Auditing by a downstream firm of a Chinese supplier does not affect that the supplier’s blue-collar employees’ wages, probability of belonging to a union, or likelihood of working overtime. However, auditing makes it more likely that rural migrant workers receive pensions, business...

Surface water pollution has a significant, non-monotonic effect on the infant mortality rate in China. As surface water quality deteriorates, the infant mortality rate first increases and then decreases. Thus, moderate levels of pollution are the most dangerous

The authors find that auditing by downstream firms has limited effects on Chinese firms' adherence to labor standards and other measures of blue-collar workers' well-being. Auditing does not affect the supplier's blue-collar employees' wages, probability of belonging to a union, or likelihood of...