E-Thesis 394 views 311 downloads
Mobility, Education, and Skills: A Labour Market Perspective on the UK’s Industrial Strategy / Man Leung
Swansea University Author: Man Leung
DOI (Published version): 10.23889/SUthesis.68864
Abstract
This thesis utilises a regional framework to explore the assumptions of the Industrial Strategy regarding skills and their impact on the UK economy. Through three empirical chapters, it examines underlying issues and proposes potential policy developments. The first chapter investigates how graduate...
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Swansea, Wales, UK
2025
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| Institution: | Swansea University |
| Degree level: | Doctoral |
| Degree name: | Ph.D |
| Supervisor: | O'Leary, Nigel; Blackaby, David |
| URI: | https://cronfa.swan.ac.uk/Record/cronfa68864 |
| Abstract: |
This thesis utilises a regional framework to explore the assumptions of the Industrial Strategy regarding skills and their impact on the UK economy. Through three empirical chapters, it examines underlying issues and proposes potential policy developments. The first chapter investigates how graduate degree choices and mobility decisions affect individuals' earnings and the UK economy, particularly addressing brain drain issues in certain regions. Using the 2004 to 2013 HESA data and the RIF regression technique, the analysis assesses migration patterns' impact on graduates' wage premiums, considering factors like horizontal mismatch and regional cost of living. The results show that except for Move Returner, all the migration types on average, earn a positive wage premium. The second chapter focuses on understanding the combination of skills needed for job-specific requirements and examines how job mismatches affect wages. The data is extrapolated from the Labour Force Survey for the period between 2012 to 2020. Econometric models analyse how skill and job mismatches impact UK graduates' wage premiums, exploring potential disparities for ethnic minorities. The empirical findings shows that vertical mismatch causes a greater negative wage effect compared to the horizontal job mismatch. The final chapter examines the development and importance of generic skills for the UK population aged 20 to 65, considering concerns about skill underinvestment. Using data from 2012 to 2017 and Unconditional Quantile Regression, the analysis estimates return based on the importance of generic skills, including the influence of Computer Complexity and its implications for wage returns in the context of technological advancements. Additionally, the chapter explores ethnic minority perspectives on wage discrepancies. The findings shows that Computer Complexity (Physical skills) provides the greatest positive (negative) wage premium effect. |
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| College: |
Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Funders: |
ESRC |