals in control municipalities. This allows us to estimate direct effects, anticipation effects, and spillover effects.

We find positive impacts of program participation on economic and non-economic well-being, but not on physical health or preferences. At the municipality level, we find a large reduction of long-term unemployment, and no negative employment spillovers. There are positive anticipation effects on subjective well-being, status, and social inclusion for future participants.

Joint Work with Maximilian Kasy

Paper: https://osf.io/preprints/socarxiv/cd25u/

The New Yorker Reportage: https://www.newyorker.com/news/annals-of-inquiry/what-happens-when-jobs-are-guaranteed

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