Working Papers

"Reverse Revolving Doors: The Influence of Interest Groups on Legislative Voting" with Miguel Alquézar-Yus [Coverage: ProMarket]

Under review

This paper investigates to which extent legislators with a background in an interest group (i.e., reverse revolvers) influence other legislators’ voting behavior. To answer this question, we collect novel data containing the universe of votes cast at the European Parliament between 2004 and 2019 and characterize legislators by their former working experience. Using the alphabetic allocation of seats, we find that seating beside reverse revolvers when the motion is relevant to their former interest groups increases co-voting by 2.4%, attendance by 1.3%, and decreases abstention by 9%. We find no influence on non-relevant ballots. These effects are driven by budget-related motions and interest groups with limited lobbying spending. Our results show that the revolving doors influence the political process when working in reverse.

"Gender Differences in Early Occupational Choices: Evidence from Medical Specialty Selection" with Agnès Charpin, Noémi Berlin, Magali Dumontet

Under review

This paper analyses gender differences in occupational choices in a setting in which observed matches are solely determined by supply-side factors: the French centralised medical residency selection mechanism. We show that men and women facing the same occupational choice set make drastically different occupational choices. Medical specialties selected by women pay less, have lower time requirements, and are less competitive. To understand these differences and estimate how much of the gender gap in specialty sorting can be explained by individual preferences for job attributes, we administer a survey to prospective medical residents just before their specialty choice. Using both a hypothetical job choice framework and stated preferences, we show that while “hard” job characteristics (earnings, time requirements) only slightly reduce the gender gap in sorting, “soft” characteristics (daily tasks, contact with patients, willingness to help others) play a larger role in reducing the gap. We also find suggestive evidence of an anticipation effect of fertility on women’s career choices. Our results suggest that individual preferences play a determinant role in explaining gender-based occupational segregation.

"The Effects of Temporary Confiscation of Vacant Housing" with Lorenzo Neri

High vacancy rates in tight housing markets are perceived by policymakers and society at large as a market failure that calls for government intervention. We study the effect of a policy passed in the Balearic Islands (Spain) that dictated the temporary confiscation of long-term vacant properties, unless brought to the market. We show how a significant share of the targeted owners react to the policy and make their vacant properties available. Using a synthetic difference-in-differences strategy, we show that following the policy announcement, house prices increase while rents temporarily decrease before reverting to pre-policy levels. This suggests that while supply effects dominate in the rental market, the sale market experiences an increase in prices. This is potentially due to a combination of an `amenity effect' - i.e., the removal of the disamenity imposed by vacant properties on nearby housing - and a regulation effect, whereby imposing an implicit tax on vacant housing dampens private housing investments.

"Unpacking the Current Surge in Sick Leave: Insights from Spanish Administrative Data" with Manuel Serrano-Alarcon

This paper investigates the factors contributing to the current sharp rise in sick leave prevalence occurring in many developed countries, using Spain as a case study. Using individual-level Social Security data for 2018-2023, we examine the evolution of days on sick leave across worker and job characteristics and implement an Oaxaca-Blinder decomposition to quantify each factor's contribution to the increase. We document a 36% increase in the share of days on sick leave, a trend common to a wide range of demographic and job characteristics. Observable factors such as population ageing, increasing employment opportunities, or longer healthcare waiting times account for only about 26% of the rise. Short-and long-term sick leaves show distinct patterns: over 60% of the rise in short absences is attributable to falling unemployment, consistent with behavioural responses in periods of economic expansion, whereas 90% of the growth in long absences remains unexplained by observable factors. Musculoskeletal and mental health conditions account for the largest increase, with mental health being particularly important for those under 40, explaining between 35% and 56% of the rise in days lost. Regional panel data models show that long-term mental and musculoskeletal sick leave rates are significantly associated with increased work stress and pain-related limitations, suggesting that genuine health deterioration is contributing to the surge in long-term sick leaves. Our results highlight a concerning deterioration in mental health among the younger workforce with broader consequences for both workers, employers and the welfare system.

Publication

"Academic Effects of Online Learning Mandates on Secondary School Students" with Sara Flisi, Applied Economics, 2025

''E-learning Engagement Gap During School Closures: Differences by Academic Performance" with Alaitz Ayarza-Astigarraga and Marta C. Lopes, Applied Economics, 2023, Vol. 56 (3): 337-359