Measuring the gender wage gap—a methodological note

We propose to estimate the Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition by a single-equation model augmented with interactions between the group membership and other predictors. The relative importance of predicto...

Public-private sector pay gaps over the business cycle :

Employment sector and pay gaps: Genetic and environmental influences

This paper examines the role of genetic factors and shared environment in explaining the choice of working in the public sector and public-private sector pay gaps. The analyses are done using data for Finnish twins that span the period from 1990 to 2004. The data are based on two sources. The first data are Finnish Twin Cohort conducted by Department of Public Health in University of Helsinki. These data have been matched with the Finnish Longitudinal Employer-Employee Data (FLEED) kept by Statistics Finland. The standard behavioural genetics decomposition and DF (DeFries and Fulker 1985) analyses indicate that public sector employment is broadly influenced by the genetic factors by around …

Devil in disguise : does drinking lead to a disability pension?

Abstract Objectives To examine whether alcohol consumption in adulthood is related to the incidence of receiving a disability pension later in life. Methods Twin data for Finnish men and women born before 1958 were matched to register-based individual information on disability pensions. Twin differences were used to eliminate both shared environmental and genetic factors. The quantity of alcohol consumption was measured as the weekly average consumption using self-reported data from three surveys (1975, 1981 and 1990). The disability pension data were evaluated from 1990–2004. Results The models that account for shared environmental and genetic factors reveal that heavy drinkers are signifi…

If you drink, don't smoke : Joint associations between risky health behaviors and labor market outcomes

This paper examines the links between risky health behaviors and labor market success. We provide new evidence on the joint relationships between the most prominent forms of risky health behavior - alcohol consumption, smoking and physical inactivity - and long-term labor market outcomes. We use twin data for Finnish men and women linked to register-based individual information on earnings and labor market attachment. The twin data allow us to account for shared family and environmental factors and to measure risky health behaviors in 1975 and 1981. The long-term labor market outcomes were measured in adulthood as an average over the period 1990-2009. The sample sizes are 2156 and 2498 twin…

The spot market and implicit contracts with high-skilled wages

Tutkimuksia palkkaeroista ja julkisen sektorin työmarkkinoista

Within and between firm trends in job polarization : the roles of globalization and technology

AbstractWe analyze occupational polarization within and across firms using a census of matched employer–employee panel data from Finland in the period of 2000–2014. As in most industrialized countries, the Finnish occupational distribution has polarized over the last decades. Using decomposition analysis, we find that jobs involving low-level service tasks increase mostly through the entry dynamics, while the high-level abstract task share increases largely within continuing firms. Worker-level occupational mobility points to some skill upgrading within continuing firms, while labor force entry and retirement contribute the polarizing trend. Instrumental variables (IVs) regressions confirm …

Hajautunut neuvottelujärjestelmä parantaa palkkoja ja työhyvinvointia

Työehtosopimusneuvotteluiden taso on Euroopassa siirtynyt lähemmäs yritystasoa viime vuosikymmenien aikana. Tätä kutsutaan neuvottelujärjestelmän hajautumiseksi. Suomessa on kuitenkin nykyhetkeen saakka pysytty liittotasoisessa sopimisessa, vaikka vertailumaissa siirryttiin hajautuneempaan järjestelmään jo 1990-luvulle tultaessa. nonPeerReviewed

Is personality related to permanent earnings? Evidence using a twin design

Using twin survey combined with register-based panel data on labor market outcomes, the authors examine the association between personality characteristics and long-term earnings among prime working-age individuals. The long-term earnings were measured over the 1990–2008 period. The sample contains 4,642 twin pairs, of which 53% are females. In contrast to previous studies, this paper uses the within-twin dimension of the data to control for shared family background and confounding genetic factors. The results suggest that unobserved genetic differences may introduce omitted variable bias in standard ordinary least square results. After controlling for shared environment and genetic backgro…

Economics of wage differentials and public sector labour markets

Public-private sector pay gaps in Finland: A quantile regression analysis

This paper examines public-private sector wage differentials in Finland using a quantile regression method. We control for the endogeneity of the working sector and allow the returns of individual skills to vary between industries. The results suggest that men earn a premium of 3 percent in the public sector at the lower-end jobs. At the median and the upper end of the distribution, men’s pay gap is negative, varying between 5 and 10 percent. Women, in turn, always earn more in the public sector (4–10 percent), and the premium is highest at the upper end of the earnings distribution. (JEL: J31, J45) peerReviewed

Public-private sector pay gaps by industry, quantile and gender

Job Displacement, Inter-Regional Mobility and Long-Term Earnings

We examine the effect of job displacement on regional mobility using linked employer-employee panel data for the 1995-2014 period. We also study whether displaced movers obtain earnings and employment gains compared to displaced stayers. The results show that job displacement increases the migration probability by ~70%. However, social capital in a region and housing characteristics decrease the propensity to move, indicating that people do not make the migration decisions solely based on short-term economic incentives. Migration has an immediate negative relationship with earnings, but the link diminishes as time passes and eventually turns positive for men. The link between migration and …

Determinants of Prescription Opioid Use : Population‐Based Evidence from Finland

Background and aims Previous studies have shown that prescription opioid use is more common in the socioeconomically disadvantaged communities in the US. This study examined the area and individual‐level determinants of prescription opioid use in Finland during the period 1995‐2016. Design Logistic regression analysis using nationwide data on filled opioid‐related prescriptions dispensed at Finnish pharmacies and covered by the National Health Insurance. Opioid consumption was linked, using personal identification codes, to population‐based data maintained by Statistics Finland, which records individual background and area‐level characteristics. Setting and participants Working‐age populati…

Julkisen ja yksityisen sektorin väliset palkkaerot Suomessa 2000-luvulla

Työttömyys kirvoittaa muuttokaravaanit liikkeelle

Artikkelissa tarkastellaan työmarkkinoiden joustavuuteen ja työvoiman liikkuvuuteen vaikuttavia taustatekijöitä Suomessa. Tutkimustulokset perustuvat Tilastokeskuksen kansallisesti edustavaan rekisteriaineistoon. Tulokset osoittavat, että työpaikan menettäminen kasvattaa merkittävästi (noin 50 prosenttia) muuttamisen todennäköisyyttä. Toisaalta osa työttömistä jää asumaan korkean työttömyyden alueille. Asuntojen korkeat hinnat ja toisaalta asuntomarkkinoiden heikko likviditeetti heikentävät muuttovirtoja ja työmarkkinoiden sopeutumista kohti matalamman työttömyyden tasapainoa. nonPeerReviewed

Public-private sector pay gaps and centralized wage setting : aggregate and industry data evidence

Harsh times: do stressors lead to labor market losses?

This paper examines the links between stressful life events and labor market outcomes. We use twin data for Finnish men and women combined with register-based individual information on earnings, employment and social income transfers. The twin data allow us to account for shared environmental and genetic confounders. We measure the exposure to stressful life events in 1990. The labor market outcomes are measured during a 20-year follow-up over the period 1990–2009. Three findings stand out. First, stressors lead to worse labor market outcomes. Second, both men and women are distressed by labor market shocks, but they respond differently to marital problems and health shocks within the famil…

Self-confidence predicts entrepreneurship and entrepreneurial success

Determinants of prescription opioid use: population‐based evidence from Finland

BACKGROUND AND AIMS Previous studies have shown that prescription opioid use is more common in socio-economically disadvantaged communities in the United States. This study examined the area and individual-level determinants of prescription opioid use in Finland during the period 1995-2016. DESIGN Logistic regression analysis using nation-wide data on filled opioid-related prescriptions dispensed at Finnish pharmacies and covered by National Health Insurance. Opioid consumption was linked, using personal identification codes, to population-based data maintained by Statistics Finland, which records individual background and area-level characteristics. SETTING AND PARTICIPANTS Working-age pop…

Terveys ja työmarkkinamenestys

Tässä katsausartikkelissa tarkastellaan terveysongelmien ja riskihakuisen terveyskäyttäytymisen yhteyttä hen- kilön työmarkkinamenestykseen ja työuraan. Tutkimuksissa on tarkasteltu riskihakuisen terveyskäyttäytymisen yhteyksiä paitsi ansiokehityksen, myös yleisemmin työelämään kiinnittymisen näkökulmasta. Tutkimusten perusteella alkoholin liikakäyttö, tupakointi, liikkumattomuus ja ylipaino ovat yhteydessä heikompaan menes- tykseen työmarkkinoilla. Riskihakuisen terveyskäyttäytymisen negatiiviset työmarkkinavaikutukset tulisi huo- mioida pohdittaessa panostuksia terveydenhuoltojärjestelmään ja toisaalta arvioitaessa järjestelmään tehtäviä muutoksia. peerReviewed

Losing a Job and (Dis)incentives to Move

Tässä tutkimuksessa tarkastellaan työpaikan menettämisen ja muiden taloudellisten ja ei-taloudellisten kannustimien vaikutuksia alueelliseen muuttoliikkeeseen. Käytämme yhdistettyä työnantaja-työntekijäaineistoa sekä tietoja alueellisista asuntomarkkinoista. Työpaikan menettäneillä tarkoitamme heitä, jotka menettävät työpaikkansa toimipaikan sulkemisen tai joukkoirtisanomisen takia. Työpaikan menetys lisää henkilön muuttoalttiutta noin 80 prosentilla. Työpaikan menettäneet näyttäisivätkin reagoivan taloudellisiin kannustimiin, sillä alhainen oletettu palkkataso ja korkeat asuntojen hinnat alueella ovat yhteydessä lisääntyneeseen muuttoalttiuteen alueelta, josta henkilö on jäänyt työttömäksi…

Public–private sector wage differentials and the business cycle

Abstract This paper uses microeconomic data for the period from 1990 to 2004 to examine the relationship between public–private sector wage differentials and labour market conditions in Finland. The results show that the public sector wage premium is strongly counter-cyclical. On average, a 10 percent increase in the local unemployment rate increases the public–private sector wage gap by one percent. Separate analyses by government sector and quantiles of the distribution of wages reveal that it is local government workers and those working at lower skill levels who benefit more from increasing unemployment rate. The paper also exploits the longitudinal structure of the data to examine whet…

Measuring the gender wage gap : a methodological note

We propose to estimate the Blinder-Oaxaca decomposition by a single-equation model augmented with interactions between the group membership and other predictors. The relative importance of predictors on the discriminatory wage gap is examined by the interaction coefficients, which may lead to very different conclusions than the usual percentage calculations using the detailed decomposition method. Comparisons are made between the traditional interpretations and those suggested here using wage data from Finland. The decomposition analysis suggests that the discriminatory male-female wage gap is largely related to work experience, while our preferred model points to the importance of family g…

Alcohol Consumption and Long-Term Labor Market Outcomes

This paper examines whether alcohol consumption is related to long-term labor market outcomes. We use twin data for Finnish men and women matched to register-based individual information on employment and earnings. The twin data allow us to account for the shared environmental and genetic factors. The quantity of alcohol consumption was measured by weekly average consumption using self-reported data from three surveys (1975, 1981 and 1990). The average of an individual's employment months and earnings were measured in adulthood over the period 1990–2009. The models that account for the shared environmental and genetic factors reveal that former drinkers and heavy drinkers both have almost 2…

Työmarkkinoiden rakennemuutos yrityksissä ja yritysrakenteissa

Tässä artikkelissa tarkastellaan ammattirakenteiden polarisaatiota sekä yrityksissä että yritysrakenteiden muutoksen välityksellä. Aineistona käytetään yhdistettyä yritys-työntekijä-aineistoa vuosilta 2000–2009. Rutiininomaisia työtehtäviä on kadonnut sekä yritysten sisällä että yritysrakenteiden muutoksen kautta. Sen sijaan korkean osaamistason ammattien osuuden kasvu taloudessa on toteutunut ennen kaikkea yrityksien sisällä tapahtuneiden muutosten kautta. Palveluammattien osuutta on kasvattanut eniten se, että uusissa yrityksissä palveluammattien osuus on ollut suuri ja poistuvissa yrityksissä pieni. Paljon T&K:hon panostavat ja ICT:tä käyttävät yritykset vähentävät erityisesti rutiininom…