Heterogeneity and wage inequalities over the life cycle

Abstract Using data on French male wage workers observed over 30 years, we estimate by random and fixed effect methods a wage equation with pervasive heterogeneity. Individual wage profiles are derived from a human capital investment model and described by a level, a slope and a curvature. Among others, our empirical application delivers original results on issues like the Mincer dip, and the time-varying correlations between wage growth and levels, or between initial wages and growth. Static and long-run inequality indices can easily be compared and decomposed into their multidimensional components.