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The distribution of earnings in OECD countries
Author(s) -
ATKINSON Anthony B.
Publication year - 2007
Publication title -
international labour review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.433
H-Index - 46
eISSN - 1564-913X
pISSN - 0020-7780
DOI - 10.1111/j.1564-913x.2007.00004.x
Subject(s) - earnings , economics , distribution (mathematics) , inequality , competition (biology) , labour economics , income distribution , globalization , demographic economics , market economy , mathematical analysis , mathematics , accounting , ecology , biology
Earnings inequality in the OECD countries is commonly seen to have widened considerably since 1980 ‐ and this is generally explained by the steady increase in relative demand for skilled labour due to skill‐biased technical change and the growing exposure of unskilled workers to international competition through globalization. But this single explanation now looks questionable: the increase in inequality has been uneven across countries, and greater earnings dispersion has mostly been occurring at the top of the distribution. This article takes a fresh look at the evidence and considers alternative explanations to supplement that provided by the race between technology and education.