CHANGES IN THE RELATIVE PROVISION OF PUBLIC-SECTOR PENSIONS

A decline in pension coverage during the 1980s for males in the privat e sector is confirmed and is contrasted with the federal, state, and l ocal sectors in which no such decline is found. As a consequence, the governmental advantage in the probability of coverage grew over the 19 80s. This remains true even in the most appropriate testing methodolog y in which worker earnings are endogenous and in which otherwise const ant characteristics are moved between years and sectors. Government wa ge differentials are estimated as a byproduct of this methodology and show a tendency toward comparability over the 1980s.