The effects of growth in occupational licensing on intergenerational mobility

Brian Meehan, Edward Timmons, Andrew Meehan (meeha1as@cmich.edu) and Ilya Kukaev (ikukaev@francis.edu)
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Andrew Meehan: Central Michigan University
Ilya Kukaev: Lehigh University

Economics Bulletin, 2019, vol. 39, issue 2, 1516-1528

Abstract: We use a newly produced data set on growth in occupational licensing of low-income occupations to estimate the relationship between growth in occupational licensing and intergenerational mobility. Our empirical results suggest growth in state licensing is associated with a 1.6% to 6.2% reduction in absolute mobility at the county level. Growth in licensing is also associated with increases in county level Gini coefficients (and thus income inequality) ranging from 3.9% to 15.4%. The relationship between the growth in licensed occupations and absolute mobility provides suggestive evidence of loss in opportunity and reduced mobility for potential entrants into these occupations.

Keywords: Intergenerational Mobility; Inequality; Occupational Licensing (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J6 K2 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2019-06-15
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (3)

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