Economic Sanctions, Employment Structures, and the Corporate Workplace in Iran

• In Event: 50220 - Section on Organizations, Occupations, and Work Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (60 minute): Table 12: Transgressions and Boundaries

Abstract

The future of work is increasingly shaped by foreign policy, notably through the rapid rise of economic sanctions. Scholars have demonstrated that economic sanctions typically reduce workers' welfare, increase informality, and raise unemployment in targeted countries and industries. However, there is limited understanding of how corporations reorganize their workforces in response to sanctions. Do sanctioned firms cut labor costs by reducing wages, lowering work conditions, and laying off staff? Do they employ broader fissuring techniques and corporate restructuring to evade sanctions, such as by concealing their workforces behind less visible subsidiaries or subcontractors? This paper explores these questions through a detailed study of publicly listed companies in the Islamic Republic of Iran. It integrates firm-level data on sanctions, including company exposure and sanction timing, with evidence on corporate structure, employment, and working conditions.

Author

• Zep Kalb, Princeton University