We analyze the relationship between unemployment and the supply of online labor for microtasking. Using detailed U.S. data from a large microtasking platform between 2011 and 2015, we study the participation and the number of hours supplied by workers in the U.S. We found that more individuals registered on the platform and completed microtasks as the unemployment level in the commuting zone increased. This effect was strongest in regions with a high share of low-skilled workers. Our analyses of the intensive margin, wage elasticity, and temporal work patterns suggest that the increased participation was likely motivated by an effort to substitute income. Our findings suggest that microtasking platforms are an interesting online labor market for less educated workers. However, we also observed very low retention rates, indicative of a solely transient participation effect.

中文翻译：

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失业和在线劳动力：来自微任务的证据

我们分析了失业与微任务在线劳动力供应之间的关系。使用 2011 年至 2015 年间美国大型微任务平台的详细数据，我们研究了美国工人的参与度和提供的小时数我们发现随着通勤区失业率的增加，更多的人在平台上注册并完成了微任务. 这种影响在低技能工人比例较高的地区最为明显。我们对集约化边际、工资弹性和临时工作模式的分析表明，参与度的提高可能是为了替代收入。我们的研究结果表明，对于受教育程度较低的工人来说，微任务平台是一个有趣的在线劳动力市场。然而，我们也观察到非常低的保留率，