The Black-White Difference in Youth Employment: Evidence for Demand-Side Factors
The 1980 census reveals a serious lag in the employment performance of young black men relative to young white men. With census data we test for demand-side causes of this lag, using both aggregate data for 94 standard metropolitan statistical areas (SMSAs) and disaggregate (or individual) data from the 1-in-100 Public Use Sample. Variation across SMSAs in the employment and wages of white youth provides indicators of the demand conditions for black youth, and we estimate that feasible increases in these demand factors would lead to about a 25% increase in the employment of black youth.