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What is Happening in the Youth Labour Market in Canada?

Author

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  • Paul Beaudry
  • Thomas Lemieux
  • Daniel Parent

Abstract

This paper analyzes the evolution of the labour market participation rate of men and women age 15 to 24 from 1976 to 1998. The main question being asked is why youth participation rates fell precipitously during the 1990s? We look at two dimensions of this decline: changes in the fraction of youth who participate in the labour market but do not attend school (non-student participation rate) and changes in the employment rate among students. We find that the decline in the non-student participation rate is a consequence of two factors: (i) the overall bad state of the labour market in Canada during the 1990s and (ii) the large increase in school enrolment rates induced by factors other than the state of the labour market. One important finding is that demographic change (baby boom versus baby bust) is a key explanation behind the steep increase in enrolment rates during the 1980s and 1990s. The only components of youth outcomes in the 1990s which we are unable to reasonably explain is the fall in the employment rate of students age 15 to 19.

Suggested Citation

  • Paul Beaudry & Thomas Lemieux & Daniel Parent, 2000. "What is Happening in the Youth Labour Market in Canada?," Canadian Public Policy, University of Toronto Press, vol. 26(s1), pages 59-83, July.
    • Handle: RePEc:cpp:issued:v:26:y:2000:i:s1:p:59-83
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Card, David & Krueger, Alan B, 1992. "Does School Quality Matter? Returns to Education and the Characteristics of Public Schools in the United States," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 100(1), pages 1-40, February.
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    3. David Card & Thomas Lemieux, 2000. "Adapting to Circumstances (The Evolution of Work, School,and Living Arrangements among North American Youth)," NBER Chapters, in: Youth Employment and Joblessness in Advanced Countries, pages 171-214, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    4. Sanders Korenman & David Neumark, 2000. "Cohort Crowding and Youth Labor Markets (A Cross-National Analysis)," NBER Chapters, in: Youth Employment and Joblessness in Advanced Countries, pages 57-106, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    5. Christopher Neilson & Michael Dinerstein & Sebastián Otero, 2020. "The Equilibrium Effects of Public Provision in Education Markets: Evidence from a Public School Expansion Policy," Working Papers 645, Princeton University, Department of Economics, Industrial Relations Section..
    6. Paul Beaudry & David A. Green, 2000. "Cohort patterns in Canadian earnings: assessing the role of skill premia in inequality trends," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 33(4), pages 907-936, November.
    7. David Card & Thomas Lemieux, 1997. "Adapting to Circumstances: The Evolution of Work, School, and Living Arrangements Among North American Youth," Working Papers 765, Princeton University, Department of Economics, Industrial Relations Section..
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Philip Oreopoulos & Till von Wachter & Andrew Heisz, 2006. "The Short- and Long-Term Career Effects of Graduating in a Recession: Hysteresis and Heterogeneity in the Market for College Graduates," NBER Working Papers 12159, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    2. Philip Oreopoulos & Till von Wachter & Andrew Heisz, 2012. "The Short- and Long-Term Career Effects of Graduating in a Recession," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 4(1), pages 1-29, January.
    3. Frank T. Denton & Christine H. Feaver & Byron G. Spencer, 2002. "Alternative Pasts, Possible Futures: A "What If" Study of the Effects of Fertility on the Canadian Population and Labour Force," Canadian Public Policy, University of Toronto Press, vol. 28(3), pages 443-459, September.
    4. Coelli, Michael B., 2011. "Parental job loss and the education enrollment of youth," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 18(1), pages 25-35, January.
    5. Picot, Garnett & Heisz, Andrew & Nakamura, A., 2001. "Job Tenure, Worker Mobility and the Youth Labour Market During the 1990s," Analytical Studies Branch Research Paper Series 2001155e, Statistics Canada, Analytical Studies Branch.
    6. Daniel Parent, 2006. "Work while in high school in Canada: its labour market and educational attainment effects," Canadian Journal of Economics/Revue canadienne d'économique, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 39(4), pages 1125-1150, November.
    7. Daniel Parent, 2004. "The Effect of High School Employment on Educational Attainment in Canada," Cahiers de recherche 0413, CIRPEE.
    8. Michele Campolieti & Tony Fang & Morley Gunderson, 2010. "Labour Market Outcomes and Skill Acquisition of High-School Dropouts," Journal of Labor Research, Springer, vol. 31(1), pages 39-52, March.
    9. J. C. Herbert Emery & Ana Ferrer & David Green, 2012. "Long-Term Consequences of Natural Resource Booms for Human Capital Accumulation," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 65(3), pages 708-734, July.
    10. J. Emery & Ana Ferrer, 2009. "Marriage market imbalances and labor force participation of Canadian women," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 7(1), pages 43-57, March.
    11. Daniel Parent, "undated". "La Prime Associée au Diplôme d'Études Secondaires et le Décrochage Scolaire au Canada," CIRANO Project Reports 2002rp-05, CIRANO.
    12. Michael B Coelli, 2009. "Parental Job Loss, Income Shocks and the Education Enrolment of Youth," Department of Economics - Working Papers Series 1060, The University of Melbourne.
    13. Michieka, Nyakundi M. & Gearhart, Richard S., 2018. "Resource curse? The case of Kern County," Resources Policy, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 446-459.
    14. Daniel Parent, 1999. "Labour Market Outcomes and Schooling in Canada: Has the Value of a High School Degree Changed over Time?," CIRANO Working Papers 99s-42, CIRANO.

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    More about this item

    JEL classification:

    • I2 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Education
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials

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