From Tap Water Access to Income‐Generating Work Time: Evidence From Rural China

ABSTRACT This study examines whether household tap water access affects income‐generating work time among employed rural adults in China. While existing studies have mainly examined the effects of improved water access on employment participation, off‐farm transition and household income, this paper focuses on the intensive margin of labour supply within existing livelihood activities. Drawing on household production and time allocation theory, household tap water access is conceptualised as reducing the time cost of routine domestic production, thereby releasing time that may be reallocated to income‐generating work and other household activities. Using rural panel data from the China Family Panel Studies from 2014 to 2022, the analysis applies individual fixed‐effects models and instrumental variables fixed‐effects (IV‐FE) estimates. The fixed effects results show that household tap water access is associated with approximately one additional hour of income‐generating work per week among employed rural adults. Under the IV identifying assumptions, the IV‐FE estimates suggest a larger positive effect. Additional time‐use analysis indicates that household tap water access reduces daily housework time by about 0.29 h and modestly increases midday nap duration, while no statistically significant changes are found for television watching or leisure reading. Heterogeneity analysis suggests that the increase in work time is concentrated among agricultural workers, self‐employed individuals, prime‐age adults and individuals living in households without young children.