The 333th Wenlan Financial Forum

Abstract：

This study examines the relationship between firm-level employee educational levels and firm tax planning. We conjecture that firms with higher employee educational levels have better internal information quality, which in turn can facilitate tax planning.Using firm-level disclosure of employee educational levels in Chinese listed firms, we find that firms with higher average employee educational levels are associated with higher book-tax differences and lower effective tax rates. Our results suggest that firms pay less taxes when their employees have a higher level of education. This relation is stronger for firms with more motivated employees, firms operating in more complex business environments, firms with better corporate governance, and firms with more capable managers. Our results are robust to specifications using an instrumental variable or using staggered difference-in-differences while exploiting shocks to the local availability of educated employees. 

Speaker Introduction：

Dr. Yige Jin is currently an assistant professor at the Institute of Accounting and Finance, Xiamen University, and a research fellow at The Chinese University of Hong Kong. He graduated with a PhD in accounting from City University of Hong Kong. His research areas cover corporate governance, audit quality, ESG disclosure, etc. He has published papers in well - known academic journals such as Economic Modelling and Journal of Accounting Literature, and presented his research findings at international academic conferences like the American Accounting Association Annual Meeting.