IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/ecolet/v216y2022ics0165176522001331.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The measurement of labor supply using March CPS: A cautionary tale

Author

Listed:
  • Nekoei, Arash

Abstract

I document evidence of a systematic bias in the widely-used estimate of annual hours worked using the Current Population Survey. The bias stems from multiplying the number of weeks worked by the median – instead of the mean – of weekly working hours. Theoretical and empirical evidence suggests that this bias leads to an overestimation of annual hours.

Suggested Citation

  • Nekoei, Arash, 2022. "The measurement of labor supply using March CPS: A cautionary tale," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 216(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:ecolet:v:216:y:2022:i:c:s0165176522001331
    DOI: 10.1016/j.econlet.2022.110512
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0165176522001331
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.econlet.2022.110512?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to search for a different version of it.

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Jonathan Heathcote & Fabrizio Perri & Giovanni L. Violante, 2010. "Unequal We Stand: An Empirical Analysis of Economic Inequality in the United States: 1967-2006," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 13(1), pages 15-51, January.
    2. Simon Mongey & Laura Pilossoph & Alex Weinberg, 2020. "Which Workers Bear the Burden of Social Distancing Policies?," Working Papers 2020-51, Becker Friedman Institute for Research In Economics.
    3. Lawrence F. Katz & Kevin M. Murphy, 1992. "Changes in Relative Wages, 1963–1987: Supply and Demand Factors," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 107(1), pages 35-78.
    4. David H. Autor & Lawrence F. Katz & Melissa S. Kearney, 2008. "Trends in U.S. Wage Inequality: Revising the Revisionists," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 90(2), pages 300-323, May.
    5. Andreas I. Mueller, 2017. "Separations, Sorting, and Cyclical Unemployment," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 107(7), pages 2081-2107, July.
    6. Chinhui Juhn & Kevin M. Murphy & Robert H. Topel, 1991. "Why Has the Natural Rate of Unemployment Increased over Time?," Brookings Papers on Economic Activity, Economic Studies Program, The Brookings Institution, vol. 22(2), pages 75-142.
    7. O. Ashenfelter & D. Card (ed.), 1999. "Handbook of Labor Economics," Handbook of Labor Economics, Elsevier, edition 1, volume 3, number 3.
    8. Richard Blundell & Antoine Bozio & Guy Laroque, 2013. "Extensive and Intensive Margins of Labour Supply: Work and Working Hours in the US, the UK and France," Fiscal Studies, Institute for Fiscal Studies, vol. 34(1), pages 1-29, March.
    9. Nir Jaimovich & Seth Pruitt & Henry E. Siu, 2013. "The Demand for Youth: Explaining Age Differences in the Volatility of Hours," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 103(7), pages 3022-3044, December.
    10. Simon Mongey & Laura Pilossoph & Alexander Weinberg, 2021. "Which workers bear the burden of social distancing?," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 19(3), pages 509-526, September.
    11. Ariel J. Binder & John Bound, 2019. "The Declining Labor Market Prospects of Less-Educated Men," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 33(2), pages 163-190, Spring.
    12. Michael W. L. Elsby & Matthew D. Shapiro, 2012. "Why Does Trend Growth Affect Equilibrium Employment? A New Explanation of an Old Puzzle," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 102(4), pages 1378-1413, June.
    13. Laurence Ales & Musab Kurnaz & Christopher Sleet, 2015. "Technical Change, Wage Inequality, and Taxes," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 105(10), pages 3061-3101, October.
    14. Card, David, 1999. "The causal effect of education on earnings," Handbook of Labor Economics, in: O. Ashenfelter & D. Card (ed.), Handbook of Labor Economics, edition 1, volume 3, chapter 30, pages 1801-1863, Elsevier.
    15. Arash Nekoei, 2013. "Immigrants' Labor Supply and Exchange Rate Volatility," American Economic Journal: Applied Economics, American Economic Association, vol. 5(4), pages 144-164, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Lambert, Susan & Fugiel, Peter J., 2023. "Updating Measures of Work Schedules in Federal Surveys," SocArXiv j3dk5, Center for Open Science.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Theodore Koutmeridis, 2013. "The Market for "Rough Diamonds": Information, Finance and Wage Inequality," CDMA Working Paper Series 201307, Centre for Dynamic Macroeconomic Analysis, revised 14 Oct 2013.
    2. Lance Lochner & Youngki Shin, 2014. "Understanding Earnings Dynamics: Identifying and Estimating the Changing Roles of Unobserved Ability, Permanent and Transitory Shocks," NBER Working Papers 20068, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    3. Christopher Bollinger & James P. Ziliak & Kenneth R. Troske, 2011. "Down from the Mountain: Skill Upgrading and Wages in Appalachia," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 29(4), pages 819-857.
    4. Jonathan Heathcote & Fabrizio Perri & Gianluca Violante, 2020. "The Rise of US Earnings Inequality: Does the Cycle Drive the Trend?," Review of Economic Dynamics, Elsevier for the Society for Economic Dynamics, vol. 37, pages 181-204, August.
    5. Brown, Jeffrey R. & Fang, Chichun & Gomes, Francisco, 2015. "Risks and returns to education over time," CFS Working Paper Series 512, Center for Financial Studies (CFS).
    6. Morin, Annaïg, 2019. "Wage dispersion over the business cycle," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 181(C), pages 17-21.
    7. Francine D. Blau & Lawrence M. Kahn, 2013. "The Feasibility and Importance of Adding Measures of Actual Experience to Cross-Sectional Data Collection," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 31(S1), pages 17-58.
    8. Pedro Carneiro & Sokbae (Simon) Lee, 2005. "Ability, sorting and wage inequality," CeMMAP working papers CWP16/05, Centre for Microdata Methods and Practice, Institute for Fiscal Studies.
    9. Henrik Braconier & Jenifer Ruiz-Valenzuela, 2014. "Gross Earning Inequalities in OECD Countries and Major Non-member Economies: Determinants and Future Scenarios," OECD Economics Department Working Papers 1139, OECD Publishing.
    10. W. D. McCausland & F. Summerfield & I. Theodossiou, 2020. "The Effect of Industry-Level Aggregate Demand on Earnings: Evidence from the US," Journal of Labor Research, Springer, vol. 41(1), pages 102-127, June.
    11. Peydró, José-Luis & Jasova, Martina & Mendicino, Caterina & Panetti, Ettore & Supera, Dominik, 2021. "Monetary Policy, Labor Income Redistribution and the Credit Channel: Evidence from Matched Employer-Employee and Credit Registe," CEPR Discussion Papers 16549, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    12. Athanasoglou, Panayiotis P. & Georgiou, Evangelia A. & Staikouras, Christos C., 2009. "Assessing output and productivity growth in the banking industry," The Quarterly Review of Economics and Finance, Elsevier, vol. 49(4), pages 1317-1340, November.
    13. Bourguignon, Francois, 2005. "The Effect of Economic Growth on Social Structures," Handbook of Economic Growth, in: Philippe Aghion & Steven Durlauf (ed.), Handbook of Economic Growth, edition 1, volume 1, chapter 27, pages 1701-1747, Elsevier.
    14. Findeisen, Sebastian & Dauth, Wolfgang & Lee, Tim, 2016. "Human Capital Accumulation over the Life-Cycle: Evidence from Germany’s Reunification," VfS Annual Conference 2016 (Augsburg): Demographic Change 145887, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    15. Pınar Mine Güneş, 2016. "The effects of teenage childbearing on long-term health in the US: a twin-fixed-effects approach," Review of Economics of the Household, Springer, vol. 14(4), pages 891-920, December.
    16. Elizabeth M. King & Claudio E. Montenegro & Peter F. Orazem, 2012. "Economic Freedom, Human Rights, and the Returns to Human Capital: An Evaluation of the Schultz Hypothesis," Economic Development and Cultural Change, University of Chicago Press, vol. 61(1), pages 39-72.
    17. Michael Böhm & Daniel Metzger & Per Strömberg, 2022. "“Since You’re So Rich, You Must Be Really Smart”: Talent, Rent Sharing, and the Finance Wage Premium," ECONtribute Discussion Papers Series 147, University of Bonn and University of Cologne, Germany.
    18. Dan Black & Natalia Kolesnikova & Lowell Taylor, 2009. "Earnings Functions When Wages and Prices Vary by Location," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 27(1), pages 21-47, January.
    19. Jung, Taehyun & Ejermo, Olof, 2014. "Demographic patterns and trends in patenting: Gender, age, and education of inventors," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 86(C), pages 110-124.
    20. Pinghui Wu, 2022. "Wage Inequality and the Rise in Labor Force Exit: The Case of US Prime-Age Men," Working Papers 22-16, Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Labor supply;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eee:ecolet:v:216:y:2022:i:c:s0165176522001331. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Catherine Liu (email available below). General contact details of provider: http://www.elsevier.com/locate/ecolet .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.