Publication

How Do Labor Market Gaps Divide Life Paths?

Institute for Reform Issue Brief 2026-31 (October 15, 2026), Part 3 of the "Politics and Generations" series. Do the gaps by establishment size and employment type carry over into a person's later path? The gap at a single point in time is large, and after conditions are matched, the difference by establishment size remains larger than the difference by employment type when employment type is viewed through the regular/non-regular distinction. The proposition that gaps divide paths is supported for differences between groups and for the wage paths of four-year college graduates, and is not supported as a causal statement about the labor market as a whole.