Why Do Americans No Longer Work So Much More Than Non- Americans?

2026

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AI-generated summary

1) The decline in U.S. hours worked per person since 2000 is primarily driven by the rise of government health benefits for the non-employed, a trend not mirrored to the same extent in other developed countries.
2) This paper develops a labor supply model incorporating individual heterogeneity, extensive and intensive margins, multi-member households, and tax/benefit systems to analyze the convergence of working hours.
3) The study finds that while non-U.S. countries' labor supply increases are attributed to a mix of factors like rising wages and falling disutility of work, the U.S. decline is significantly linked to increased health benefits, particularly Medicaid.
Tags: labor supply, working hours, benefits, health benefits, Medicaid

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