Wage Gaps and Job Sorting in African Manufacturing

42 Pages Posted: 11 Apr 2007

See all articles by Najy Benhassine

Najy Benhassine

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - Economics, Finance, Accounting (EFA)

Marcel Fafchamps

Stanford University - Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies

Måns Söderbom

University of Oxford - Department of Economics

Multiple version iconThere are 2 versions of this paper

Date Written: December 2006

Abstract

Using matched employer-employee data from eleven African countries, we investigate if there is job sorting in African labor markets. We find that much of the wage gap correlated with education is driven by selection across occupations and firms. This is consistent with educated workers being more effective at complex tasks like labor management. In all countries the education wage gap widens rapidly at high low levels of education. Most of the education wage gap at low levels of education can be explained by selection across occupations. We also find that the education wage gap tends to be higher for women, except in Morocco where many poorly educated women work in the export garment sector. A large proportion of the gender wage gap is explained by selection into low wage occupations and firms.

Keywords: Gender wage gap, return to education, job selection, Africa, manufacturing

JEL Classification: J24, J31, O14

Suggested Citation

Benhassine, Najy and Fafchamps, Marcel and Soderbom, Mans, Wage Gaps and Job Sorting in African Manufacturing (December 2006). CEPR Discussion Paper No. 6003, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=979843

Najy Benhassine (Contact Author)

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) - Economics, Finance, Accounting (EFA) ( email )

77 Massachusetts Avenue
Cambridge, MA 02139-4307
United States

Marcel Fafchamps

Stanford University - Freeman Spogli Institute for International Studies ( email )

Stanford, CA 94305
United States

Mans Soderbom

University of Oxford - Department of Economics ( email )

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Oxford, OX1 3BJ
United Kingdom
+44-(0)1865 271084 (Phone)
+44-(0)1865 281447 (Fax)

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