Men n the hood: Skill, spatial, and social mismatch among male workers in Los Angeles County

Using data from the Los Angeles Survey of Urban Inequality (LASUI)-part of a four-city,study that includes unique data on network connections as well as educational level, race/ethnicity, and English-language skills-we estimate how skill, spatial, and social mismatches influence labor market outcomes for employed male workers in Los Angeles County. We find that wage differences are impacted by both job growth in local areas and spatially based skill differences, as well as the quality of one's social network. Network quality matters most for Angles and recent Asian immigrants; spatially based skill mismatches are more important for African Americans, U.S.-born Latinos, U.S.-born Asians, and Angles; and job growth per se is most important for recent Asian immigrants. Results suggest that business-attraction strategies alone will not insure that local skill and network gaps will be overcome. Consequently, more innovative policies are needed.