Worker-firm matching in manufacturing in developing countries

Most countries in the developing world have experienced rising female labor force participation over the past twenty years (Heath and Jayachandran, forthcoming). This trend provides the backdrop for my research, which focuses on labor markets in developing countries, with an emphasis on gender. In particular, I study how firms select workers—and how workers select the firms in which they seek work—in export manufacturing in developing countries. I also investigate the effects of job opportunities on women’s lives and the determinants of women’s decision to join the labor force and their autonomy more broadly.