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The Work and Wages of Single Women: 1870 to 1920

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  • Claudia D. Goldin

Abstract

Single women in the U.S. dominated the female labor force from 1870 to 1920. Data on the home life and working conditions of women in 1888 and 1907 enable the estimation of earnings functions. Work in the manufacturing sector for these women was task oriented and payment was frequently by the piece. Earnings rose steeply with experience and peaked early; learning was mainly on-the-job. Sex segregation of employment is seen as a partial product of the method of payment, and the early termination of human capital investment was a function of the life-cycle labor force participation of these women, although the role of the family is also critical.

Suggested Citation

  • Claudia D. Goldin, 1979. "The Work and Wages of Single Women: 1870 to 1920," NBER Working Papers 0375, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:0375
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    Cited by:

    1. Goldin, Claudia, 1986. "Monitoring Costs and Occupational Segregation by Sex: A Historical Analysis," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 4(1), pages 1-27, January.
    2. Emily Rauscher & Byeongdon Oh, 2021. "Going Places: Effects of Early U.S. Compulsory Schooling Laws on Internal Migration," Population Research and Policy Review, Springer;Southern Demographic Association (SDA), vol. 40(2), pages 255-283, April.
    3. Claudia Goldin, 1986. "The Earnings Gap Between Male and Female Workers: An Historical Perspective," NBER Working Papers 1888, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    4. Mehrotra, Santosh & Parida, Jajati K., 2017. "Why is the Labour Force Participation of Women Declining in India?," World Development, Elsevier, vol. 98(C), pages 360-380.
    5. Ho, Taiping & Henderson, Bruce B., 1998. "Relationship of psychological, demographic, and legal variables to court decisions of competency to stand trial among mentally retarded criminal defendants," Journal of Criminal Justice, Elsevier, vol. 26(4), pages 307-320, July.
    6. Semih Tumen & Belgi Turan, 2023. "The effect of fertility on female labor supply in a labor market with extensive informality," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 65(4), pages 1855-1894, October.
    7. repec:eee:labchp:v:1:y:1986:i:c:p:103-204 is not listed on IDEAS
    8. Mourao, Paulo Reis, 2018. "Surviving in the shadows—An economic and empirical discussion about the survival of the non-winning F1 drivers," Economic Analysis and Policy, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 54-68.

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