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Educational Upgrading and Returns to Skills in Latin America: Evidence from a Supply-Demand Framework

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  • Sebastian Galiani
  • Guillermo Cruces
  • Pablo Acosta
  • Leonardo C. Gasparini

Abstract

This paper documents the evolution of wage differentials and the supply of workers by educational level for sixteen Latin American countries over the period 1991-2013. We find a pattern of rather constant rise in the relative supply of skilled and semi-skilled workers over the period. Whereas the returns to secondary education fell over time, in contrast, the returns to tertiary education display a remarkable changing pattern common to almost all economies: significant increase in the 1990s, strong fall in the 2000s and a deceleration of that fall in the 2010s. We conclude that supply-side factors seem to have limited explanatory power relative to demand-side factors in accounting for changes in the wage gap between workers with tertiary education and the rest.

Suggested Citation

  • Sebastian Galiani & Guillermo Cruces & Pablo Acosta & Leonardo C. Gasparini, 2017. "Educational Upgrading and Returns to Skills in Latin America: Evidence from a Supply-Demand Framework," NBER Working Papers 24015, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:24015
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    JEL classification:

    • J01 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - General - - - Labor Economics: General

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