Read on Twitter
For #TweetABlackEconomistsPaper, I'll be tweeting about the important work of @pqblair and @BobbyWYChung on the job market signaling value of occupational licensing. [1/N]
https://drive.google.com/file/d/16PnLshdN0eC95hrH2WX5oVF5hhk0MMV6/view https://twitter.com/SarahHBana/status/1277718503751954432
https://drive.google.com/file/d/16PnLshdN0eC95hrH2WX5oVF5hhk0MMV6/view https://twitter.com/SarahHBana/status/1277718503751954432
This is a really rich paper and my tweet thread won't do it justice!
But I want to particularly highlight one result that has really stuck with me and altered my thinking since I first saw @pqblair present this paper about 1.5 yrs ago.
[2/N]
But I want to particularly highlight one result that has really stuck with me and altered my thinking since I first saw @pqblair present this paper about 1.5 yrs ago.
[2/N]
Blair and Chung find significant wage premia for workers with occupational licenses, relative to those without. But the occupational licensing wage premium is particularly and notably high for Black men.
*Why might this be?*
[3/N]
*Why might this be?*
[3/N]
Blair and Chung argue that this is driven by occupational licenses *in occupations which restrict or ban access for those with criminal records* serve as a particularly powerful signal for Black men that they do not have a criminal record.
[4/N]
[4/N]
The wage premium for occ licenses which have a felony ban is disproportionately large for Black men, relative to white men and relative to other types of license (certifications, all licenses, and licenses which require continuing education ("Con Edu")).
[5/N]
![The wage premium for occ licenses which have a felony ban is disproportionately large for Black men, relative to white men and relative to other types of license (certifications, all licenses, and licenses which require continuing education ("Con Edu")).[5/N]](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EbxDt59UYAIzj_M.jpg "The wage premium for occ licenses which have a felony ban is disproportionately large for Black men, relative to white men and relative to other types of license (certifications, all licenses, and licenses which require continuing education (\"Con Edu\")).[5/N]")
[5/N]
As this hypothesis would predict, the occupational license premium is much higher for Black men in "Ban-the-box" states - which don't allow employers to ask about criminal records - than in states where employers can obtain information about the candidate's criminal record
[6/N]
![As this hypothesis would predict, the occupational license premium is much higher for Black men in "Ban-the-box" states - which don't allow employers to ask about criminal records - than in states where employers can obtain information about the candidate's criminal record[6/N]](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/EbxCR1KUMAA23ie.png "As this hypothesis would predict, the occupational license premium is much higher for Black men in \"Ban-the-box\" states - which don't allow employers to ask about criminal records - than in states where employers can obtain information about the candidate's criminal record[6/N]")
[6/N]
Blair & Chung carefully explore a number of alternative explanations for this pattern of results, including sorting by unobserved productivity, bundled returns to human capital, but the main result still stands.
[7/N]
[7/N]
What does this mean for policy? For me, it makes the arguments on occupational licensing that bit more complex -- in our imperfect world where employers discriminate based on actual or perceived probability of applicants having a criminal record.
[8/N]
[8/N]
The ability to signal no criminal record can be useful -- and indeed can reduce pay inequality -- for Black men without a record. But the prevalence of occupations which require felony bans needlessly exclude so many already marginalized people from accessing good jobs.
[9/N]
[9/N]
LOTS of more interesting stuff in the paper, including on occupational licensing as a human capital signal for women. Check it out!
[10/10]
(3 tags to carry on the chain coming soon!)
[10/10]
(3 tags to carry on the chain coming soon!)
To carry on the #TweetABlackEconomistsPaper, I am tagging @AllbriteAllday @priyavshan and @alison_andrew1 !
