Does Employment Quota Explain Occupational Choice Among Disadvantaged Groups? A Natural Experiment from India
Year: 2008
Type: report
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: This paper examines the effect of a federally-mandated public sector employment quota policy for minorities on their occupational choice. We utilize multiple logit models to estimate the effect of the policy on the choice between a high, middle, or low-skill public sector occupation during the 1980s and 1990s. The main findings are, first, the policy has a significant effect on the choice of occupation for both groups. The policy increases the probability of the scheduled caste group choosing high-skill occupations and decreases the probability of choosing middle-skill occupations. In contrast, the policy decreases the probability of the scheduled tribe group choosing high-skill occupations and increases their probability of choosing low-skill occupations. Second, the influence\nof the policy is interrelated with an individual's years of\nschooling. Third, we find evidence of employment quota externalities in that a policy targeted at one group affects the occupational choice of the other group. Overall, the results suggest that federally-mandated employment quotas do change occupational choice\nfor the target disadvantaged groups and contribute to their improved socio-economic standing.
Authors: Nishith Prakash, Larry L. Howard
Institutions: Ohio University, California State University, Fullerton
Language: English
Subfield: Economics and Econometrics
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W1872130796