This article presents the results of research into the impact on individual skill levels of the variables traditionally represented by human capital. The discussion is centred around the way in which education and vocational experience contribute to the process of producing useful skills in the job market or, conversely, of making them obsolete.…

A study used data for the 1987 calendar year from the 1986 and 1987 panels of the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) to examine the impact of union membership on women's wages and job tenure. The data set included 17,200 sample members, representing about 79 million workers, aged 16-64. The study mapped the distribution of union…

Examines the returns to subbaccalaureate credentials and coursework, using the postsecondary transcripts of the National Longitudinal Study of the Class of 1972. Results indicate substantial variety in the returns and suggest clear differences between the subbaccalaureate labor market and that for individuals with baccalaureate degrees. (56…

Intended for use by cooperative education program coordinators, this module deals with the rights of cooperative education program enrollees as they are specified by Michigan minimum wage legislation. Specifically, the module deals with two Michigan laws--Act 154 of Public Act of 1964, as amended and Act 390 of Public Act of 1978. Designed to be a…

Using a specially constructed panel data set on state minimum wage laws and labor market conditions, Neumark and Wascher (1992) presented evidence that countered the claim that minimum wages could be raised with no cost to employment. They concluded that estimates indicating that minimum wages reduced employment on the order of 1-2 percent for a…

Differences in the level of total compensation paid to individuals--known as "compensating differences"--reflect the market valuation of services offered, skills involved in delivery of services, and difficulty in acquiring those skills. Differences in the composition of the compensation package reflect the needs and circumstances of the…

The desirability of raising the minimum wage long revolved around just one question: the effect of higher minimum wages on the overall level of employment. An even more critical effect of the minimum wage rests on the composition of employment--who gets the minimum wage job. An examination of employment in eating and drinking establishments…

A study described the effects of minimum wages on teenagers by using individual-level panel data on school and work transitions of teenagers. Panel data from 1979-92 measuring transitions among alternative employment and enrollment activities of teenagers were obtained from matched Current Population Surveys data sets. Findings indicated that…

A study used individual-level data from the National Longitudinal Study of Youth to examine the effects of changes in the federal minimum wage on teenage employment. Individuals in the sample were classified as either likely or unlikely to be affected by these increases in the federal minimum wage on the basis of their wage rates and industry of…

To increase the rate at which adult basic skills students advance to and succeed in college-level occupational programs, the Washington State Board for Community and Technical Colleges (SBCTC) developed the Integrated Basic Education and Skills Training, or I-BEST. In the I-BEST model, a basic skills instructor and an occupational instructor team…

This booklet provides a glimpse of the progress of vocational equity efforts in Ohio during the 1980s. It focuses on enrollment trends and the wages received by individuals who completed job training programs. It contains charts showing enrollments in 1980 and 1990 in the following major vocational technical areas: agriculture, marketing, health,…

Two key issues thrown up by the 1999 introduction of the National Minimum Wage (NMW) in the United Kingdom are its likely impact on employers' training practices in low paying sectors of the economy and the implications for skills. Based on a study of the hospitality industry, this article assesses the limited significance of the differential,…

Sustainable growth has economic policies addressed to current imbalances as its necessary, though not its sufficient, condition. Labor markets are important for the growth process; as the level of economic activity increases, they function better, and as they function better, the level of economic activity increases further. Labor market…

The study was made to determine the earnings of a sample group of Indiana high school vocational program graduates to ascertain the effect hypothesized training has on earnings of high school vocational graduates. The sample was randomly selected from 1972-73 graduates, stratified according to vocational program. Of the 18 independent variables…

This article focuses on the impact of ethnic background on employment and earnings among people with a vocational education in Norway. I differentiate between three different groups: majority, first-generation non-Westerners and second-generation non-Westerners. Panel data from several public register databases of the entire population of…