2023-09-28 14:46:10 +00:00
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abstract: 'Wage inequality in the United States has risen dramatically over the
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past few decades, prompting scholars to develop a number of theoretical
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accounts for the upward trend. This study argues that large firms have
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been a prominent labor-market institution that mitigates inequality. By
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compensating their low-and middle-wage employees with a greater premium
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than their higher-wage counterparts, large U.S. firms reduced overall
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wage dispersion. Yet, broader changes to employment relations associated
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with the demise of internal labor markets and the emergence of
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alternative employment arrangements have undermined large firms'' role as
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an equalizing institution. Using data from the Current Population Survey
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and the Survey of Income and Program Participation, we find that in
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1989, although all private-sector workers benefited from a firm-size
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wage premium, the premium was significantly higher for individuals at
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the lower end and middle of the wage distribution compared to those at
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the higher end. Between 1989 and 2014, the average firm-size wage
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premium declined markedly. The decline, however, was exclusive to those
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at the lower end and middle of the wage distribution, while there was no
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change for those at the higher end. As such, the uneven declines in the
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premium across the wage spectrum could account for about 20\% of rising
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wage inequality during this period, suggesting that firms are of great
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importance to the study of rising inequality.'
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affiliation: 'Cobb, JA (Corresponding Author), Univ Penn, Wharton Sch, Philadelphia,
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PA 19104 USA.
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Cobb, J. Adam, Univ Penn, Wharton Sch, Philadelphia, PA 19104 USA.
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Lin, Ken-Hou, Univ Texas Austin, Dept Sociol, Austin, TX 78712 USA.'
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author: Cobb, J. Adam and Lin, Ken-Hou
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author-email: 'adamcobb@wharton.upenn.edu
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lin@austin.utexas.edu'
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author_list:
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- family: Cobb
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given: J. Adam
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- family: Lin
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given: Ken-Hou
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da: '2023-09-28'
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doi: 10.1287/orsc.2017.1125
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files: []
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issn: 1047-7039
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journal: ORGANIZATION SCIENCE
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keywords: 'firm-size wage premium; inequality; internal labor market; employment
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relationship'
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keywords-plus: 'INCOME INEQUALITY; EMPLOYER SIZE; MOTHERHOOD PENALTY; LABOR-MARKETS;
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ORGANIZATION; EARNINGS; BIGGER; DISECONOMIES; OCCUPATIONS; ALLOCATION'
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language: English
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month: MAY-JUN
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number: '3'
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number-of-cited-references: '95'
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orcid-numbers: Cobb, Joel Adam/0000-0001-8038-6908
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pages: 429-446
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papis_id: b3b59411aa906a45aed8e6d2a62fddc4
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ref: Cobb2017growingapart
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researcherid-numbers: Cobb, Joel Adam/T-3029-2019
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times-cited: '43'
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title: 'Growing Apart: The Changing Firm-Size Wage Premium and Its Inequality Consequences'
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2023-10-01 08:15:07 +00:00
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type: article
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2023-09-28 14:46:10 +00:00
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unique-id: WOS:000403752700004
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usage-count-last-180-days: '1'
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usage-count-since-2013: '46'
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volume: '28'
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web-of-science-categories: Management
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year: '2017'
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