How labour market outcomes reflect age, gender and skills in Korea

Using micro-data from the OECD Survey of Adult Skills (PIAAC), this paper seeks to answer how age, gender and childbirth are reflected in literacy proficiency, employment prospects and pay, and to which extent labour market outcomes are determined by these demographic profiles rather than education, skills and experience. It finds that literacy skills and tertiary education, objective measures of skills, which are highly correlated with employment and productivity in most OECD countries, do not significantly affect the likelihood of employment in Korea. Work experience and educational level are highly correlated with pay. Age, gender and parenthood are strongly correlated with both pay and employment. The weak link between objective skills and labour market outcomes points to a misallocation of human capital and likely a substantial loss of productivity.