Black-white earnings ratios: the role of cohort size effects

"While black-white earning ratios have been rising over time across cohorts [in the United States] there is some evidence that they have been dropping over time within cohorts of recent entrants to the labor market. This has coincided with the entry of the large baby boom cohorts into the labor market. This paper examines the role of race differences in cohort size effects on black-white earnings ratios for male high school graduates using Current Population Survey data. In larger cohorts, the black-white earnings ratio is lower at entry and falls as the cohort progresses through the career, consistent with recent evidence."