Labeled Cash Transfers for Refugee Job Search
RCTClinical Trial
Refugees and low-income jobseekers frequently face binding liquidity constraints that restrict their ability to afford basic costs associated with job search, such as transportation, childcare, and application preparation [22-24]. Without financial support, credit-constrained individuals cannot search intensively or wait for high-quality job matches, trapping them in unemployment or low-wage informal work [22, 25, 26].
Picture this
Imagine a worker who has the skills for a good job in the city center but cannot afford the bus ticket or daily lunch needed to attend job interviews [24, 27]. Giving this worker a small cash grant acts like paying for a multi-week bus pass [24, 25]. Even if the money comes without strict enforcement, labeling it for job search encourages the recipient to cover transportation and basic needs, enabling them to send out more applications and eventually secure a higher-paying, stable job [24, 26, 27].
What the evidence says
Four months post-treatment, the cash grant increased Syrian refugee employment by 3.8 percentage points (a 70% increase over control) and raised earnings by 65% (p = 0.040) [22, 30]. It doubled job retention rates from 3.3% to 6.2% (p = 0.036) and increased hourly wages by 0.308 JOD (p = 0.055) [26, 31].
- Who was studied
- N = 1,663 Syrian refugees and N = 2,107 Jordanian jobseekers in urban areas (Amman, Irbid, Mafraq) [7-9, 28].
- How
- Randomized field evaluation of a modest, one-time labeled cash transfer of 65 JOD (~$92 USD, covering ~10 weeks of average search costs) delivered via charged ATM cards, measured at 6-week, 2-month, and 4-month follow-ups [7, 10, 24, 29].
What to do
Distribute modest, targeted unconditional or labeled cash transfers to credit-constrained jobseekers to relieve immediate liquidity bottlenecks and enhance job search intensity and match quality [22, 24, 25].
From the source
"As a result, four months after treatment, the grant boosts employment by 3.8 percentage points (70 percent) and earnings by 65 percent." [22]
An Adaptive Targeted Field Experiment: Job Search Assistance for Refugees in Jordan