Why Have Labour Market Outcomes of Youth in Advanced Economies Deteriorated?

Abstract

Abstract: Youth labour outcomes in comparison to those of prime-age adults have worsened across the OECD since the mid-1970s. English-speaking countries experienced mostly declines in relative pay; continental European countries experienced mostly declines in relative employment. This paper aims to explain these developments by estimating a system of simultaneous equations on a panel of 10 advanced economies. The results suggest that the deterioration in the youth labour market has been due to inward shifts in relative demand, offset only partially by reductions in relative supply. The heterogeneity in the deterioration across countries was caused partly by differential rates of relative pay adjustment, depending on each country’s mix of labour market institutions and the priority attached by social partners to youth employment.