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Assignment Reversals: Trade, Skill Allocation and Wage Inequality

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  • Thomas Sampson

Abstract

Understanding the allocation of skilled labor across industries is necessary to explain inter-industry wage differences and the effect of trade on wages. This paper develops a multi-sector assignment model with both heterogeneous labor and a non-labor input in which high skill agents match with high input productivity sectors where they can best leverage their talent. When the ranking of sectors by input productivity differs across countries, their ranking by workforce skill also differs - this is an assignment reversal. In a two sector, two country model the existence of an assignment reversal implies that each country has a comparative advantage in its high skill sector. Consequently, trade integration causes both the relative wage of high skill workers, and wage inequality within the high skill sector, to increase in both countries. Using exogenous differences in capital productivity induced by a country's proximity to major capital exporters the paper shows that international variation in the industry wage structure supports the existence of assignment reversals and is consistent with the model's sorting predictions.

Suggested Citation

  • Thomas Sampson, 2011. "Assignment Reversals: Trade, Skill Allocation and Wage Inequality," CEP Discussion Papers dp1105, Centre for Economic Performance, LSE.
    • Handle: RePEc:cep:cepdps:dp1105
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    Cited by:

    1. Guo, Baoping, 2015. "Leontief Paradox Explored A New Trade Pattern When Countries Have Different Technologies," MPRA Paper 96929, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised Nov 2019.
    2. Thomas Sampson, 2014. "Selection into Trade and Wage Inequality," American Economic Journal: Microeconomics, American Economic Association, vol. 6(3), pages 157-202, August.
    3. Thomas Sampson, 2023. "Technology Gaps, Trade, and Income," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 113(2), pages 472-513, February.
    4. Yuki, Kazuhiro, 2012. "Mechanization, task assignment, and inequality," MPRA Paper 37754, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    5. Guo, Baoping, 2015. "Heckscher-Ohlin Trade, Leontief Trade, and Factor Conversion Trade When Countries Have Different Technologies," MPRA Paper 95161, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised Jul 2019.
    6. Canh Phuc Nguyen & Thanh Dinh Su, 2022. "Export Dynamics and Income Inequality: New Evidence on Export Quality," Social Indicators Research: An International and Interdisciplinary Journal for Quality-of-Life Measurement, Springer, vol. 163(3), pages 1063-1113, October.
    7. Kozo Kiyota & Yoshinori Kurokawa, 2022. "Factor intensity reversals redux: Feenstra is right!," Review of International Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 30(4), pages 885-914, September.
    8. Le, Thai-Ha & Nguyen, Canh Phuc & Su, Thanh Dinh & Tran-Nam, Binh, 2020. "The Kuznets curve for export diversification and income inequality: Evidence from a global sample," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 65(C), pages 21-39.
    9. Nguyen Phuc Canh & Su Dinh Thanh, 2022. "The Dynamics of Export Diversification, Economic Complexity and Economic Growth Cycles: Global Evidence," Foreign Trade Review, , vol. 57(3), pages 234-260, August.
    10. Asuyama, Yoko, 2012. "Skill Distribution and Comparative Advantage: A Comparison of China and India," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 40(5), pages 956-969.
    11. Asuyama, Yoko, 2011. "Skill sorting, inter-industry skill wage premium, and production chains: evidence from India 1999-2000," IDE Discussion Papers 278, Institute of Developing Economies, Japan External Trade Organization(JETRO).

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    skilled labor; productivity; workforce; wage inequality; skill intensity reversal;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J30 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - General
    • L60 - Industrial Organization - - Industry Studies: Manufacturing - - - General
    • O30 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Innovation; Research and Development; Technological Change; Intellectual Property Rights - - - General

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