Does Job Polarization Explain the Rise in Earnings Inequality? Evidence from Europe

Bussolo, Maurizio ; Torre, Ivan ; Winkler, Hernan

World Bank, Washington, DC

关键词: INEQUALITY;    DECOMPOSITION ANALYSIS;    OCCUPATION;    FEMALE LABOR FORCE PARTICIPATION;    LABOR SKILLS;   

DOI  :  10.1596/1813-9450-8652
RP-ID  :  WPS8652

学科分类：社会科学、人文和艺术（综合）

来源: World Bank Open Knowledge Repository

【 摘 要 】

Earnings inequality and job polarizationhave increased significantly in several countries since theearly 1990s. Using data from European countries covering a20-year period, this paper provides new evidence that thedecline of middle-skilled occupations and the simultaneousincrease of high- and low-skilled occupations are importantfactors accounting for the rise of inequality, especially atthe bottom of the distribution. Job polarization accountsfor a large share of the increasing inequality between the10th and the 50th percentiles, but it explains little ornone of the increasing inequality between the 50th and 90thpercentiles. Other important developments during thisperiod, such as changing wage returns, higher educationalattainment, and increased female labor force participation,account for a small portion of the changes in inequality.