The Effect of Labor Transfer Based on Panel Data on Farmers’ Per Capita Consumption of Commodity Energy

Abstract

Rural labor transfer is an inevitable phenomenon in the process of urbanization, and it is also the most important driving factor for residents’ energy consumption and carbon emissions growth. This paper collects the panel data of 29 provinces or autonomous regions from 1997 to 2015. We classify the concept of labor force transfer and the number of labor force transfer and the proportion of labor force transfer. We use tobit fixed effect model to study impact of labor force transfer on the energy consumption of peasant household in the national and regional perspectives. Findings: Labor transfer from the national perspective has significantly increased per capita household commodity energy (coal, oil, liquefied natural gas, natural gas, electricity) consumption in the country’s perspective; labor migration in the eastern region has affected per capita household oil, natural gas and liquefied gas at the regional perspective. The impact of consumption was the most significant. The labor force transfer in the central region had the most significant effect on the per capita coal consumption of rural households. The shift of labor force in the western region had the most significant effect on the per capita household electricity consumption of rural households.