The Effects of Job Turnover on the Training of Men and Women

Abstract

Human capital theory predicts that workers will be more likely to invest in job training the longer they expect to remain working. The author tests that prediction using data from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth by examining the effect of the predicted probability of job turnover on the probability of receiving training. She finds that predicted turnover is significantly related to receiving training. Her preliminary analysis confirms the finding of previous studies that men undergo more training than women. The gender difference in training is 25% smaller, however, in an analysis that controls for the predicted probability of job turnover—an approach not taken in previous studies. Another finding is that the positive effect of education on training that has been reported previously is due to differences in turnover by education level rather than a pure complementarity between education and training.