New men and new women: is there convergence in patterns of labour market transition?

Abstract

This paper uses the first four waves (1991-4) of the British Household Panel Survey to chart patterns of labour market transition for men and women. We examine movements into and out of part-time employment, full-time employment, unemployment and out of the labour force. In particular, we investigate the extent of persistence in each labour market state and compare male and female transition patterns. Our results suggest persistence in the choice of labour market state, but the patterns differ between men and women. Using multinominal logit and binomial panel data models, we relate differences between the sexes to differences in observable characteristics and differences in their rates of return, while controlling for unobservable individual effects in several ways.