• DOI:10.1257/AER.103.5.1553
Corpus ID: 844385

The Growth of Low Skill Service Jobs and the Polarization of the U.S. Labor Market

@article{Autor2009TheGO,
  title={The Growth of Low Skill Service Jobs and the Polarization of the U.S. Labor Market},
  author={D. Autor and D. Dorn},
  journal={NBER Working Paper Series},
  year={2009}
}

• D. Autor, D. Dorn
• Published 2009
• Economics
• NBER Working Paper Series

We offer an integrated explanation and empirical analysis of the polarization of U.S. employment and wages between 1980 and 2005, and the concurrent growth of low skill service occupations. We attribute polarization to the interaction between consumer preferences, which favor variety over specialization, and the falling cost of automating routine, codifiable job tasks. Applying a spatial equilibrium model, we derive, test, and confirm four implications of this hypothesis. Local labor markets… Expand

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