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From the Cradle to the Grave: the Effect of Family Background on the Career Path of Italian Men

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  • Michele Raitano

    (Department of Economics and Law, Sapienza University of Rome)

  • Francesco Vona

    (OFCE SciencesPo and SKEMA Business School)

Abstract

This paper investigates the influence of parental education on the returns to experience of Italian men using a new longitudinal dataset that contains detailed information on individual working histories. Our favourite panel estimates indicate that an additional year of parental education increases sons' weekly wages by 11.7% after twenty years of experience and that 71% of this effect emerges during the career. We show that this effect holds irrespective of individual abilities, and it appears the result of both a glass ceiling effect, due to the complementarity between parental education and son’s abilities, and a parachute effect, associated with family labour market connections.

Suggested Citation

  • Michele Raitano & Francesco Vona, 2015. "From the Cradle to the Grave: the Effect of Family Background on the Career Path of Italian Men," Working Papers 2015.74, Fondazione Eni Enrico Mattei.
    • Handle: RePEc:fem:femwpa:2015.74
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    3. Silvia Avram & Olga Canto, 2016. "Labour outcomes and family background: Evidence from the EU during the recession," Working Papers 414, ECINEQ, Society for the Study of Economic Inequality.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Intergenerational Inequality; Parental Education; Experience-Earnings profiles; Human Capital;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J62 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Job, Occupational and Intergenerational Mobility; Promotion
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials

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