The Adult Education Initiative in Sweden –Second Year Effects on Wage Earnings and the Influence on Branch Mobility

Abstract

This paper presents a follow up study of earlier economic evaluations of the Adult Education Initiative (AEI) in Sweden. The AEI was foremost directed to those unemployed and involved comprehensive education at compulsory or upper secondary levels. The AEI is compared with the vocational part of Labor Market Training (LMT). Outcome variables are annual wage earnings in 1999 and in 2000 as well as mobility between branches of employment. The estimated effects on wage earnings of the AEI relative to LMT are negative for both the samples enrolled in 1997 and in 1998. Selection model estimates indicate positive selection on unobservables into the AEI, which is larger for those enrolled in 1998. For the sample enrolled in 1997, the earnings effects of the AEI is relatively more beneficial in 2000 than in 1999. Results on mobility indicate that AEI participants had a lower probability of changing branch of employment and a relatively stronger attachment to the public service sector.Selection; adult education; wage earnings; mobility