Flat Taxes and Labor Supply in Central and Eastern Europe

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Abstract/Contents

Abstract
This study examines how flat taxes have affected labor supply in the Central and Eastern European countries where they have been adopted. I study a structural relationship among key variables, including tax rates and labor supply. According to the model, work incentives and labor supply increased with the adoption of the flat tax in Lithuania, Russia, Slovakia, Ukraine, Romania, and Georgia. In these countries, flat taxes reduced the marginal tax rate on income and thus increased incentives to work. In contrast, the model indicates that Estonia’s labor supply decreased because the flat tax actually increased the marginal tax rate. Latvia experienced no change in the marginal tax rate with the adoption of the flat tax. A surprising finding is that the marginal tax rates are in the range of 60% to 75% in six of the eight countries even after the adoption of flat tax reforms. Actual labor supply statistics suggest the model I use estimates labor supply well for five countries but does not explain all labor supply shifts in emerging economies.

Description

Type of resource text
Date created May 2008

Creators/Contributors

Author Easterbrook, Kathleen F.
Primary advisor Hall, Robert E.
Degree granting institution Stanford University, Department of Economics

Subjects

Subject Stanford Department of Economics
Genre Thesis

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User agrees that, where applicable, content will not be used to identify or to otherwise infringe the privacy or confidentiality rights of individuals. Content distributed via the Stanford Digital Repository may be subject to additional license and use restrictions applied by the depositor.

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Preferred Citation
Easterbrook, Kathleen F. (2008). Flat Taxes and Labor Supply in Central and Eastern Europe . Stanford Digital Repository. Available at: https://purl.stanford.edu/ph329wm4397

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Stanford University, Department of Economics, Honors Theses

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