Inequality in Labor Market Outcomes: Contrasting the 1980s and Earlier Decades

Wage inequality for males in theUnited States increased dramaticallyduring the 1980s. Between 1979 and1990, the weekly earnings of collegegraduates increased by 2 percent while the real weeklyearnings of high school graduates decreased by more than16 percent. As a result, the wage premium for collegegraduates increased from 42 percentage points in 1979 to71 percentage points in 1990. Changes within schoolinglevels were equally dramatic. Consequently, overall wageinequality for men grew dramatically between 1979 and1990. Wages for men at the top end of the wage distributiongrew by 18 percent relative to wages for men at thebottom of the wage distribution over the 1980s.[...]