Black-white wage inequality in the 1990s: a decade of progress

Using Current Population Survey data, we find that the gap between wages by black and white males declined during the 1990s at a rate of 0.59 percentage point per year. The reduction in occupational crowding appears to be most important in explaining this trend. Recent wage convergence was most rapid among younger workers with less than 10 years experience; for this group the black-white wage gap declined by 1.40 percentage points per year. Among younger workers greater occupational diversity and a reduction in unexplained or residual differences are important in explaining this trend. For both younger and older workers, general wage inequality tempered the rate of wage convergence between blacks and whites during the 1990s.Income distribution ; Wages

Last Hired, First Fired? Black-White Unemployment and the Business Cycle

Past studies have tested the claim that blacks are the last hired during periods of economic growth and the first fired in recessions by examining the movement of relative unemployment rates over the business cycle. Any conclusion drawn from this type of analysis must be viewed as tentative because the cyclical movements in the underlying transitions into and out of unemployment are not examined. Using Current Population Survey data matched across adjacent months from 1989 to 2004, this paper provides the first detailed examination of labor market transitions for prime-age black and white men to test the last-hired, first-fired hypothesis. Considerable evidence is presented that blacks are the first fired as the business cycle weakens. However, no evidence is found that blacks are the last hired. Instead, blacks appear to be initially hired from the ranks of the unemployed early in the business cycle and later are drawn from non-participation. The narrowing of the racial unemployment gap near the peak of the business cycle is driven by a reduction in the rate of job loss for blacks rather than increases in hiring.race, unemployment, business cycle

The German Apprenticeship Experience: A Comparison of School-to-Work Models

In its fiscal year 1994 budget, the Clinton administration asked for $270 million to initiate a national system for school-to-work transition. The money is only a fraction of the funds already available for transition programs under the federal Vocational Education Program and the Job Training Partnership Act. In August the administration submitted a more comprehensive legislative proposal aimed at high school students who don\u27t intend to go onto college. The legislation would provide grants for states to establish school-to-work systems and additional help for states and localities that steady have such programs. The price tag for fiscal year 1995,$300 million. Students who finish the program would receive a high school diploma and an occupational skill certificate

Tenure, Turnover, And Earnings Profiles In Germany And The United States

Employment tenure, job turnover and returns to general and specific skills are examined for male workers in Germany and the United States using data from the German Socio-Economic Panel and the Panel Study of Income Dynamics.  Employment in Germany is characterized by longer duration and less frequent turnover than in the United States.  Returns to experience and tenure are lower in Germany than in the U.S.; however, peak earnings occur later.  This delayed peak in the employment-earnings profile provides an incentive for German workers to remain longer with their employers and change jobs less frequently

Nasal Mites of the Mourning Dove

Crossley (1952) described a species of nasal mite, Neonyssus zenaidurae, from the mourning dove (Zenaidura macroura) collected in Texas and Georgia. In his study mites were obtained from 10 of 19 doves examined. Owen (1958) found this species of mite in mourning doves collected in Alabama. He reported an infestation of 4 out of 10 birds (average: 1.5 mites per dove), for one county; and 3 of 10 birds (average: 2.6 mites per dove) for another county. Our method of recovery was similar to that described by Owen. The nasal cavities were separated sagitally, with scissors, from the tip of the beak to the anterior region of the brain. Each half was examined under a wide-field microscope. The parasites when present were found embedded in the mucous secretions and upon the tissues of the nasal cavities. Dissecting needles were used to extricate the specimens and to place them in 70% alcohol. The mites were macerated in 20% KOH for 24 hours to remove adhering tissues. Hoyer\u27s medium is recommended for mounting; if the specimen is mounted in Hoyer\u27s medium and heated soon after the mounting procedures are complete, maceration in KOH is unnecessary

A Search for Trypanosomes in Mourning Doves

Diamond (1954) described a technique for the detection of trypanosomes in geese. We used a similar technique in the search for trypanosomes in each of 64 mourning doves (Zenaidura macroura) collected on September 1-2, 1960, 4 miles west of Celina, Denton County, Texas. The condylar surfaces of the femur, sterilized with alcohol, were removed with sterile scissors, and the marrow, forced from the femur with a hemostat, was collected with a sterile nichrome wire. The inoculum was incubated in the blood agar, broth overlay medium described by Diamond. One sample of the culture was stained on the 6th day of incubation, and a second sample was stained on the 14th day

Impact of Welfare Reform on Mortality: An Evaluation of the Connecticut Jobs First Program, A Randomized Controlled Trial

Objectives. We examined whether Jobs First, a multicenter randomized trial of a welfare reform program conducted in Connecticut, demonstrated increases in employment, income, and health insurance relative to traditional welfare (Aid to Families with Dependent Children). We also investigated if higher earnings and employment improved mortality of the participants. Methods. We revisited the Jobs First randomized trial, successfully linking 4612 participant identifiers to 15 years of prospective mortality follow-up data through 2010, producing 240 deaths. The analysis was powered to detect a 20% change in mortality hazards. Results. Significant employment and income benefits were realized among Jobs First recipients relative to traditional welfare recipients, particularly for the most disadvantaged groups. However, although none of these reached statistical significance, all participants in Jobs First (overall, across centers, and all subgroups) experienced higher mortality hazards than traditional welfare recipients. Conclusions. Increases in income and employment produced by Jobs First relative to traditional welfare improved socioeconomic status but did not improve survival

Residential Choices and Prospective Risks of Nursing Home Entry

Nationally representative estimates of the prospective risk of entry into a nursing home and the likelihood of residing in a nursing home are obtained using data from the Longitudinal Study of Aging: 1984-1990. The roles of demographic characteristics, kin availability, and health status in determining entry into and residence in nursing homes is examined. Caregivers facilitate community residence and reduce the risk of nursing home entry for those with functional limitations. Dementia in combination with functional limitations increases the risk of nursing home entry

Putting the Minimum Wage Debate in a Historical Context: Card and Krueger Meet George Stigler

Half a century ago George Stigler stated that evaluation of minimum wage policy should revolve around two questions: Does such legislation diminish poverty? Are there efficient alternatives? We argue that historically these were and continue to be appropriate questions to ask with respect to this policy. We then replicate and evaluate the analysis in Chapter 9 of Myth and Measurement: The New Economics of the Minimum Wage with regards to these questions. Given the evolution of the Earned Income Tax Credit we conclude that, aside from nostalgia, it is hard to explain the continued support for increasing the minimum wage by those interested in helping the working poor, and that Card and Krueger provide little new evidence to rekindle such support

Who Minimum Wage Increases Bite: An Analysis Using Monthly Data from the SIPP and CPS

In this paper we use an estimating equation from the research of leading proponents of the view that minimum wage increases do not cause employment losses. Rather than using annual data from the May Current Population Survey (CPS), we test this hypothesis using monthly data from both the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) and the CPS. We find the traditional result that neoclassical theory would predict: minimum wage increases create employment losses that are concentrated among less valued workers. Minimum wage increases have an insignificant effect on the employment of prime age workers (aged 25 to 61), but they have large and significant negative employment effects on teenagers, young high school dropouts, and young blacks. Hence, the very people minimum wage policies claim to help are most likely to be adversely affected