Wage inequality

Chunbing Xing

Chapter 4 in Handbook on Inequality in China, 2025, pp 60-77 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: This chapter explores the causes of the (changing) wage inequality in China based on household survey data and regression-based wage determination analysis. China's wage inequality rose significantly in the 1990s and remained high in the first two decades of the 21st century. Education has not only become the most robust factor in wage determination, but it has also turned into the number one contributor to wage inequality among all observable factors. The evolution of wage inequality and the returns to (unobservable) skills are closely related to the occupational structure and tasks performed by workers who have been heavily influenced by technological change. Although a typical job polarization is not observed, we report a significant change in China's occupational structure (including increasing flexible employment). The discrimination against migrant workers in urban areas had been mitigated, and the wage gap between different ownership enterprises increased in the past decade following a previous decline.

Keywords: Wage inequality; Returns to education; Wage differentials; Discrimination; Occupational structure; Flexible employment (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
ISBN: 9781035317790
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