Part-time workers' earnings are much lower than those of their full-time counterparts, a difference often referred to as the part-time wage penalty. The mean hourly wage of part-time workers is only two-thirds that of full-time workers. Despite this wage penalty, there were no significant differences between part- and full-time workers in literacy…

Context: Existing studies have explored the association between workplace training and wages suggesting that training participation may have a positive association with wages. However, we still know very little about whether this association varies between men and women. Through its potential positive association with wages, training may balance…

Using data from the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies, this paper compares the earnings premium and employment share of jobs in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) across 11 member countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The results reveal that the STEM wage premium…

Using data from the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies, this paper compares the earnings premium and employment share of jobs in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) across 11 member countries of the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. The results reveal that the STEM wage premium…

Background: One way of evaluating immigrants' labor market outcomes is to assess the extent to which immigrants are able to enter into jobs that are commensurate with their education and experience. An imperfect alignment between workers' educational qualifications and these required for their current job, or education-job mismatch, has…

The labour market outcomes for native- and foreign-born adults during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic vary considerably across countries -- with inequalities in employment even falling in some cases compared to 2017. In contrast with the 2008 financial crisis, greater educational attainment does not seem to have had a clear protective…

As with the previous reports in the series, this new report relies on the rich source of data from the Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC), including direct assessment of literacy and numeracy skills and a host of information on education, income, and other demographic characteristics. But what is unique in…

Across the OECD, the labour-market performance of foreign-born-adults tends to lag behind that of the native-born. Immigrants are not only more likely to be unemployed or inactive, but they also earn less and work in lower-skilled jobs. Differences in skills proficiency, language spoken and country of education explain a large part--albeit not the…

The Middle East and North Africa region has the world's lowest returns to education. This paper examines what the value of a degree is using nationally representative labour market surveys from Egypt (2012), Jordan (2010) and Tunisia (2014). Specifically, the authors estimate Mincer models for levels and years of schooling. They find that returns…

Numerous studies have investigated the consequences of vertical transfer on students' higher education outcomes in comparison to "native 4-year students"--those who went straight from high school into a bachelor's program. However, the long-term labor market outcomes for vertical transfer students are understudied. Using…

The members of the high school Class of 2019 who enter the labor market right after graduating have better job prospects than young people who graduated from high school into the aftermath of the recession, a result of the steady (if slow) progression of the economic recovery. This study analyzes data on recent young high school graduates (ages…

Sustained improvements in economic conditions in recent years have brightened young graduates' prospects for employment and wage growth. This report focuses exclusively on those graduating from college. This study analyzes data on recent young college graduates (ages 21-24) to learn about the Class of 2018's economic prospects as they start their…

This study analyzes data on recent young high school graduates (ages 18-21) to learn about the Class of 2018's economic prospects as they start their careers. The report begins by providing a snapshot of the educational attainment of all young adults in this age group (not just graduates) and of all working-age adults (ages 18-64) to provide…

Teacher industrial action is a prevalent feature of public education systems across the globe. During the past few years teacher strikes have been observed in Argentina, Canada, Chile, China, France, Germany, India, Israel, Lebanon, Mexico, Russia, and the United States. A shared belief among policymakers across several of these countries is that…

How important is mastering information and communication technologies (ICT) in modern labour markets? We present the first evidence on this question, drawing on unique data that provide internationally comparable information on ICT skills in 19 countries from the OECD Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC). Our…