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The effect of cumulative job mobility on early‐career wage development: Does job mobility actually pay?

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  • Jeffrey J. Yankow

Abstract

Objective This study attempts to answer the question of whether cumulative job mobility in the early career actually pays. Methods Using a sample of men and women drawn from the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth 1997, a series of wage models are estimated that account for both the timing and frequency of job changes over the first decade of the working career as well as for complex interactions between job mobility, actual work experience, and job tenure. Results The wage estimates indicate that workers who demonstrate moderate job‐changing in the first 2 years after labor market entry but then taper their mobility thereafter actually raise their log‐wage path above that of either immobile workers or persistent job changers. Conclusion This finding is significant because previous studies have often found a negative relationship between cumulative job mobility and wages, with immobile workers typically earning the highest wages. The results from this study show that a poor job match at the start of the career need not permanently lower a worker's wage profile but can be more than made up for through strategic early‐career job mobility.

Suggested Citation

  • Jeffrey J. Yankow, 2022. "The effect of cumulative job mobility on early‐career wage development: Does job mobility actually pay?," Social Science Quarterly, Southwestern Social Science Association, vol. 103(3), pages 709-723, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:socsci:v:103:y:2022:i:3:p:709-723
    DOI: 10.1111/ssqu.13161
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    Cited by:

    1. Feng Zhang & Dan Liu & Xiaowei Geng, 2022. "Job Mobility and Subjective Well-Being among New-Generation Migrant Workers in China: The Mediating Role of Interpersonal Trust," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 19(18), pages 1-12, September.

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