RT Journal Article
SR Electronic
T1 Firms and Skills: The Evolution of Worker Sorting
JF Journal of Human Resources
JO J Hum Resour
FD University of Wisconsin Press
DO 10.3368/jhr.56.2.0517-8801R2
A1 Christina Håkanson
A1 Erik Lindqvist
A1 Jonas Vlachos
YR 2020
UL http://jhr.uwpress.org/content/early/2020/09/16/jhr.56.2.0517-8801R2.abstract
AB We document a significant increase in the sorting of workers by cognitive and non-cognitive skills across Swedish firms 1986-2008. During this period, worker skill differences between firms increased while within-firm skill differences fell. A significant fraction of the increase in the between-firm differences in cognitive skill is due to high-skilled workers moving into the IT and telecom sector. Within-firm skill differences fell in all major industries, but particularly in the manufacturing sector. Combined with steeper firm-level skill gradients, the increase in sorting can account for 45% of the increase in between-firm wage dispersion during our period of study.