The Labor Market Impact of State-Level Anti-Discrimination Laws, 1940-1960

40 Pages Posted: 3 Jun 2001 Last revised: 17 Sep 2022

See all articles by William J. Collins

William J. Collins

Vanderbilt University - College of Arts and Science - Department of Economics; The Brookings Institution; National Bureau of Economic Research (NBER)

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Date Written: May 2001

Abstract

By the time Congress passed the 1964 Civil Rights Act, 98 percent of non-southern blacks (40 percent of all blacks) were already covered by state-level 'fair employment' laws which prohibited labor market discrimination. This paper assesses the impact of fair employment legislation on black workers' income, unemployment, labor force participation, and occupational and industrial distributions relative to whites using a difference-in-difference-in-difference framework. In general, the fair employment laws adopted in the 1940s appear to have had larger effects than those adopted in the 1950s, and the laws had relatively small effects on the labor market outcomes of black men compared to those of black women.

Suggested Citation

Collins, William J., The Labor Market Impact of State-Level Anti-Discrimination Laws, 1940-1960 (May 2001). NBER Working Paper No. w8310, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=272117

William J. Collins (Contact Author)

Vanderbilt University - College of Arts and Science - Department of Economics ( email )

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