Wage Inequality in Latin America
What caused the decline in wage inequality of the 2000s in Latin America? Looking to the future, will the current economic slowdown be regressive? Wage Inequality in Latin America: Understanding the Past to Prepare for the Future addresses these two questions by reviewing relevant literature and pro...
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| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Online |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Washington, DC: World Bank
2017
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | https://hdl.handle.net/10986/28682 https://doi.org/10.1596/978-1-4648-1039-8 |
| _version_ | 1866367759369109504 |
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| author | Messina, Julian Silva, Joana |
| author_facet | Messina, Julian Silva, Joana |
| author_sort | Messina, Julian |
| collection | Colección Libros - Series (activas) |
| description | What caused the decline in wage inequality of the 2000s in Latin America? Looking to the future, will the current economic slowdown be regressive? Wage Inequality in Latin America: Understanding the Past to Prepare for the Future addresses these two questions by reviewing relevant literature and providing new evidence on what we know from the conceptual, empirical, and policy perspectives. The answer to the first question can be broken down into several parts, although the bottom line is that the changes in wage inequality resulted from a combination of three forces: (a) education expansion and its effect on falling returns to skill (the supply-side story); (b) shifts in aggregate domestic demand; and (c) exchange rate appreciation from the commodity boom and the associated shift to the nontradable sector that changed interfirm wage differences. Other forces had a non-negligible but secondary role in some countries, while they were not present in others. These include the rapid increase of the minimum wage and a rapid trend toward formalization of employment, which played a supporting role but only during the boom. Understanding the forces behind recent trends also helps to shed light on the second question. The analysis in this volume suggests that the economic slowdown is putting the brakes on the reduction of inequality in Latin America and will likely continue to do so—but it might not actually reverse the region’s movement toward less wage inequality. |
| format | Online Book |
| id | wb-10986-28682 |
| institution | Banco Mundial |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2017 |
| publisher | Washington, DC: World Bank |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | wb-10986-286822025-04-19T02:16:08Z Wage Inequality in Latin America Understanding the Past to Prepare for the Future Messina, Julian Silva, Joana INEQUALITY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT WAGE LATIN AMERICA ECONOMIC BOOM FIRM HETEROGENEITY EARNINGS INEQUALITY EDUCATION EXPANSION LABOR MARKETS What caused the decline in wage inequality of the 2000s in Latin America? Looking to the future, will the current economic slowdown be regressive? Wage Inequality in Latin America: Understanding the Past to Prepare for the Future addresses these two questions by reviewing relevant literature and providing new evidence on what we know from the conceptual, empirical, and policy perspectives. The answer to the first question can be broken down into several parts, although the bottom line is that the changes in wage inequality resulted from a combination of three forces: (a) education expansion and its effect on falling returns to skill (the supply-side story); (b) shifts in aggregate domestic demand; and (c) exchange rate appreciation from the commodity boom and the associated shift to the nontradable sector that changed interfirm wage differences. Other forces had a non-negligible but secondary role in some countries, while they were not present in others. These include the rapid increase of the minimum wage and a rapid trend toward formalization of employment, which played a supporting role but only during the boom. Understanding the forces behind recent trends also helps to shed light on the second question. The analysis in this volume suggests that the economic slowdown is putting the brakes on the reduction of inequality in Latin America and will likely continue to do so—but it might not actually reverse the region’s movement toward less wage inequality. 2017-11-06T22:33:59Z 2017-11-06T22:33:59Z 2018 Book Livre Libro 978-1-4648-1039-8 https://hdl.handle.net/10986/28682 10.1596/978-1-4648-1039-8 https://doi.org/10.1596/978-1-4648-1039-8 English Latin American Development Forum; CC BY 3.0 IGO http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/igo World Bank application/pdf application/pdf application/pdf application/pdf Washington, DC: World Bank |
| spellingShingle | INEQUALITY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT WAGE LATIN AMERICA ECONOMIC BOOM FIRM HETEROGENEITY EARNINGS INEQUALITY EDUCATION EXPANSION LABOR MARKETS Messina, Julian Silva, Joana Wage Inequality in Latin America |
| title | Wage Inequality in Latin America |
| title_full | Wage Inequality in Latin America |
| title_fullStr | Wage Inequality in Latin America |
| title_full_unstemmed | Wage Inequality in Latin America |
| title_short | Wage Inequality in Latin America |
| title_sort | wage inequality in latin america |
| topic | INEQUALITY ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT WAGE LATIN AMERICA ECONOMIC BOOM FIRM HETEROGENEITY EARNINGS INEQUALITY EDUCATION EXPANSION LABOR MARKETS |
| url | https://hdl.handle.net/10986/28682 https://doi.org/10.1596/978-1-4648-1039-8 |
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