Data and Code for: What Explains Black Employment Dynamics?

Principal Investigator(s): View help for Principal Investigator(s) Karl David Boulware, Wesleyan University; Kenneth N. Kuttner, Williams College

Version: View help for Version V1

Name	File Type	Size	Last Modified
Beta-decomp.rpf	text/plain	5 KB	05/07/2024 04:48:PM
GF-rates.rpf	text/plain	6.4 KB	12/31/1979 06:00:PM
J2J-create.do	text/plain	3.8 KB	12/31/1979 06:00:PM
J2J-hires-byraceind.csv	text/csv	1.1 MB	12/31/1979 06:00:PM
J2J-seps-byraceind.csv	text/csv	1.1 MB	12/31/1979 06:00:PM
QWI-byraceind.csv	text/csv	1.4 MB	12/31/1979 06:00:PM
QWI-create.do	text/plain	2.3 KB	12/31/1979 06:00:PM
README.pdf	application/pdf	46 KB	05/07/2024 04:47:PM
freddata.xlsx	application/vnd.openxmlformats-officedocument.spreadsheetml.sheet	12.7 KB	12/31/1979 06:00:PM
j2j-race-ind.dta	application/x-stata-dta	2.4 MB	12/31/1979 06:00:PM

Project Citation:

Boulware, Karl David, and Kuttner, Kenneth N. Data and Code for: What Explains Black Employment Dynamics? Nashville, TN: American Economic Association [publisher], 2024. Ann Arbor, MI: Inter-university Consortium for Political and Social Research [distributor], 2024-05-21. https://doi.org/10.3886/E202302V1

Project Description

Summary: In the United States, the unemployment rate for blacks is approximately twice as high as that for whites. This paper explores the proximate causes of black unemployment, focusing on overall job growth and the flows into and out of unemployment. Using data from the Census’s Quarterly Workforce Indicators and Job-to-Job Flows databases, we find that black employment is more volatile and separation rates higher within industries. Our results rule out one potential source of disparities in aggregate labor market outcomes, specifically, the extent to which it can be attributed to a concentration of black workers in cyclically sensitive occupations and/or industries, or those with low job security. The pervasiveness of these patterns across industries is consistent with structurally discriminatory employment practices.

Scope of Project

Subject Terms: Unemployment; Business Cycles; Social and Economic Stratification

JEL Classification:
      E24 Employment; Unemployment; Wages; Intergenerational Income Distribution; Aggregate Human Capital; Aggregate Labor Productivity
      E32 Business Fluctuations; Cycles
      J70 Labor Discrimination: General
      Z13 Economic Sociology; Economic Anthropology; Language; Social and Economic Stratification

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Published Versions

V1 [2024-05-21]

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