The Role of Establishments and the Concentration of Occupations in Wage Inequality

27 Pages Posted: 25 Sep 2015

See all articles by Elizabeth Weber Handwerker

Elizabeth Weber Handwerker

Bureau of Labor Statistics

James Spletzer

U.S. Census Bureau - Center for Economic Studies

Multiple version iconThere are 2 versions of this paper

Date Written: September 1, 2015

Abstract

This paper uses the microdata of the Occupational Employment Statistics (OES) Survey to assess the contribution of occupational concentration to wage inequality between establishments and its growth over time. We show that occupational concentration plays an important role in wage determination for workers, in a wide variety of occupations, and can explain some establishment level wage variation. Occupational concentration is increasing during the 2000-2011 time period, although much of this change is explained by other observable establishment characteristics. Overall, occupational concentration can help explain a small amount of wage inequality growth between establishments during this time period.

Keywords: Wage inequality, establishments, Occupational Concentration, employers, Employer-employee microdata

JEL Classification: J31, D31, L11, D22, M12, M50

Suggested Citation

Handwerker, Elizabeth Weber and Spletzer, James, The Role of Establishments and the Concentration of Occupations in Wage Inequality (September 1, 2015). US Census Bureau Center for Economic Studies Paper No. CES-WP- 15-26, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=2664570 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.2664570

Elizabeth Weber Handwerker

Bureau of Labor Statistics ( email )

2 Massachusetts Avenue NE
Washington, DC 20212
United States

HOME PAGE: http://www.bls.gov/ers

James Spletzer (Contact Author)

U.S. Census Bureau - Center for Economic Studies ( email )

4600 Silver Hill Road
Washington, DC 20233-9100
United States

Do you have negative results from your research you’d like to share?

Paper statistics

Downloads
58
Abstract Views
575
Rank
563,377
PlumX Metrics