Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/96671 
Authors: 
Year of Publication: 
2013
Series/Report no.: 
ifo Working Paper No. 169
Publisher: 
ifo Institute - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research at the University of Munich, Munich
Abstract: 
Are public sector jobs better than private sector jobs? To answer this question, this paper investigates observed differences in job satisfaction between public- and private-sector workers and disentangles the effect of worker sorting from the one caused by sectorspecific job characteristics. A natural experiment —the massive privatization process inpost-Soviet countries—allows correcting potential self-selection bias. Industry-specificprivatization probabilities are assigned to workers based on unique individual-level surveyinformation regarding pre-determined Soviet jobs during the 1980s. The results reveal acausal public-sector satisfaction premium and a negative selection of individuals intothe public sector. Part of the public-private satisfaction gap can be explained by thedifferent availability of fringe benefits in the two sectors.
Subjects: 
Public sector
job satisfaction
self-selection
quasi-experiment
privatization
fringe benefits.
JEL: 
J28
J45
J31
J32
Document Type: 
Working Paper

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