ERIC Number: ED672595
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2025-Mar
Pages: N/A
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
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EISSN: N/A
Available Date: 0000-00-00
Labor, Loans and Leisure: The Impact of the Student Loan Payment Pause. Working Paper 33553
Diego A. Briones; Sarah Turner
National Bureau of Economic Research
Beginning in March 2020 and ultimately continuing to September 2023, most student loan borrowers had their required payments on federal student loans paused. For student loan borrowers with limited access to credit, the payment pause provided additional cash-on-hand that may have allowed them to reduce their work hours. Using survey data capturing individual finances, monthly work characteristics and educational attainment, we find that suspended student debt payments reduced average weekly hours worked by 1.34 (-4%) over a 10-month period with declines concentrated among workers who had not completed a college degree. For borrowers who had completed a college degree or graduate degree, there is no evidence that the payment pause changed employment or hours worked. These findings are consistent with consumer finance data showing that borrower households without a college degree are approximately twice as likely to report liquidity constraints relative to more educated households with federal student debt.
Descriptors: Student Loan Programs, Loan Repayment, Federal Aid, Working Hours, Educational Attainment, Debt (Financial), Employment, Higher Education
National Bureau of Economic Research. 1050 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138-5398. Tel: 617-588-0343; Web site: http://www.nber.org
Publication Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)
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