This dissertation aims to enhance our understanding of the factors that shape workers’ earnings trajectories. It investigates institutional and exogenous factors that significantly impact workers’ earnings and can lead to long-term effects. The dissertation is structured into three distinct chapters, each focusing on a different facet of this topic. The first chapter investigates the consequences of a significant shock to the Spanish economy, the burst of the construction sector during the Great Recession, and how workers mitigate its pervasive effects. The exploration delves into the reallocation of workers, considering the influence of working in more affected regions on their geographic and sectoral mobility. The chapter identifies factors that contribute to heterogeneous responses among workers, emphasizing the role of sectoral opportunities, which can explain variations in the impact of the construction sector burst.
The second chapter focuses on the duality of the Spanish labor market, characterized by temporary and permanent contracts, and its influence on the returns to experience. Estimating these returns poses challenges due to the non-random sorting of workers into contract types. The chapter exploits variation in the contract expiration timing and permanent contract availability as an exogenous variation for contract-type employment. It sheds light on the long-term effects of gaining experience in low-quality jobs, specifically those associated with temporary contracts. The final chapter studies the influence of the labor market duality on workers’ motivations to relocate geographically within Spain. The primary objective of this chapter is to deepen our understanding of the dynamics of internal mobility and labor market instability. Additionally, it provides a comprehensive analysis of recent trends in internal mobility within Spain, offering valuable insights into the factors shaping workers’ decisions to move within the country.Programa de Doctorado en Economía por la Universidad Carlos III de MadridPresidente: Samuel Bentolila.- Secretario: Jesús Fernández-Huertas Moraga.- Vocal: José Ignacio García Pére
