Does Wealth Influence Women’s Labor Participation Decision?: Evidence from Egypt

Abstract

This study examines the behavior of labor supply of women at different levels of household wealth status. It is widely demonstrated in the literature that variables such as age and level of education, as well as the demographic, social, and financial characteristics of the household influence deciding to join the labor market. However, this study argues that these determinants work differently according to the level or the well-being of the household, adding another to the literature on women's labor supply in MENA. There have been few studies on women's labor supply in the MENA region. Some have focused on labor supply and its elasticities in Egypt and Turkey [El-Hamidi (2003), and Tunali and Baslevent (2000)]. Others have focused on the fertility and timing of marriage in Morocco [Assaad and Zouari (2003)]. Household wealth is yet to be considered in the labor supply analysis.