The federal-private wage differential is reexamined with recent data. Using specifications similar to those used in three previous studies, I find that the federal-private wage differential has narrowed since the 1974-79 period analyzed in those studies. In addition, I discover that wage differentials based on specifications used in the literature are biased upward because the previous studies did not control for detailed occupational and locational characteristics of workers. Corrected point estimates of the wage gap are much smaller than previous estimates in the literature. Differences in the gap across demographic groups, occupations, and locations are also discussed.

A Reexamination of the Federal- Private Wage Differential in the United States

Using logit analysis on 1 percent samples of federal personnel records for 1973-82, this paper finds strikingly similar promotion probabilities for white men and women, once a variety of individual characteristics are accounted for

Gender and Promotions: Promotion Chances of White Men and Women in Federal White-Collar Employment

This paper addresses two questions. First, has the federal civil service made progress toward racial and sexual equality in the past decade? Second, has progress slowed during the Reagan Administration? The paper examines changes in total employment, employment at upper grade levels, average grade levels, average salaries, and unexplained salary gaps since 1976 for ten groups—Asian, Native American, Hispanic, black non-Hispanic, and white non-Hispanic men and women. The good news is that women and minorities have made progress relative to white males on all measures, and that progress has continued under Reagan. The bad news is that progress remains slow.

Progress toward Racial and Sexual Equality in the Federal Civil Service

This paper updates studies done in the mid-1970s concerning the measurement of government wage differentials in the United States. Based on an analysis of two large micro data sets, we reached the following conclusions. First, as a group, government employees earned a small wage premium of approximately 2 to 3 percent during the 1970s and early 1980s. Second, the government wage premium was substantially higher for federal employees and for women employees. These findings are consistent with earlier studies.

Government Wage Differentials Revisited

Using a variety of data sources, this article compares the earnings, occupations, educations, mobility, handling of subordinates, interactions with supervisors, job satisfaction, and rates of promo...

Men and Women toward the Top: Backgrounds, Careers, and Potential of Federal Middle Managers:

The issue of labor market discrimination has attracted considerable attention in the literature. This study extends knowledge of the extent of such discrimination in the labor market by focusing on the public sector, specifically federal white-collar workers. Employing regression analysis, the returns to several measures of worker productivity are investigated, and the average salary differential between whites and nonwhites, males and females with these variables held constant are measured. The sample of 950 workers is analyzed in the aggregate; then several subsamples are analyzed separately. The results obtained are compared and conclusions drawn as to the effectiveness of federal personnel policy in eliminating labor market discrimination.

Arthur J. Corazzini

Papers

Equality of Employment Opportunity in the Federal White-Collar Civil Service.