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Wage Dispersion in the 1980s: Resurrecting the Role of Trade through the Effects of Durable Employment Changes

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Listed:
  • Elaine Buckberg

    (International Monetary Fund)

  • Alun Thomas

    (International Monetary Fund)

Abstract

This paper finds that changes in durable manufacturing employment and investment in computer equipment can explain rising wage dispersion in the United States, measured in terms of the education premium. Reduced employment opportunities in durables production drive down the average wage for workers with only a high school education, thereby increasing the wage premium for college education. An innovation in this paper is the inclusion of investment in equipment as a proxy for skill-biased technical change. The rise in the technical skill premium could alone explain all of the rise in the college premium since 1979 were there no offsetting effects.

Suggested Citation

  • Elaine Buckberg & Alun Thomas, 1996. "Wage Dispersion in the 1980s: Resurrecting the Role of Trade through the Effects of Durable Employment Changes," IMF Staff Papers, Palgrave Macmillan, vol. 43(2), pages 336-354, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:pal:imfstp:v:43:y:1996:i:2:p:336-354
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    1. repec:eee:labchp:v:3:y:1999:i:pb:p:2215-2288 is not listed on IDEAS

    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • J30 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - General
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials

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