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Are Your Wages Set in Beijing?

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  • Richard B. Freeman

Abstract

The economic troubles of less-skilled workers in the United States. and OECD-Europe during a period of rising manufacturing imports from third world countries has created a debate about whether, in a global economy, wages or employment are determined by the global rather than domestic labor-market conditions. One side argues that trade is all that matters; another side, that trade does not matter at all. The author rejects these polar views; empirical analysis has found modest but real trade effects in displacement of less-skilled labor and declines in the price of goods produced by low-skilled workers.

Suggested Citation

  • Richard B. Freeman, 1995. "Are Your Wages Set in Beijing?," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 9(3), pages 15-32, Summer.
    • Handle: RePEc:aea:jecper:v:9:y:1995:i:3:p:15-32
    Note: DOI: 10.1257/jep.9.3.15
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    File URL: http://www.aeaweb.org/articles.php?doi=10.1257/jep.9.3.15
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    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Borjas, George J. & Freeman, Richard B. (ed.), 1992. "Immigration and the Work Force," National Bureau of Economic Research Books, University of Chicago Press, edition 1, number 9780226066332, April.
    2. Alan V. Deardorff & Robert W. STAIGER, 2011. "An Interpretation Of The Factor Content Of Trade," World Scientific Book Chapters, in: Robert M Stern (ed.), Comparative Advantage, Growth, And The Gains From Trade And Globalization A Festschrift in Honor of Alan V Deardorff, chapter 38, pages 531-545, World Scientific Publishing Co. Pte. Ltd..
    3. George J. Borjas & Richard B. Freeman & Lawrence F. Katz, 1992. "On the Labor Market Effects of Immigration and Trade," NBER Chapters, in: Immigration and the Work Force: Economic Consequences for the United States and Source Areas, pages 213-244, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    4. Feldstein, Martin & Horioka, Charles, 1980. "Domestic Saving and International Capital Flows," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 90(358), pages 314-329, June.
    5. Richard B. Freeman, 1994. "Working Under Different Rules," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number free94-1.
    6. Norman, Victor D & Venables, Anthony J, 1995. "International Trade, Factor Mobility and Trade Costs," Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 105(433), pages 1488-1504, November.
    7. J. Peter Neary & Albert G. Schweinberger, 1986. "Factor Content Functions and the Theory of International Trade," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 53(3), pages 421-432.
    8. Jeffrey D. Sachs & Howard J. Shatz, 1994. "Trade and Jobs in Manufacturing," Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Economic Studies Program, The Brookings Institution, vol. 25(1), pages 1-84.
    9. Topel, Robert, 1993. "What Have We Learned from Empirical Studies of Unemployment and Turnover?," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 83(2), pages 110-115, May.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • F14 - International Economics - - Trade - - - Empirical Studies of Trade
    • J64 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - Unemployment: Models, Duration, Incidence, and Job Search
    • J23 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Labor Demand

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