THE IMPACT OF POST-SCHOOL JOBLESSNESS ON MALE BLACK-WHITE WAGE DIFFERENTIALS

This study examines the employment undercurrents of the divergence in black-white wages for young males in the 1980s. By integrating school-to-work transition literature with black-white research on earnings differences, we establish a framework for linking employment during the school-to-work transition and subsequent wage differentials. We empirically confirm this link using the youth cohort of the National Longitudinal Surveys. Results suggest that the higher rates of joblessness among a subset of black youth directly translate into lower earnings for blacks and produce black-white wage divergence. Young black males with extremely high levels of joblessness during the school-to-work period face the greatest reduction in relative wages.