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The Growth Lab Research Seminar series is a weekly seminar that brings together researchers from across the academic spectrum who share an interest in growth and development. This seminar is co-sponsored by the Project on Workforce at Harvard University.
Speaker: Christina Langer, PhD candidate at KU Eichstaett-Ingolstadt, Visiting Research Fellow at HKS, Associate at the Growth Lab
Abstract: We construct novel measures of worker skills that are directly relevant on the labor market, objective, and highly detailed. To do so, we exploit the unique setting of the German apprenticeship system, which mandates that the same skills are developed in a particular apprenticeship regardless of the training location. Skill requirements of apprenticeships are codified in state-approved, nationally standardized apprenticeship plans. These plans not only provide information on the skill content of apprenticeships, containing almost 20,000 different skills, but also on the exact duration a specific skill is learnt. We link the skill measures to administrative labor market data covering more than 40 years. Following apprenticed workers over their careers, we find that workers who completed an apprenticeship that provides higher cognitive, social, or digital skills earn higher wages over long-run horizons. The returns to an additional month of learning these skills amounts to one-tenth to one-fifth of the return to a full year of schooling. Exploiting the long time coverage of our administrative data, we document that particularly returns to digital skills have soared since the 1990s. Returns to social skills have also increased strongly over time, while the increase in returns to cognitive skills is more muted.
Whether attending in-person or virtually, please register in advance. Room attendance is limited to the Harvard community. Seating availability is based on a first-come, first-served basis. The Zoom webinar is open to the public.
Contact Chuck McKenney with any questions.