Wage differentials in the presence of unobserved worker, firm, and match heterogeneity

Simon Woodcock

Labour Economics, 2008, vol. 15, issue 4, 771-793

Abstract: We consider the problem of estimating and decomposing wage differentials in the presence of unobserved worker, firm, and match heterogeneity. Controlling for these unobservables corrects omitted variable bias in previous studies. It also allows us to measure the contribution of unmeasured characteristics of workers, firms, and worker-firm matches to observed wage differentials. An application to linked employer-employee data shows that decompositions of inter-industry earnings differentials and the male-female differential are misleading when unobserved heterogeneity is ignored.

Keywords: Wage; differentials; Unobserved; heterogeneity; Employer-employee; data (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2008
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (79)

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Related works:
Working Paper: Wage Differentials in the Presence of Unobserved Worker, Firm, and Match Heterogeneity (2007)
Working Paper: Wage Differentials in the Presence of Unobserved Worker, Firm, and Match Heterogeneity (2006)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:labeco:v:15:y:2008:i:4:p:771-793

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