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Economic Policy Changes and Wage Differentials in Latin America

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  • Jere R. Behrman
  • Nancy Birdsall
  • Miguel Székely

Abstract

This article presents estimates of the impact of changes in liberalization policies on wage differentials by schooling level using a new high-quality data set for 18 Latin American countries for 1977-98. The method controls for all fixed and time-varying country characteristics, some of which may affect the policies themselves. The results indicate that liberalizing policy changes overall have had a short-run disequalizing effect of expanding wage differentials, although this effect tends to fade away over time. This disequalizing effect is due to the strong impact of domestic financial market reform, capital account liberalization, and tax reform. However, privatization contributed to narrowing wage differentials, and increasing trade openness had no significant effect on wage differentials. Technological progress, rather than trade flows, appears to be a channel through which policy changes are affecting inequality.

Suggested Citation

  • Jere R. Behrman & Nancy Birdsall & Miguel Székely, 2007. "Economic Policy Changes and Wage Differentials in Latin America," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 56(1), pages 57-97, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:ucp:ecdecc:v:56:y:2007:p:57-97
    DOI: 10.1086/520556
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    Cited by:

    1. Rossana Patron & Marcel Vaillant, 2012. "Can Education Policy Address The Wage Gap? A Note On Public Skill Formation In Developing Countries," Journal of International Development, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 24(3), pages 369-378, April.
    2. Marina Bassi & Matías Busso & Sergio Urzúa & Jaime Vargas, 2012. "Disconnected: Skills, Education, and Employment in Latin America," IDB Publications (Books), Inter-American Development Bank, number 79504, February.
    3. Fernández, Manuel & Messina, Julián, 2018. "Skill premium, labor supply, and changes in the structure of wages in Latin America," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 135(C), pages 555-573.
    4. Binelli Chiara, 2015. "How the wage-education profile got more convex: evidence from Mexico," The B.E. Journal of Macroeconomics, De Gruyter, vol. 15(2), pages 509-560, July.
    5. Nancy Birdsall & Nora Lustig & Darryl McLeod, 2011. "Declining inequality in Latin America: Some economics, some politics," Working Papers 201, ECINEQ, Society for the Study of Economic Inequality.
    6. Hanushek, Eric A. & Woessmann, Ludger, 2009. "Schooling, Cognitive Skills, and the Latin American Growth Puzzle," IZA Discussion Papers 4576, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    7. Pablo Acosta & Gabriel Montes-Rojas, 2014. "Informal Jobs and Trade Liberalisation in Argentina," Journal of Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 50(8), pages 1104-1118, August.
    8. Bhalotra, Sonia & Fernandez, Manuel & Wang, Fan, 2022. "The Distribution of the Gender Wage Gap: An Equilibrium Model," CEPR Discussion Papers 17253, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    9. Sudeshna Ghosh, 2020. "Impact of economic growth volatility on income inequality: ASEAN experience," Quality & Quantity: International Journal of Methodology, Springer, vol. 54(3), pages 807-850, June.
    10. Binelli Chiara, 2015. "How the wage-education profile got more convex: evidence from Mexico," The B.E. Journal of Macroeconomics, De Gruyter, vol. 15(2), pages 509-560, July.
    11. García Muñoz, Teresa María & Milgram Baleix, Juliette & Odeh, Omar Odeh, 2020. "Inequality in Latin America: The role of the nature of trade and partners," Economics - The Open-Access, Open-Assessment E-Journal (2007-2020), Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel), vol. 14, pages 1-35.
    12. Bhalotra, Sonia R & Fernández, Manuel & Wang, Fan, 2022. "The distribution of the gender wage gap : An equilibrium model," CAGE Online Working Paper Series 614, Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy (CAGE).
    13. Shireen Al Azzawi, 2010. "The Dynamics of Poverty and Inequality in an Era of Economic Liberalization: The Case of Egypt," Working Papers 539, Economic Research Forum, revised 09 Jan 2010.
    14. Francesco Di Comite & Antonella Nocco & Gianluca Orefice, 2014. "Tariff reductions, trade patterns and the wage gap in a monopolistic competition model with vertical linkages," Working Papers 2014-02, CEPII research center.
    15. Bhalotra, Sonia R. & Fernandez Sierra, Manuel, 2018. "The Distribution of the Gender Wage Gap," IZA Discussion Papers 11640, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    16. Francesco Di Comite & Antonella Nocco & Gianluca Orefi ce, 2015. "Tariff reductions, trade patterns and the wage gap," LIDAM Discussion Papers IRES 2015004, Université catholique de Louvain, Institut de Recherches Economiques et Sociales (IRES).
    17. Hanushek, Eric A. & Woessmann, Ludger, 2012. "Schooling, educational achievement, and the Latin American growth puzzle," Journal of Development Economics, Elsevier, vol. 99(2), pages 497-512.
    18. Garcia, Paul, 2021. "Skill Prices and Compositional Effects on the Declining Wage Inequality in Latin America: Evidence from Brazil," Revista Brasileira de Economia - RBE, EPGE Brazilian School of Economics and Finance - FGV EPGE (Brazil), vol. 75(2), September.
    19. Busso, Matías & Bassi, Marina & Urzúa, Sergio & Vargas, Jaime, 2012. "Disconnected: Skills, Education, and Employment in Latin America," IDB Publications (Books), Inter-American Development Bank, number 427.
    20. Francesco Di Comite & Antonella Nocco & Gianluca Orefice, 2018. "Trade liberalization and the wage gap: the role of vertical linkages and fixed costs," Review of World Economics (Weltwirtschaftliches Archiv), Springer;Institut für Weltwirtschaft (Kiel Institute for the World Economy), vol. 154(1), pages 75-115, February.
    21. Miguel Székely & Pamela Mendoza, 2017. "Declining inequality in Latin America: structural shift or temporary phenomenon?," Oxford Development Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 45(2), pages 204-221, April.
    22. Fernandez Sierra, Manuel & Messina, Julián, 2017. "Skill Premium, Labor Supply and Changes in the Structure of Wages in Latin America," IZA Discussion Papers 10718, Institute for the Study of Labor (IZA).
    23. Leonardo Gasparini & Guillermo Cruces & Leopoldo Tornarolli, 2016. "Chronicle of a Deceleration Foretold: Income inequality in Latin America in the 2010s," CEDLAS, Working Papers 0198, CEDLAS, Universidad Nacional de La Plata.

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