Please use this identifier to cite or link to this item: https://hdl.handle.net/10419/73269 
Year of Publication: 
2007
Series/Report no.: 
Working Paper No. 0714
Publisher: 
Johannes Kepler University of Linz, Department of Economics, Linz
Abstract: 
Little is known about the payoffs to apprenticeship training in the German speaking countries for the participants. OLS estimates suggest that the returns are similar to those of other types of schooling. However, there is a lot of heterogeneity in the types of apprenticeships offered, and institutional descriptions suggest that there might be an important element of selection in who obtains an apprenticeship, and what type. In order to overcome the resulting ability bias we estimate returns to apprenticeship training for apprentices in failed firms in Austria. When a firm fails, current apprentices cannot complete their training in this firm. Because apprentices will be at different stages in their apprenticeship at that time, the failure of a firm will manipulate the length of the apprenticeship period completed for some apprentices. The time to the firm failure therefore serves as an instrument for the length of the apprenticeship completed both at the original firm and at other firms. We find instrumental variables returns which are similar or larger than the OLS returns in our sample, indicating relatively little selection.
Subjects: 
Human capital
returns to schooling
firm-based training
ability bias
JEL: 
J24
J31
Document Type: 
Working Paper

Files in This Item:
File
Size
168.58 kB





Items in EconStor are protected by copyright, with all rights reserved, unless otherwise indicated.