Tag: labor market

employer concentration

U.S. industries have become increasingly concentrated in the 21st century, leaving fewer employers in local labor markets. This is not good for workers. The simplest example is a town with one company in the business of producing widgets. The company has little competition when hiring widget workers and can pay them lower wages. A new…

African American businesswoman raising hand, asking question in business conference

Abstract This paper examines the association between employer concentration and labor outcomes (labor force participation and employment).  It uses restricted data from the U.S. Census Bureau’s Longitudinal Business Database to estimate, at the county level, to what extent more concentrated labor markets have lower labor force participation rates and lower employment.  The analysis also examines…