AN EMPIRICAL-EXAMINATION OF RACIAL AND GENDER DIFFERENCES IN WAGE DISTRIBUTIONS

This research presents an examination of racial and gender differences in earnings distributions among a sample of young workers. Using data from the 1987 National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, we utilize an or dered-response logit model to estimate the probability of a white male being in a given position in the earnings distribution, based on his human capital and other personal characteristics. We then generate ''p redicted'' probabilities of given earnings positions for individual bl ack males, black females, and white females. Non-parametric tests indi cate that significant differences exist between the actual and predict ed earnings distributions for all of the racial and gender groups stud ied. We interpret this as evidence of the impact of differential treat ment in the labor market.