We develop a dynamic general-equilibrium framework in which growth is driven by skill-biased technology diffusion. The model incorporates leisure–labor decisions and human capital accumulation through education. We are able to reproduce the trends in income inequality and labor and skills...

When examining questions regarding the Lewis model, one of the most salient set of facts involves the shift of labor between agricultural and the off farm sectors. The goal of this paper is to answer several questions about the nature of this movement: How has the expansion of the economy after...

This paper presents a dynamic two sector, two skill groups model of endogenous skill and sector specific technological change. The sectors refer to a "high-tech” and a "low-tech” sector of an economy. The direction of technological change is driven by market forces determined by the skill...

As a consequence of falling relative demand for low skilled labor in the OECD, people with no or minor qualification experience a deterioration of their economic situation. While flexible labor markets have led to higher wage differentials in the USA, the major problem of most European countries...

This paper explores the structure of incentives undergirding the German system of apprenticeship training. We first describe characteristics of the German labor market which may lead firms to accept part of the cost of general training, even in the face of worker turnover. We then compare labor...

In standard cross-sectional wage regressions, married men appear to earn 10 to 20% more than comparable never married men. One proposed explanation for this male marriage premium is that men may be selected into marriage on the basis of characteristics valued by employers as well as by spouses...

We analyse educational choices and earnings of individuals at two different levels in the Portuguese educational system. At each exit we consider two decisions: the decision to continue studying and the employment decision. We find empirical support for the existence of selectivity bias as the...

Using data from the German Socio Economic Panel, I analyze the incidence, financing, and returns to workplace training in Germany for the years 1986 to 1989. Much of this training seems general, and is provided to workers by their employer at no direct cost. While workers typically report larger...

Early twentieth century observers argued that recent American immigrants were inferior, and in particular less skilled, than the old. I estimate wage equations for 1909 allowing for different effects by nationality and for different characteristics on arrival. I then apply the estimated wage...

This paper examines the gender gap in wages in Russia from 1992 to 1995. It uses data on prime aged men and women from the Russia Longitudinal Monitoring Survey (RLMS) and focuses on those living in urban areas. Differences in hours of work appear to explain about one half of the gender...