Local human capital, segregation by skill, and skill-specific employment growth

摘要

Labour markets in most highly developed countries are marked by rising levels of segregation by skill and increasing inequality in skill-specific employment prospects. However, analyses on regional employment growth by different skill levels are scarce and empirical evidence on the possible effects of skill segregation is lacking. By applying regional and firm-level data for West Germany, this analysis provides new evidence for the adverse effects of skill segregation on low-skilled employment growth. Furthermore, the findings reveal that a large share of local high-skilled employment does not foster regional concentration of human capital, but ameliorates the employment prospects of less skilled workers.