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Journal of Labor Economics Vol. 37 No. 2 2019

Whom Do Employers Want? The Role of Recent Employment and Unemployment Status and Age

Henry S. Farber1; Chris M. Herbst2; Dan Silverman2; Till von Wachter

1 Princeton University · 2 Arizona State University

Abstract

We use a résumé audit study to investigate the role of employment and unemployment histories in callbacks to job applications. We find that applicants with 52 weeks of unemployment have a lower callback rate than those with shorter spells. There is no relationship, however, between spell length and callback among applicants with spells of 24 weeks or less. We also find that both younger and older applicants have a lower callback probability than prime-aged applicants. Finally, we find that applicants who are employed at the time of application have a lower callback rate than do unemployed applicants.

DOI
10.1086/700184
Volume
37
Issue
2
Pages
323-349
Language
en
Sources
openalex crossref

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