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Title: Effects of Labor Force Composition on Earnings and Earnings Growth
Resulting in 1 citation.
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Berger, Mark Charles |
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Effects of Labor Force Composition on Earnings and Earnings Growth Ph.D. Dissertation, The Ohio State University, 1981. DAI-A 42/07, p. 3229, January 1982 Cohort(s): NLSY79 Publisher: UMI - University Microfilms, Bell and Howell Information and Learning Keyword(s): Earnings; Wages Two major changes in the structure of male earnings in the U.S. occurred in the early seventies: (1) the earnings of college graduates declined relative to high school graduates, and (2) the earnings of young workers declined relative to older, more experienced workers. At the same time, the labor market entry of the peak baby-boom birth cohorts significantly altered the demographic composition of the labor force. This dissertation examines whether the changes in the demographic composition of the labor force can explain the observed shifts in earnings among male workers. In addition, the impact of cohort size on age-earnings profiles is evaluated. Models of the production process, earnings, and earnings growth are constructed and estimated with data from the March Current Population Surveys and the National Longitudinal Survey. The production function specified employs a finer breakdown of the labor force than is used by other researchers, thus enabling the examination of both of the recently observed major earnings changes within a single, consistent framework. In particular, the model yields estimates of elasticities of complementarity between schooling, experience and sex groups, which are needed to fully evaluate the earnings effects of changes in factor proportions. Shifts in labor force composition apparently explain a substantial amount of the recent earnings changes among male workers. Long run predictions based on the estimated model indicate considerable persistence of lower earnings of college graduates relative to other groups and a lifetime depression in earnings for the members of the large baby-boom cohorts. The analyses of earnings and earnings growth models illustrate that earnings may grow at slower rates in large cohorts. Empirical tests suggest that this is the case for males with at least twelve years of schooling and for female college graduates. For these groups of workers, the earnings depression due to cohort size increases with age, implying that earnings profiles are steeper in small cohorts. The cohort size effects are, moreover, stronger for workers with more schooling, suggesting a continued deterioration over time in the earning power of recent college graduates relative to other workers. |
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Bibliography Citation
Berger, Mark Charles. Effects of Labor Force Composition on Earnings and Earnings Growth. Ph.D. Dissertation, The Ohio State University, 1981. DAI-A 42/07, p. 3229, January 1982. |