The Impact of Membership of the Communist Party of China on Wages

This paper estimates the impact of membership of the Communist Party of China (CPC) on wage levels. The results indicate that although the wage premium of CPC membership ranges from 4.3% to 32.2%, when job factors are held constant and the selection bias is controlled the impact of CPC membership on wages is not statistically significant. When considering the selection bias although the differentials of human capital contribute to the wage gap between CPC and non-CPC members, the unexplained parts including discrimination against non-CPC members are the main factors which contribute 92.8% to the wage gap.