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Research ArticleArticle

The Age Twist in Employers’ Gender Requests

Evidence from Four Job Boards

Miguel Delgado Helleseter, Peter Kuhn and Kailing Shen
Journal of Human Resources, March 2020, 55 (2) 428-469; DOI: https://doi.org/10.3368/jhr.55.3.0416-7836R2
Miguel Delgado Helleseter
Miguel Delgado Helleseter is an assistant professor of economics at California State University, Channel Islands. Peter Kuhn () is a distinguished professor of economics at the University of California, Santa Barbara and a research associate of the NBER and IZA. Kailing Shen is an associate professor at the Australian National University and a research fellow at IZA.
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Peter Kuhn
Miguel Delgado Helleseter is an assistant professor of economics at California State University, Channel Islands. Peter Kuhn () is a distinguished professor of economics at the University of California, Santa Barbara and a research associate of the NBER and IZA. Kailing Shen is an associate professor at the Australian National University and a research fellow at IZA.
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Kailing Shen
Miguel Delgado Helleseter is an assistant professor of economics at California State University, Channel Islands. Peter Kuhn () is a distinguished professor of economics at the University of California, Santa Barbara and a research associate of the NBER and IZA. Kailing Shen is an associate professor at the Australian National University and a research fellow at IZA.
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Abstract

On one Mexican and three Chinese job boards, firms’ explicit gender requests shift dramatically away from women and towards men when firms are seeking older (as opposed to younger) workers. Observed characteristics of job ads can account for 65 percent of this “age twist”; within this “explained” component, employers’ requests for older male managers and for young women in customer contact and helping positions account for more than half. Based on its timing, the remainder of the twist, which occurs within job titles, appears to be connected to a differential effect of parenthood on firms’ requests for men versus women.

I have heard the wish expressed that one could be a girl and a beautiful girl from the age of thirteen to the age of twenty-two and after that to be a man.

–Jean de la Bruyère, Les Caractères, 1688
JEL Classification
  • J16
  • J63
  • J71
  • Received April 2016.
  • Accepted September 2018.
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Journal of Human Resources: 55 (2)
Journal of Human Resources
Vol. 55, Issue 2
31 Mar 2020
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The Age Twist in Employers’ Gender Requests
Miguel Delgado Helleseter, Peter Kuhn, Kailing Shen
Journal of Human Resources Mar 2020, 55 (2) 428-469; DOI: 10.3368/jhr.55.3.0416-7836R2

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The Age Twist in Employers’ Gender Requests
Miguel Delgado Helleseter, Peter Kuhn, Kailing Shen
Journal of Human Resources Mar 2020, 55 (2) 428-469; DOI: 10.3368/jhr.55.3.0416-7836R2
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  • Article
    • Abstract
    • I. Introduction
    • II. Data
    • III. Replicating Kuhn and Shen (2013): Job-Specificity and the Negative Skill–Targeting Relationship
    • IV. The Age Twist in Employers’ Gender Requests
    • V. Discussion
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Keywords

  • J16
  • J63
  • J71
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