We assess selection bias in estimated returns to workplace training by exploiting a field experiment with random assignment of workers to a one-week training program. We compare experimental estimates of this program with non-experimental estimates that are estimated by using a sample of agents...

While the growing supply of university skills is known to have agglomerated towards the large centers in Finland, there is no research knowledge available on the development of regional demands. This paper attempts to fill this gap by analyzing regional variation in the private-sector return to...

This paper applies functional regression to precise geo-coded register data to measure productivity spillovers from high-skilled workers. We use a smoothing splines estimator to model the spatial distribution of high-skilled workers as continuous curves. Our rich panel data allows us to address...

The literature shows a wage premium for graduates from high quality, elite, or more selective universities. The results, however, exist for countries with a clear hierarchy of top universities, such as the US, England, and Australia. I evaluate if such an effect also exists in Germany, a country...

This paper assesses regional inequality in contemporary urban China by predicting earningss for individual workers in multiple provinces, comparing the province of maximum predicted earnings to the province of residence and assessing the predicted gains from relocation. The paper performs the...

Income levels are higher in cities. The evidence for the income gap between urban and rural areas is overwhelming, but the agglomeration effect is hard to identify. Recent advances make use of individual level data to separate out sorting and instrumentation to handle the endogeneity of...

We study the effect of the introduction of the German statutory minimum wage law in 2015 on teenagers' educational expectations. We focus on low-skilled students, the group most likely to be affected by the minimum wage after entering the labor market. Theoretical predictions of the effect of...

Occupational positions can explain an important part of the differences in pay between men and women. However, a considerable Gender Pay Gap exists even within the same occupational position. In this paper, we aim at understanding the reasons for the gap within occupational positions and,...

While there is a wealth of literature dealing with the spatial nature of knowledge and its transferral, I argue that the underlying mechanisms have not been sufficiently understood. Existing research relating the geography of inflows to firm productivity does not adequately address firm and...

We employ the German social security register data to analyze the development of wage inequality among foreigners in Germany. The data show a sharp increase of wage inequality which exceeds the size observed for natives. The decomposition methods proposed by DiNardo et al. (1996) are employed to...