Elena Patel, Assistant Professor of Finance, is the recipient of one of a trio of research grants to scholars exploring the impact of paid family and medical leave and paid sick leave policies amid the coronavirus pandemic and ensuing recession from the Washington Center for Equitable Growth. These studies, conducted by faculty members at leading U.S. colleges and universities, will answer important research questions on paid leave’s role in protecting public health and economic security during the ongoing crisis.
“In their project, ‘COVID-19 and Paid Leave: Assessing the Impact of the FFRCA’ Kristen Smith of Dartmouth College, Tanya Byker of Middlebury College, and Elena Patel of the University of Utah will investigate how leave-taking was influenced by the passage of the Families First Coronavirus Response Act. The researchers will analyze the impact of the FFCRA on several employment and leave-taking outcomes, including labor force participation, usual hours worked, and reasons for work absences. Using data from the Current Population Survey, the researchers will examine how workers trade off the alternatives to leave-taking, including working while sick or separating from the labor force. The authors plan to compare leave-taking in states that either do or do not have state-based paid leave programs. This study will join an emerging body of literature studying the efficacy of the FFCRA,” said the grant announcement.
Congratulations to Elena and her colleagues!