PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Andrea Velásquez TI - The Economic Burden of Crime: Evidence from Mexico AID - 10.3368/jhr.55.4.0716-8072R2 DP - 2019 Mar 08 TA - Journal of Human Resources PG - 0716-8072r2 4099 - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/early/2019/03/05/jhr.55.4.0716-8072R2.short 4100 - http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/early/2019/03/05/jhr.55.4.0716-8072R2.full AB - I estimate the impact of the recent and unprecedented surge in drug-related violence in Mexico on the labor market outcomes of Mexican workers. Using a nationally representative longitudinal dataset that allows me to account for unobserved time-invariant heterogeneity, I find that there is a negative relationship between local violence and labor market outcomes. Self-employed individuals are the most sensitive to a violent environment, with men experiencing significantly reduced earnings and productivity, while women decrease their hours of work or exit the labor force entirely. I also find suggestive evidence that fear of victimization plays an important role explaining these changes.