IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eee/regeco/v95y2022ics0166046222000175.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

The relative importance of portable and non-portable agglomeration effects for the urban wage premium

Author

Listed:
  • Frings, Hanna
  • Kamb, Rebecca

Abstract

Using administrative data for West Germany, we study the relative importance of portable and non-portable agglomeration effects for the urban wage premium. In doing so, we advance the established strategy of estimating wage-tenure profiles for urban-rural and rural-urban movers by adding worker, firm, and match fixed effects. This allows us to distinguish unambiguously between both types of agglomeration effects. Our results show that portable and non-portable agglomeration effects equally contribute to the urban wage premium. Moreover, portable agglomeration effects are not only observed in the biggest cities. Instead, the speed of human capital accumulation continuously increases with city size.

Suggested Citation

  • Frings, Hanna & Kamb, Rebecca, 2022. "The relative importance of portable and non-portable agglomeration effects for the urban wage premium," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 95(C).
    • Handle: RePEc:eee:regeco:v:95:y:2022:i:c:s0166046222000175
    DOI: 10.1016/j.regsciurbeco.2022.103786
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0166046222000175
    Download Restriction: Full text for ScienceDirect subscribers only
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1016/j.regsciurbeco.2022.103786?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. Martyn Andrews & Thorsten Schank & Richard Upward, 2006. "Practical fixed-effects estimation methods for the three-way error-components model," Stata Journal, StataCorp LP, vol. 6(4), pages 461-481, December.
    2. Pierre‐Philippe Combes & Gilles Duranton & Laurent Gobillon & Diego Puga & Sébastien Roux, 2012. "The Productivity Advantages of Large Cities: Distinguishing Agglomeration From Firm Selection," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 80(6), pages 2543-2594, November.
    3. Giordano Mion & Paolo Naticchioni, 2009. "The spatial sorting and matching of skills and firms," Canadian Journal of Economics, Canadian Economics Association, vol. 42(1), pages 28-55, February.
    4. Ahlfeldt, Gabriel M. & Pietrostefani, Elisabetta, 2019. "The economic effects of density: A synthesis," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 111(C), pages 93-107.
    5. Kristiina Huttunen & Jarle Møen & Kjell G. Salvanes, 2018. "Job Loss and Regional Mobility," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 36(2), pages 479-509.
    6. Kent Eliasson & Urban Lindgren & Olle Westerlund, 2003. "Geographical Labour Mobility: Migration or Commuting?," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 37(8), pages 827-837.
    7. Bacolod, Marigee & De la Roca, Jorge & Ferreyra, María Marta, 2021. "In search of better opportunities: Sorting and agglomeration effects among young college graduates in Colombia," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 87(C).
    8. D'Costa, Sabine & Overman, Henry G., 2014. "The urban wage growth premium: Sorting or learning?," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 168-179.
    9. Moretti, Enrico, 2011. "Local Labor Markets," Handbook of Labor Economics, in: O. Ashenfelter & D. Card (ed.), Handbook of Labor Economics, edition 1, volume 4, chapter 14, pages 1237-1313, Elsevier.
    10. Duranton, Gilles & Puga, Diego, 2004. "Micro-foundations of urban agglomeration economies," Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, in: J. V. Henderson & J. F. Thisse (ed.), Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, edition 1, volume 4, chapter 48, pages 2063-2117, Elsevier.
    11. Jorge De La Roca & Diego Puga, 2017. "Learning by Working in Big Cities," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 84(1), pages 106-142.
    12. John M. Abowd & Francis Kramarz & David N. Margolis, 1999. "High Wage Workers and High Wage Firms," Econometrica, Econometric Society, vol. 67(2), pages 251-334, March.
    13. Boris Hirsch & Elke J. Jahn & Alan Manning & Michael Oberfichtner, 2022. "The Urban Wage Premium in Imperfect Labor Markets," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 57(S), pages 111-136.
    14. Nathaniel Baum-Snow & Ronni Pavan, 2012. "Understanding the City Size Wage Gap," The Review of Economic Studies, Review of Economic Studies Ltd, vol. 79(1), pages 88-127.
    15. Jinkins, David & Morin, Annaïg, 2018. "Job-to-job transitions, sorting, and wage growth," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 55(C), pages 300-327.
    16. Michael Greenstone & Richard Hornbeck & Enrico Moretti, 2010. "Identifying Agglomeration Spillovers: Evidence from Winners and Losers of Large Plant Openings," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 118(3), pages 536-598, June.
    17. Yankow, Jeffrey J., 2006. "Why do cities pay more? An empirical examination of some competing theories of the urban wage premium," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 60(2), pages 139-161, September.
    18. Wheeler, Christopher H., 2006. "Cities and the growth of wages among young workers: Evidence from the NLSY," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 60(2), pages 162-184, September.
    19. Woodcock, Simon D., 2008. "Wage differentials in the presence of unobserved worker, firm, and match heterogeneity," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 15(4), pages 771-793, August.
    20. Combes, Pierre-Philippe & Duranton, Gilles & Gobillon, Laurent, 2008. "Spatial wage disparities: Sorting matters!," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 63(2), pages 723-742, March.
    21. repec:hal:pseose:hal-00812695 is not listed on IDEAS
    22. M. J. Andrews & L. Gill & T. Schank & R. Upward, 2008. "High wage workers and low wage firms: negative assortative matching or limited mobility bias?," Journal of the Royal Statistical Society Series A, Royal Statistical Society, vol. 171(3), pages 673-697, June.
    23. Mittag, Nikolas, 2019. "A simple method to estimate large fixed effects models applied to wage determinants," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 61(C).
    24. Di Addario, Sabrina & Patacchini, Eleonora, 2008. "Wages and the City. Evidence from Italy," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 15(5), pages 1040-1061, 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. Jun Zhang & Runni Zhang & Xue Zhang & Xiaodie Yuan, 2023. "Polycentric Spatial Structure Evolution and Influencing Factors of the Kunming–Yuxi Urban Agglomeration: Based on Multisource Big Data Fusion," Land, MDPI, vol. 12(7), pages 1-18, July.

    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. Frings, Hanna & Kamb, Rebecca, 2021. "What explains the urban wage premium? Sorting, non-portable or portable agglomeration effects?," Ruhr Economic Papers 916, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.
    2. Combes, Pierre-Philippe & Gobillon, Laurent, 2015. "The Empirics of Agglomeration Economies," Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, in: Gilles Duranton & J. V. Henderson & William C. Strange (ed.), Handbook of Regional and Urban Economics, edition 1, volume 5, chapter 0, pages 247-348, Elsevier.
    3. Paul Verstraten & Gerard Verweij & Peter Zwaneveld, 2018. "Why do wages grow faster in urban areas? Sorting of high potentials matters," CPB Discussion Paper 377.rdf, CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis.
    4. Jordy Meekes & Wolter H. J. Hassink, 2023. "Endogenous local labour markets, regional aggregation and agglomeration economies," Regional Studies, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 57(1), pages 13-25, January.
    5. Paul Verstraten & Gerard Verweij & Peter Zwaneveld, 2018. "Why do wages grow faster in urban areas? Sorting of high potentials matters," CPB Discussion Paper 377, CPB Netherlands Bureau for Economic Policy Analysis.
    6. Eckert, Fabian & Hejlesen, Mads & Walsh, Conor, 2022. "The return to big-city experience: Evidence from refugees in Denmark," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 130(C).
    7. Gilles Duranton & Diego Puga, 2020. "The Economics of Urban Density," Journal of Economic Perspectives, American Economic Association, vol. 34(3), pages 3-26, Summer.
    8. Niebuhr, Annekatrin, 2016. "Benefits of dense labour markets - Evidence from transitions to employment in Germany," VfS Annual Conference 2016 (Augsburg): Demographic Change 145715, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    9. Börjesson, Maria & Isacsson, Gunnar & Andersson, Matts & Anderstig, Christer, 2018. "Agglomeration, productivity and the role of transport system improvements," Working papers in Transport Economics 2018:16, CTS - Centre for Transport Studies Stockholm (KTH and VTI).
    10. Ana Maria Bonomi Barufi, 2016. "Should I Stay Or Should I Go? Dynamic Agglomeration Economies In Brazil," Anais do XLIII Encontro Nacional de Economia [Proceedings of the 43rd Brazilian Economics Meeting] 164, ANPEC - Associação Nacional dos Centros de Pós-Graduação em Economia [Brazilian Association of Graduate Programs in Economics].
    11. D'Costa, Sabine & Overman, Henry G., 2014. "The urban wage growth premium: Sorting or learning?," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(C), pages 168-179.
    12. Galster, George C. & Osland, Liv, 2024. "Educational and gender heterogeneity of the rural-urban earnings premium: New evidence from Norway," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 105(C).
    13. Peters, Jan Cornelius, 2016. "Quantifying the effect of labor market size on learning externalities," Economics Working Papers 2016-11, Christian-Albrechts-University of Kiel, Department of Economics.
    14. Marianna Belloc & Paolo Naticchioni & Claudia Vittori, 2023. "Urban wage premia, cost of living, and collective bargaining," Journal of Economic Geography, Oxford University Press, vol. 23(1), pages 25-50.
    15. Fabian Eckert & Conor Walsh & Mads Hejlesen, 2018. "The Return to Big City Experience: Evidence from Danish Refugees," 2018 Meeting Papers 1214, Society for Economic Dynamics.
    16. Sabine D'Costa & Henry Overman, 2013. "The urban wage growth premium: evidence from British cities," ERSA conference papers ersa13p516, European Regional Science Association.
    17. Grover, Arti & Lall, Somik & Timmis, Jonathan, 2023. "Agglomeration economies in developing countries: A meta-analysis," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 101(C).
    18. Porcher, Charly & Rubinton, Hannah & Santamaría, Clara, 2023. "JUE insight: The role of establishment size in the city-size earnings premium," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 136(C).
    19. Diego Puga, 2017. "The changing distribution of firms and workers across cities," Development Working Papers 418, Centro Studi Luca d'Agliano, University of Milano.
    20. Perl, Maximilian, 2023. "Agglomerations, tasks and wage growth," Ruhr Economic Papers 999, RWI - Leibniz-Institut für Wirtschaftsforschung, Ruhr-University Bochum, TU Dortmund University, University of Duisburg-Essen.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Urban wage premium; Agglomeration; Human capital accumulation;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • R23 - Urban, Rural, Regional, Real Estate, and Transportation Economics - - Household Analysis - - - Regional Migration; Regional Labor Markets; Population
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • J60 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Mobility, Unemployment, Vacancies, and Immigrant Workers - - - General

    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:regeco:v:95:y:2022:i:c:s0166046222000175. 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/regec .

    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.