Publications

Evidence on workers' willingness to pay (WTP) for location flexibility in Latin America remains scarce. Using a discrete choice experiment with 4,785 working-age participants in Argentina, Chile, Colombia, Mexico, and Peru, we estimate WTP for hybrid and fully remote formal jobs in manufacturing and information technology. Conditional logit models show that participants sacrifice 10% of wages, or USD 109 monthly, for hybrid work and 6%, or USD 60, for fully remote work. Women value both arrangements more than men, with statistically significant gender differences. Heterogeneity by age and commuting distance is limited; caregiving differences are not detected. Robustness checks confirm results.

Using a discrete choice experiment with over 5,000 participants from five Latin American countries, we examine how language in job advertisements affects job search behavior. We find that both men and women value information and inclusive language in job postings, but women are notably more sensitive to these factors. The language used in job ads matters particularly in male-dominated occupations. Inclusive language increases women's stated interest in applying with no evidence of backlash among men, and describing skills in neutral terms raises selection probabilities for both genders by around 40 percentage points. These findings highlight that language in job postings is a powerful tool for increasing workforce diversity.

This paper estimates women's willingness to pay for job schedule flexibility using a discrete choice experiment with workers in Latin America. We find that women value flexibility significantly more than men, and this preference is particularly strong among women with children. The results suggest that policies promoting flexible work arrangements could help reduce gender gaps in labor force participation and improve work-life balance for women.

We conduct a field experiment in Colombia to examine how working-time flexibility affects productivity in routine jobs. Workers were randomly assigned to flexible or fixed schedules. We find that flexibility increases overall productivity by up to 50%, with 40% of this gain driven by sorting effects (more productive workers selecting into flexible arrangements) and 60% by motivational effects (workers reducing break lengths). The results suggest that flexible work arrangements can benefit both workers and firms.

Preventive detention legislation allows for the ongoing detention of an offender's sentence. We explore the effects of pretrial detention on case outcomes in Bogotá, Colombia, from 2005–2017. Using pretrial judge leniency as an instrument, we find that pretrial detention leads to a 48 percentage point increase in the likelihood of being convicted. The rise in the probability of reaching agreements among defendants who would have otherwise been acquitted or had their charges dropped explains our findings. We also find evidence of an increase in the likelihood of pleading guilty for those detained pretrial and who experience a more significant incarceration sentence. Colombian prisons are overcrowded. Pretrial detentions add to the cost of maintenance of the prisoners. Policymakers should consider whether the costs associated with pretrial detention outweigh the potential benefits.

Using a controlled field experiment in Bogotá, Colombia, we test whether firms discriminate against job applicants based on their residential location. We send fictitious resumes to real job postings, varying the neighborhood of residence while keeping other characteristics constant. We find evidence of "redlining" behavior, where firms are less likely to call back applicants from certain neighborhoods, even after controlling for observable characteristics. This spatial discrimination contributes to labor market segmentation and inequality.

We examine peer effects in education using data from a Colombian university. We find that peer effects are heterogeneous: students benefit more from high-ability peers when they themselves are high-ability, suggesting complementarities in learning. The effects are stronger for students from disadvantaged backgrounds, indicating that peer interactions can help reduce educational inequality. Our results highlight the importance of classroom composition and diversity in educational outcomes.

This paper analyzes spatial unemployment differentials across Colombian municipalities. Using spatial econometric techniques, we document significant and persistent differences in unemployment rates across regions. We find that these differentials are driven by both demand-side factors (local economic conditions, industrial composition) and supply-side factors (human capital, migration patterns). The results suggest that regional labor market policies should account for spatial spillovers and local economic structures.

We examine the relationship between human capital concentration and employment outcomes across Colombian municipalities. Using data on educational attainment and labor market indicators, we find that municipalities with higher shares of skilled workers exhibit better employment outcomes, even after controlling for local economic conditions. The results suggest that agglomeration effects and knowledge spillovers play an important role in urban labor markets, highlighting the benefits of investing in education and attracting skilled workers to cities.

This paper explores whether the agglomeration of human capital leads to social employment advantages in urban labor markets of a developing country: Colombia. It provides a brief review of the literature and tests empirically its predictions using census data for 1993 and 2005. I estimate the social effects of human capital agglomeration by comparing employment opportunities of individuals located in urban areas in which the level of education differs. Results show that employment opportunities are higher on average in skilled urban areas. Three explanations have been offered: human capital externalities, production complementarities, and consumption spillovers. To distinguish between them, I analyze the effect of an increase on the college share on the employment rate for different education groups. I find that a percentage point increase in the supply of college graduates only affects the employment rates of primary and high-school dropouts. Such a result suggests that spatial employment differences in Colombia are mostly explained by human capital externalities and production complementarities.

Employers and job seekers rely extensively on informal referrals to fill vacancies or to find a job. The widespread use of job contacts has been largely associated with labor outcomes, such as finding a job or even affecting wages. This paper explores whether the use of informal referrals on the job search process affects labor market outcomes of Colombian urban workers. Results indicate that informal referrals are slightly more successful than other job search strategies in terms of job seeker's placement. However, referred workers earn on average less than their non-referred counterparts. Yet, this is only true in formal-sector positions.

We conduct a field experiment with 1,732 cohabiting couples with young children in Bogotá, Colombia, to examine how misperceptions about gender norms affect maternal employment decisions. We find that despite almost universal personal support for working mothers, both men and women substantially underestimate others' support for maternal employment, particularly that of men. An intervention providing personalized information about prevailing attitudes narrowed belief gaps and led to behavioral changes: treated men were 7–8 percentage points more likely to nominate their wives for career-building opportunities, and treated women intensified job-search efforts. These results suggest that correcting misperceptions about social norms can help reduce barriers to maternal employment.

Urban roadway space for bicycle lanes and its impact on motorized traffic are key issues. Drivers worry that designating space for bikes, even in segregated lanes, could diminish route capacity and increase congestion. This study investigates whether street bike lanes slow urban passenger car speeds by reallocating roadway space. During the COVID-19 epidemic in Bogotá, Colombia, temporary bicycle lanes were installed, some of which became permanent. We investigate these bike lanes' effects on public transit and all-vehicle speeds using a difference-in-differences technique. Contrary to expectations, our findings reveal only a minor impact on travel speeds following the introduction of these bike lanes. We also find that the presence of bike lanes diminishes car accidents by 40 percent.