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The long term returns of attempting self-employment with regular employment as a fall back option

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  • Daly, Moira
Abstract
There is a substantial body of research investigating the returns to self-employment. Relatively little attention has been paid to the returns from attempting self-employment while acknowledging that the decision to try self-employment is reversible. But this is the option considered by the worker deciding whether to become self-employed, as are any resulting positive or negative changes to the worker's wages, hours worked, or likelihood of job or business termination and resulting unemployment. The full consequences of attempting self-employment are determined by comparing the actual income streams of individuals who do and who do not attempt self-employment. Selection on observables is controlled by employing nearest-neighbor matching with bias correction. The main result is that there is no significant evidence that individuals who attempt self-employment are punished for doing so: after 15years, those who attempt self-employment receive an (insignificant) 8% and a (significant) 22% premium in labor income and in labor and asset income, respectively. The consequences of attempting self-employment vary by occupation: individuals in technical and professional occupations realize significant gains, of 45% to 62% after 15years, whereas craftsmen see no significant differences in income. Quantile treatment effects on the treated are estimated and reveal that the average positive premiums are driven by the upper tail of the treatment effect distribution.

Suggested Citation

  • Daly, Moira, 2015. "The long term returns of attempting self-employment with regular employment as a fall back option," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 35(C), pages 26-52.
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:labeco:v:35:y:2015:i:c:p:26-52
    DOI: 10.1016/j.labeco.2015.03.013
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    3. Schulz, Matthias & Urbig, Diemo & Procher, Vivien, 2017. "The role of hybrid entrepreneurship in explaining multiple job holders’ earnings structure," Journal of Business Venturing Insights, Elsevier, vol. 7(C), pages 9-14.
    4. Lougui, Monia & Broström, Anders, 2020. "The Labor Market Value of Experience from Temporary Self-employment," Working Paper Series in Economics and Institutions of Innovation 484, Royal Institute of Technology, CESIS - Centre of Excellence for Science and Innovation Studies.
    5. Emma Lappi, 2023. "Help from the past—coworker ties and entry wages after self-employment," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 60(3), pages 1171-1196, March.
    6. Koch, Michael & Park, Sarah & Zahra, Shaker A., 2021. "Career patterns in self-employment and career success," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 36(1).
    7. Felipe Balmaceda, 2018. "Entrepreneurship: skills and financing," Small Business Economics, Springer, vol. 50(4), pages 871-886, April.
    8. Braunerhjelm, Pontus & Lappi, Emma, 2023. "Employees' entrepreneurial human capital and firm performance," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 52(2).
    9. Sundriyal, Vivek Kumar & Gabrielsson, Jonas, 2024. "The employment consequences of founding an incorporated business among STEM founders: Evidence from Swedish microdata," Technovation, Elsevier, vol. 133(C).
    10. Failla, Virgilio & Melillo, Francesca & Reichstein, Toke, 2017. "Entrepreneurship and employment stability — Job matching, labour market value, and personal commitment," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 32(2), pages 162-177.
    11. Merida, Adrian L. & Rocha, Vera, 2021. "It's about time: The timing of entrepreneurial experience and the career dynamics of university graduates," Research Policy, Elsevier, vol. 50(1).
    12. Emma Lappi, 2024. "New hires, adjustment costs, and knowledge transfer—evidence from the mobility of entrepreneurs and skills on firm productivity," Industrial and Corporate Change, Oxford University Press and the Associazione ICC, vol. 33(3), pages 712-737.
    13. Eleanor W. Dillon & Christopher T. Stanton, 2017. "Self-Employment Dynamics and the Returns to Entrepreneurship," NBER Working Papers 23168, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    14. Emma Lappi & Johan E. Eklund & Johan Klaesson, 2022. "Does education matter for the earnings of former entrepreneurs? Longitudinal evidence using entry and exit dynamics," Journal of Evolutionary Economics, Springer, vol. 32(3), pages 827-865, July.
    15. Canidio, Andrea, 2019. "Task Discretion, Labor Market Frictions and Entrepreneurship," CEPR Discussion Papers 13954, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    16. Küsshauer, Alexander & Baum, Matthias, 2023. "The good, the bad and the uncertain: Employers' perceptions of former entrepreneurs," Journal of Business Venturing, Elsevier, vol. 38(2).
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Self-employment; Entry; Matching;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J23 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Demand
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity

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