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Which Human Capital Matters For Rich And Poor'S Wages? Evidence From Matched Worker-Firm Data From Tunisia

Author

Listed:
  • Christophe Muller

    (Universidad de Alicante)

  • Christophe Nordman

    (DIAL, París)

Abstract
In this paper, we study the return to human capital variables for wages of workers observed in Tunisian matched worker-firm data in 1999. This reveals us how returns to human capital in a Less Developed Country like Tunisia may differ from the industrial countries usually studied with matched data. We develop a new method based on multivariate analysis of firm characteristics, which allows us most of the benefits obtained by introducing firm dummies in wage equations for studying the effect of education. It also provides a human capital interpretation of the effect of these dummy variables. Moreover, in the studied data, using three firm characteristics easily collectable yields results close to those obtained by using the matched structure of the data. The workers with low wages or low conditional wages experience greater returns to human capital than workers belonging to the middle of the wage distribution, while their return to schooling is significantly lower than that of high wage workers. The estimates support the hypothesis that human capital is associated with positive intra-firm externality on wages. Therefore, a given worker would be more productive and better paid in an environment strongly endowed in human capital. However, the low wage workers do not take advantage of the human capital in the firm. Conversely, the low wage workers benefit from working in the textile sector in terms of wages unlike the middle and high wage workers. Finally, the low wage workers and high wage workers benefit from an innovative environment, while the middle wage workers do not.

Suggested Citation

  • Christophe Muller & Christophe Nordman, 2005. "Which Human Capital Matters For Rich And Poor'S Wages? Evidence From Matched Worker-Firm Data From Tunisia," Working Papers. Serie AD 2005-30, Instituto Valenciano de Investigaciones Económicas, S.A. (Ivie).
    • Handle: RePEc:ivi:wpasad:2005-30
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    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    Cited by:

    1. Christophe J. NORDMAN & François-Charles WOLFF, 2012. "On-The-Job Learning And Earnings: Comparative Evidence From Morocco And Senegal," Region et Developpement, Region et Developpement, LEAD, Universite du Sud - Toulon Var, vol. 35, pages 151-176.
    2. Christophe J. Nordman & François-Charles Wolff, 2009. "Is There a Glass Ceiling in Morocco? Evidence from Matched Worker--Firm Data," Journal of African Economies, Centre for the Study of African Economies, vol. 18(4), pages 592-633, August.
    3. repec:dau:papers:123456789/4344 is not listed on IDEAS
    4. Christophe Muller & Christophe J. Nordman, 2017. "Wages and on-the-job training in Tunisia," Middle East Development Journal, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 9(2), pages 294-318, July.
    5. Christophe Muller & Christophe J. Nordman, 2008. "Intra-Firm Human Capital Externalities in Tunisia," THEMA Working Papers 2008-38, THEMA (THéorie Economique, Modélisation et Applications), Université de Cergy-Pontoise.
    6. Christophe Muller & Christophe Nordman, 2005. "Human capital and wages in two leading industries in Tunisia: evidence from matched worker-firm data," Brussels Economic Review, ULB -- Universite Libre de Bruxelles, vol. 48(1-2), pages 183-208.
    7. repec:dau:papers:123456789/5948 is not listed on IDEAS
    8. Mohamed Jellal & Christophe Nordman & Francois-Charles Wolff, 2008. "Evidence on the glass ceiling effect in France using matched worker-firm data," Applied Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 40(24), pages 3233-3250.
    9. repec:dau:papers:123456789/4377 is not listed on IDEAS
    10. Mohamed Jellal & Christophe Jalil Nordman & Francois-Charles Wolff, 2008. "Evidence on the glass ceiling effect in France using matched worker-firm data," Post-Print hal-00582039, HAL.
    11. repec:dau:papers:123456789/10593 is not listed on IDEAS

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Wage; returns to human capital; matched worker-firm data; quantile regressions; factor analysis; Tunisia;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • O12 - Economic Development, Innovation, Technological Change, and Growth - - Economic Development - - - Microeconomic Analyses of Economic Development

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