Skip to main content

The Effects of Literacy on the Earnings of Hispanics in the United States

  • Chapter
Hispanics in the Labor Force

Part of the book series: Environment, Development and Public Policy ((EDPP))

Abstract

In March 1989, close to 20 million persons (or about 8%) of the population of the United States was of Spanish origin. In recent years, the economic condition of Hispanics has received much attention, and studies examining the determinants of earnings among this group have proliferated (see, for instance, Bean & Tien-da, 1987; Borjas & Tienda, 1985; and DeFreitas, 1990). One aspect that has not received much attention in this literature is the role that literacy skills play in constraining the economic opportunities of Hispanics.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

Chapter
USD 29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD 84.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD 109.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Preview

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.

References

  • Bean, F., & M. Tienda. (1987). The Hispanic population in the United States. New York: Russell Sage.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bergmann, B. (1986). The economic emergence of women. New York: Basic Books.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bishop, J. H. (1989). Is the test score decline responsible for the productivity growth decline? American Economic Review, 79, 178–197.

    Google Scholar 

  • Blau, F. (1984). Discrimination against women. In W. Darity, Ed., Labor economics: Modern views. Boston: Kluwer-Nijhoff.

    Google Scholar 

  • Borjas, G. (1984). The economic status of male Hispanic migrants and natives in the United States. In R. Ehrenberg, Ed., Research in labor economics. Greenwich: JAI Press, pp. 65–122

    Google Scholar 

  • Borjas, G., & M. Tienda, Eds. (1985). Hispanics in the U. S. economy. Orlando, FL: Academic Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bonus, M. (1984). Youth and the labor market: Analyses of the national longitudinal survey. Kalamazoo, Michigan: Upjohn Institute for Employment Research.

    Google Scholar 

  • Card, D., & A. Krueger. (1990). Does school quality matter? Returns to education and the characteristics of public schools in the United States. Department of Economics, Princeton University, New Jersey.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cuomo Commission on Trade and Competitiveness. (1988). The Cuomo commission report. New York: Simon & Schuster.

    Google Scholar 

  • DeFreitas, G. (1990). Migration, unemployment and inequality: Hispanics in the U. S. labor force. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • England, P. (1982). The failure of human capital theory to explain occupational sex segregation. Journal of Human Resources, 17, 358–370.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fligstein, N., & R. Fernandez. (1985). Educational transitions of whites and Mexican-Americans. In G. Borjas & M. Tienda, Eds., Hispanics in the U. S. economy. Orlando, FL: Academic Press, pp. 161–192.

    Google Scholar 

  • Garfinkel, I., & S. Mclanahan. (1986). Single mothers and their children: A new American dilemma. Washington, DC: Urban Institute Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Grenier, G. (1984). The effects of language characteristics on the wages of Hispanic-American males. Journal of Human Resources, 19, 35–52.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Heckman, J. J. (1979). Sample selection bias as a specification error. Econometrica, 47, 153–162

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Hirschman, C. (1988). Minorities in the labor market: Cyclical patterns and secular trends in joblessness. In G. D. Sandefur & M. Tienda, Eds., Divided opportunities: Minorities, poverty, and social policy. New York: Plenum Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hoffman, S., & C. Link. (1984). Selectivity bias in male wage equations. Review of Economics and Statistics, 66, 320–324.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kasarda, J. (1989). Urban industrial transition and the underclass. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 501, 26–47.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Kirsch, I., & A. Jungeblut. (1987). Literacy: Profiles of America’s young adults Princeton: Center for the Assessment of Educational Progress, Educational Testing Service, Report No. 16-PL-01.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kossoudji, S. A. (1988). English language ability and the labor market opportunities of Hispanic and East Asian immigrant men. Journal of Labor Economics, 6, 205–228.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • McManus, W., W. Gould, & F. Welch. (1983). Earnings of Hispanic men: The role of English language proficiency. Journal of Labor Economics, 1, 101–130.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Meyer, R. H., & D. A. Wise. (1984). The transition from school to work: The experiences of blacks and whites. In R. Ehrenberg, Ed., Research in labor economics. Greenwich: JAI Press, pp. 123–176.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mincer, J. (1974). Schooling, experience and earnings. New York: National Bureau of Economic Research.

    Google Scholar 

  • Mumame, R. J. (1988). Education and productivity of the Work Force: Looking Ahead. In M. N. Bailey, M. Blair, R. W. Crandall, F. Levy, & R. J. Murnane, Eds., American living standards: Threats and challenges. Washington, DC: Brookings Institution, pp. 215–245.

    Google Scholar 

  • National Assessment of Educational Progress. (1988). Young adult literacy survey public use data tape. Princeton: Center for the National Assessment of Educational Progress.

    Google Scholar 

  • Orazem, P. F. (1987). Black-white differences in schooling investment and human capital production in segregated schools. American Economic Review, 77, 714–723.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ortiz, V. (1987). Literacy among Hispanic young adults. Princeton: Educational Testing Service.

    Google Scholar 

  • Reimers, C. (1983). Labor market discrimination against Hispanic and black men. Review of Economics and Statistics, 65, 570–579.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Reimers, C. (1985). A comparative analysis of the wages of Hispanics, blacks and non-Hispanic whites. In G. Borjas & M. Tienda, Eds., Hispanics in the U. S. Economy. Orlando, FL: Academic Press, pp. 27–76.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rivera-Batiz, F. (1988). English Language proficiency and the economic progress of immigrants. Research report. Washington, DC: Division of Immigration Policy and Research, Bureau of International Labor Affairs, U. S. Department of Labor.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rivera-Batiz, F. (1990). Literacy skills and the wages of young black and white males in the U. S. Economics Letters, 32, 377–382.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Rivera-Batiz, F. (1991). Quantitative literacy and the likelihood of employment among young adults in the United States. Journal of Human Resources, forthcoming.

    Google Scholar 

  • Rodriguez, C. (1989). Puerto Ricans: Born in the U.S.A: Boston: Unw in Hyman.

    Google Scholar 

  • Smith, J., & F. Welch. (1989). Black economic progress after Myrdal. Journal of Economic Literature, 27, 519–564.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sum, A., P. Harrington, & W. Goedicke. (1987). One fifth of the nation’s teenagers: Employment problems of poor youth in America, 1981–1985. Youth and Society, 18, 195–237.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sum, A., P. Harrington, & W. Goedicke. (1986). Basic skills, high school diplomas and the labor force: Employment, unemployment, and earnings experiences of young adults in the U. S. Research Report. New York: Ford Foundation.

    Google Scholar 

  • Tainer, E. (1988). English language proficiency and the determination of earnings among foreign-born men. Journal of Human Resources, 23, 108–122.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Tienda, M. (1989). Puerto Ricans and the underclass debate. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 501, 105–119.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • U. S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census. (1989a). Current population reports: The Hispanic population in the United States: March 1988. Series P-20, No. 438 ( July). Washington, DC: U. S. Government Printing Office.

    Google Scholar 

  • U. S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census. (1989b). Current population reports: Money income and poverty status in the United States: 1988, Series P-60, No. 166 ( October), Washington, DC: U. S. Government Printing Office.

    Google Scholar 

  • U. S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census. (1983). 1980 census of population: Characteristics of the population: General Social and Economic characteristics, Part I. Washington, DC: U. S. Government Printing Office.

    Google Scholar 

  • U. S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census. (1971). Current population reports: Selected characteristics of persons and families of Mexican, Puerto Rican and other Spanish origin. Series P-20, No. 224 ( November). Washington, DC: U. S. Government Printing Office.

    Google Scholar 

  • Venezky, R. L., C. F. Kaestle, & A. M. Sum. (1987). The subtle danger: Reflections on the literacy abilities of America’s young adults Princeton: Center for the Assessment of Educational Progress, Educational Testing Service, Report No. 16-CAEP-01 (January).

    Google Scholar 

  • Wachtel, P. (1976). The effects on earnings of school and college investment expenditures. Review of Economics and Statistics, 58, (August), 326–331.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Welch, F. (1973). Black-white differences in returns to schooling. American Economic Review, 63 (December), 893–907.

    Google Scholar 

  • Willis, R. J. (1986). Wage determinants: A survey and reinterpretation of human capital earnings functions. In O. Ashenfelter & R. Layard, Eds., Handbook of labor economics. Amsterdam: North Holland Publishing, pp. 525–602.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Willis, R. J., & S. Rosen. (1979). Education and self-selection. Journal of Political Economy, 87, Part 2 (October), S7 — S36.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, W. J., & K. Neckerman. (1985). Poverty and Family Structure: The widening gap between evidence and public policy issues. In W. J. Wilson, Ed., The truly disadvantaged. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, W. J., R. Aponte, J. Kirschenman, & L. Wacquant. (1988). The ghetto underclass and the changing structure of urban poverty. In F. Harris & R. W. Wilkins, Eds., Quiet riots: Race and poverty in the United States. New York: Pantheon Books, pp. 123–151.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wise, D. A. (1975). Academic achievement and job performance. American Economic Review, 65 (June), 350–366.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 1991 Springer Science+Business Media New York

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Rivera-Batiz, F.L. (1991). The Effects of Literacy on the Earnings of Hispanics in the United States. In: Melendez, E., Rodriguez, C., Figueroa, J.B. (eds) Hispanics in the Labor Force. Environment, Development and Public Policy. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-0655-7_3

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-0655-7_3

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Boston, MA

  • Print ISBN: 978-1-4899-0657-1

  • Online ISBN: 978-1-4899-0655-7

  • eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive

Publish with us

Policies and ethics