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Earnings Dispersion, Low Pay and Household Poverty in Italy, 1977-1998

Author

Listed:
  • Andrea Brandolini

    (Bank of Italy, Economic Research Department)

  • Piero Cipollone

    (Bank of Italy, Economic Research Department)

  • Paolo Sestito

    (Bank of Italy and Ministry of Labour)

Abstract

The paper presents estimates on the dispersion of earnings and the proportion of low-paid employees in Italy in the period 1977-1998, and it measures the differential impact of low pay and employment status on households� poverty. The estimates are computed from the micro-data of the Historical Archive of the Bank of Italy�s Survey of Household Income and Wealth. The distribution of net earnings narrowed from the late 1970s until the end of the 1980s, abruptly widened in the early 1990s and experienced little modification in the rest of the decade. The trend in the share of low-paid workers evolved in parallel with that of earnings inequality. Finally, the probability of being in poverty is more closely correlated with the number of household members employed, particularly other than the head, than with low pay.

Suggested Citation

  • Andrea Brandolini & Piero Cipollone & Paolo Sestito, 2001. "Earnings Dispersion, Low Pay and Household Poverty in Italy, 1977-1998," Temi di discussione (Economic working papers) 427, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    • Handle: RePEc:bdi:wptemi:td_427_01
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Andrea Brandolini, 1999. "The Distribution of Personal Income in Post-War Italy: Source Description, Data Quality, and the Time Pattern of Income Inequality," Giornale degli Economisti, GDE (Giornale degli Economisti e Annali di Economia), Bocconi University, vol. 58(2), pages 183-239, September.
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    5. Cowell, Frank A., 1989. "Sampling variance and decomposable inequality measures," Journal of Econometrics, Elsevier, vol. 42(1), pages 27-41, September.
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    1. Andrea Brandolini & Piero Casadio & Piero Cipollone & Marco Magnani & Alfonso Rosolia, 2007. "Employment Growth in Italy in the 1990s: Institutional Arrangements and Market Forces," AIEL Series in Labour Economics, in: Nicola Acocella & Riccardo Leoni (ed.), Social Pacts, Employment and Growth. A Reappraisal of Ezio Tarantelli’s Thought, edition 1, chapter 4, pages 31-68, AIEL - Associazione Italiana Economisti del Lavoro.
    2. Lorenzo Cappellari & Marco Leonardi, 2016. "Earnings Instability and Tenure," Scandinavian Journal of Economics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 118(2), pages 202-234, April.
    3. Antonio Ciccone & Federico Cingano & Piero Cipollone, 2004. "The Private and Social Return to Schooling in Italy," Giornale degli Economisti, GDE (Giornale degli Economisti e Annali di Economia), Bocconi University, vol. 63(3-4), pages 413-444, December.
    4. Declich, Carlo & Polin, Veronica, 2003. "Absolute poverty and the cost of living: an experimental analysis for italian households," MPRA Paper 33339, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    5. Paolo Naticchioni & Andrea Ricci & Emiliano Rustichelli, 2008. "Wage Inequality, Employment Structure and Skill‐biased Change in Italy," LABOUR, CEIS, vol. 22(s1), pages 27-51, June.
    6. Paolo Naticchioni & Michele Raitano & Claudia Vittori, 2016. "La Meglio Gioventù: earnings gaps across generations and skills in Italy," Economia Politica: Journal of Analytical and Institutional Economics, Springer;Fondazione Edison, vol. 33(2), pages 233-264, August.
    7. Giulia Bovini & Emanuele Ciani & Marta De Philippis & Stefania Romano, 2023. "Labour income inequality and in-work poverty: a comparison between euro area countries," Questioni di Economia e Finanza (Occasional Papers) 806, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    8. Tito Boeri & Andrea Brandolini, 2004. "The Age of Discontent: Italian Households at the Beginning of the Decade," Giornale degli Economisti, GDE (Giornale degli Economisti e Annali di Economia), Bocconi University, vol. 63(3-4), pages 449-487, December.
    9. cipollone piero & Anita Guelfi, 2003. "tax credit policy and firms' behaviour: the case of subsidy to open-end labour contract in italy," Temi di discussione (Economic working papers) 471, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    10. Riccardo Massari, 2009. "Is income becoming more polarized Italy? A closer look with a distributional approach," Working Papers 1, Doctoral School of Economics, Sapienza University of Rome.
    11. Paolo Naticchioni & Andrea Ricci & Emiliano Rustichelli, 2007. "Wage Structure, Inequality And Skill-Biased Change: Is Italy An Outlier?," Quaderni del Dipartimento di Economia, Finanza e Statistica 38/2007, Università di Perugia, Dipartimento Economia.
    12. Francesco Devicienti & Valentina Gualtieri & Mariacristina Rossi, 2014. "The Persistence Of Income Poverty And Lifestyle Deprivation: Evidence From Italy," Bulletin of Economic Research, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 66(3), pages 246-278, July.
    13. Fiorillo, Damiano, 2005. "Le determinanti del capitale sociale in Italia, 1993-2000: una analisi esplorativa," MPRA Paper 796, University Library of Munich, Germany.
    14. Andrea Brandolini & Piero Cipollone, 2001. "Multifactor Productivity and Labour Quality in Italy, 1981-2000," Temi di discussione (Economic working papers) 422, Bank of Italy, Economic Research and International Relations Area.
    15. Nicoletta Rosati, 2009. "A note on welfare and the economic shocks," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 29(3), pages 1621-1630.
    16. Francesco Devicienti & Andrea Borgarello, 2001. "Trends in the Italian Earnings Distribution, 1985-1996," LABORatorio R. Revelli Working Papers Series 2, LABORatorio R. Revelli, Centre for Employment Studies.
    17. Paolo Naticchioni & Andrea Ricci, 2009. "Decreasing Wage Inequality in Italy: The Role of Supply and Demand for Education," Working Papers - Dipartimento di Economia 9-DEISFOL, Dipartimento di Economia, Sapienza University of Rome, revised 2009.
    18. Andrea Borgarello & Francesco Devicienti, 2002. "What Accounts For the Rise in Wage Inequality in Italy? Evidence from Administrative Matched Employer-Employee Data, 1985-1996," LABORatorio R. Revelli Working Papers Series 18, LABORatorio R. Revelli, Centre for Employment Studies.
    19. Francesco Devicienti & Bernardo Fanfani & Agata Maida, 2019. "Collective Bargaining and the Evolution of Wage Inequality in Italy," British Journal of Industrial Relations, London School of Economics, vol. 57(2), pages 377-407, June.
    20. Giangregorio Luca & Fana Marta, 2021. "The structure of the labour market and wage inequality using RIF-OLS: the Italian case," JRC Working Papers on Labour, Education and Technology 2021-11, Joint Research Centre.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    earnings dispersion; low-paid workers;

    JEL classification:

    • J3 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs
    • I3 - Health, Education, and Welfare - - Welfare, Well-Being, and Poverty

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