How Does Poverty Alleviation Relocation Affect the Non-Agricultural Employment of Women’s Labor Forces? Evidence from Southern Shaanxi Province

Abstract

With the completion of the relocation task, fully promoting the non-agricultural employment of relocated women is of great significance for improving the livelihood sustainability of relocated peasant households’ and consolidating the results of poverty alleviation. Based on the sample data of 1616 rural households in southern Shaanxi Province, China, using the IV-Probit model, IV-Tobit model, and mediation effect model, this study empirically analyzes the impact and mechanism of participation in relocation on women’s non-agricultural employment. The results show that by introducing an instrumental variable to solve endogeneity, participation in relocation has a significant positive impact on the behavior and intensity of women’s non-agricultural employment. A mechanism analysis shows that training, public services, and land abandonment play a mediation role in the relationship between participation in relocation and women’s non-agricultural employment. In terms of women’s non-agricultural employment behavior, the mediation effects are 56.9%, 15.0%, and 11.0%, respectively. In terms of women’s non-agricultural employment intensity, the mediation effects are 58.5%, 15.7%, and 11.6%, respectively. Based on the above findings, this study puts forward policy implications for follow-up relocation support, to further release the surplus women’s labor forces and promote women’s non-agricultural employment.