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Basic reading and mathematics skills and the labour market outcomes of young people: Evidence from PISA and linked administrative data

Author

Listed:
  • Lisa Meehan

    (NZ Work Research Institute, Auckland University of Technology)

  • Gail Pacheco

    (NZ Work Research Institute, Auckland University of Technology)

  • Thomas Schober

    (NZ Work Research Institute, Auckland University of Technology)

Abstract

This paper uses Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) data linked to administrative data to track the educational and labour market outcomes of young people. Students with lower skills have lower rates of participation in further education. While men with low skills out-earn their higher-skilled counterparts when they are very young, their earnings are overtaken by those with higher skills when they are in their early twenties and earn around 15% less by the age of 25. The differences among women are substantially larger - women with low skills earn about 35% less than their higher-skilled counterparts by age 25.

Suggested Citation

  • Lisa Meehan & Gail Pacheco & Thomas Schober, 2023. "Basic reading and mathematics skills and the labour market outcomes of young people: Evidence from PISA and linked administrative data," Working Papers 2023-01, Auckland University of Technology, Department of Economics.
    • Handle: RePEc:aut:wpaper:2023-01
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    PISA; cognitive skills; education; labour market; earnings;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • I21 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Analysis of Education
    • I26 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education - - - Returns to Education

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