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The Decline in Black Teenage Labor Force Participation in the South, 1900-1970: The Role of Schooling

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  • Robert A. Margo
  • T. Aldrich Finegan

Abstract

Between 1950 and 1970 the labor force participation rate of southern black males aged 16-19 declined by 27 percentage points. This decline has been attributed to two demand-side shocks: the mechanization of cotton agriculture in the 1950s and extensions in the coverage of the federal minimum wage in the 1960s. We show, however, that participation rates of southern black teens fell continuously between 1900 and 1950. The proximate causes of the pre-1950 decline in black teen participation were increases in school enrollment rates and decreases in labor force participation by teens enrolled in school. Because the underlying causes of both effects had not run their course by mid-century, we conclude that about half of the post-1950 decline in black teen participation in the South would have occurred even if cotton agriculture had not mechanized in the 1950s or coverage of the minimum wage had not been extended in the 1960s.

Suggested Citation

  • Robert A. Margo & T. Aldrich Finegan, 1991. "The Decline in Black Teenage Labor Force Participation in the South, 1900-1970: The Role of Schooling," NBER Working Papers 3704, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    • Handle: RePEc:nbr:nberwo:3704
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Smith, James P, 1986. "Race and Human Capital: Reply," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 76(5), pages 1225-1229, December.
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    Cited by:

    1. Canaday, Neil & Tamura, Robert, 2009. "White discrimination in provision of black education: Plantations and towns," Journal of Economic Dynamics and Control, Elsevier, vol. 33(7), pages 1490-1530, July.
    2. Robert W. Fairlie & William A. Sundstrom, 1999. "The Emergence, Persistence, and Recent Widening of the Racial Unemployment Gap," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 52(2), pages 252-270, January.
    3. Gary M. Anderson & Dennis Halcoussis, 1996. "The Political Economy Of Legal Segregation: Jim Crow And Racial Employment Patterns," Economics and Politics, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 8(1), pages 1-15, March.
    4. Shirit Katav-Herz, 2001. "Social Conformity and Child Labor," Working Papers 2001-14, Bar-Ilan University, Department of Economics.

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