[go: up one dir, main page]
More Web Proxy on the site http://driver.im/
IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/bla/ehsrev/v74y2021i3p691-720.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Skills and human capital in eighteenth‐century Spain: wages and working lives in the construction of the Royal Palace of Madrid (1737–1805)†

Author

Listed:
  • Mario García‐Zúñiga
  • Ernesto LóPEZ LOSA
Abstract
Using a database of about 375,000 individual observations, which represent over two million days worked, this article studies building workers’ remunerations and how labour markets functioned in eighteenth‐century Madrid. We present new wage series that correct and improve the evidence existing in the literature and provide an explanation for the long‐run wage stickiness found in the city. Economic factors, rather than customs or guild regulations, explain why wage rates remained unaltered for about 100 years. The reconstruction of the working lives of 100 of the workers who took part in the construction of the Royal Palace of Madrid provides the first evidence of wage profiles for pre‐industrial times. They demonstrate that every wage rate was attached to a certain level of skill. Craftsmen's wages increased as they gained abilities, as human capital theory predicts, while returns to age or experience were negligible in the case of unskilled workers. This points to the existence of segmented labour markets in the building sector in early modern Spain.

Suggested Citation

  • Mario García‐Zúñiga & Ernesto LóPEZ LOSA, 2021. "Skills and human capital in eighteenth‐century Spain: wages and working lives in the construction of the Royal Palace of Madrid (1737–1805)†," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 74(3), pages 691-720, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:ehsrev:v:74:y:2021:i:3:p:691-720
    DOI: 10.1111/ehr.13048
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://doi.org/10.1111/ehr.13048
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1111/ehr.13048?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Taubman, Paul & Wachter, Michael L., 1987. "Segmented labor markets," Handbook of Labor Economics, in: O. Ashenfelter & R. Layard (ed.), Handbook of Labor Economics, edition 1, volume 2, chapter 21, pages 1183-1217, Elsevier.
    2. Robert C. Allen, 2015. "The high wage economy and the industrial revolution: a restatement," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 68(1), pages 1-22, February.
    3. Robert C. Allen, 2019. "Real wages once more: a response to Judy Stephenson," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 72(2), pages 738-754, May.
    4. John Hatcher, 2018. "Seven Centuries of Unreal Wages," Palgrave Studies in Economic History, in: John Hatcher & Judy Z. Stephenson (ed.), Seven Centuries of Unreal Wages, chapter 2, pages 15-69, Palgrave Macmillan.
    5. Jane Humphries & Jacob Weisdorf, 2019. "Unreal Wages? Real Income and Economic Growth in England, 1260–1850," The Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 129(623), pages 2867-2887.
    6. Donald Woodward, 1994. "The determination of wage rates in the early modern north of England," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 47(1), pages 22-43, February.
    7. John Hatcher & Judy Z. Stephenson (ed.), 2018. "Seven Centuries of Unreal Wages," Palgrave Studies in Economic History, Palgrave Macmillan, number 978-3-319-96962-6.
    8. Kathryn E. Gary & Mats Olsson, 2020. "Men at work. Wages and industriousness in southern Sweden 1500–1850," Scandinavian Economic History Review, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 68(2), pages 112-128, May.
    9. Broadberry,Stephen & Campbell,Bruce M. S. & Klein,Alexander & Overton,Mark & van Leeuwen,Bas, 2015. "British Economic Growth, 1270–1870," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9781107070783, January.
    10. Gaspar Feliu, 1991. "Precios y salarios en la Cataluña moderna. Vol. I: Alimentos," Estudios de Historia Económica, Banco de España, number 21, November.
    11. Horrell, Sara & Humphries, Jane & Weisdorf, Jacob, 2019. "Family standards of living over the long run, England 1280-1850," CAGE Online Working Paper Series 419, Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy (CAGE).
    12. repec:oup:econjl:v:129:y:2019:i:10:p:2867-2887. is not listed on IDEAS
    13. H. M. Boot, 1991. "Salaries and career earnings in the Bank of Scotland, 1730-1880," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 44(4), pages 629-653, November.
    14. repec:cge:wacage:2015 is not listed on IDEAS
    15. Dickens, William T & Lang, Kevin, 1985. "A Test of Dual Labor Market Theory," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 75(4), pages 792-805, September.
    16. William T. Dickens & Kevin Lang, 1985. "Testing Dual Labor Market Theory: A Reconsideration of the Evidence," NBER Working Papers 1670, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    17. Jacob Mincer, 1958. "Investment in Human Capital and Personal Income Distribution," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 66(4), pages 281-281.
    18. Humphries, Jane & Weisdorf, Jacob, 2015. "The Wages of Women in England, 1260–1850," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 75(2), pages 405-447, June.
    19. Paolo Malanima, 2013. "When did England overtake Italy? Medieval and early modern divergence in prices and wages," European Review of Economic History, European Historical Economics Society, vol. 17(1), pages 45-70, February.
    20. Gary S. Becker, 1994. "Human Capital: A Theoretical and Empirical Analysis with Special Reference to Education, Third Edition," NBER Books, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc, number beck94-1.
    21. Judy Z. Stephenson, 2018. "In Search of the Average Craftsman: Understanding Skilled Work and Wages in the Early Modern Building Trades and Wider Economy," Palgrave Studies in Economic History, in: John Hatcher & Judy Z. Stephenson (ed.), Seven Centuries of Unreal Wages, chapter 5, pages 117-141, Palgrave Macmillan.
    22. Earl J. Hamilton, 1929. "Wages and Subsistence on Spanish Treasure Ships, 1503-1660," Journal of Political Economy, University of Chicago Press, vol. 37(4), pages 430-430.
    23. Voth, Hans-Joachim, 1998. "Time and Work in Eighteenth-Century London," The Journal of Economic History, Cambridge University Press, vol. 58(1), pages 29-58, March.
    24. Marianthi Leontaridi, 1998. "Segmented Labour Markets: Theory and Evidence," Journal of Economic Surveys, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 12(1), pages 103-109, February.
    25. Allen,Robert C., 2009. "The British Industrial Revolution in Global Perspective," Cambridge Books, Cambridge University Press, number 9780521868273, September.
    26. H. M. Boot, 1995. "How skilled were Lancashire cotton factory workers in 1833?," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 48(2), pages 283-303, May.
    27. Allen, Robert C., 2001. "The Great Divergence in European Wages and Prices from the Middle Ages to the First World War," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 38(4), pages 411-447, October.
    28. Judy Z. Stephenson, 2019. "Mistaken wages: the cost of labour in the early modern English economy, a reply to Robert C. Allen," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 72(2), pages 755-769, May.
    29. Mauro Rota & Jacob Weisdorf, 2021. "Italy and the little divergence in wages and prices: evidence from stable employment in rural areas," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 74(2), pages 449-470, May.
    30. Luca Mocarelli, 2018. "What Is Wrong with the History of Wages: Or the Divide in Economic History—A Reappraisal Suggested by Eighteenth-Century Milan," Palgrave Studies in Economic History, in: John Hatcher & Judy Z. Stephenson (ed.), Seven Centuries of Unreal Wages, chapter 4, pages 95-116, Palgrave Macmillan.
    31. Judy Z. Stephenson, 2020. "Contracts and Pay," Palgrave Studies in Economic History, Palgrave Macmillan, number 978-3-319-57508-7.
    32. Jeremy Boulton, 1996. "Wage labour in seventeenth-century London," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 49(2), pages 268-290, May.
    33. Mocarelli Luca, 2004. "Wages and the Labour Market in the Building Trade in 18th Century Milan," Jahrbuch für Wirtschaftsgeschichte / Economic History Yearbook, De Gruyter, vol. 45(2), pages 61-82, December.
    34. repec:bla:jecsur:v:12:y:1998:i:1:p:63-101 is not listed on IDEAS
    35. Judy Z. Stephenson, 2018. "‘Real’ wages? Contractors, workers, and pay in London building trades, 1650–1800," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 71(1), pages 106-132, February.
    36. Ruben Schalk, 2017. "From orphan to artisan: apprenticeship careers and contract enforcement in The Netherlands before and after the guild abolition," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 70(3), pages 730-757, August.
    37. Ernesto López Losa, 2013. "The legacy of Earl J. Hamilton. New data for the study of prices in Spain, 1650–1800," Investigaciones de Historia Económica - Economic History Research (IHE-EHR), Journal of the Spanish Economic History Association, Asociación Española de Historia Económica, vol. 9(02), pages 75-87.
    38. Joyce Burnette, 2006. "How skilled were English agricultural labourers in the early nineteenth century?1," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 59(4), pages 688-716, November.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Sara Horrell, 2023. "Household consumption patterns and the consumer price index, England, 1260–1869," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 76(4), pages 1023-1050, November.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Mario García-Zúñiga & Ernesto López-Losa, 2019. "Building Workers in Madrid (1737-1805). New Wage Series and Working Lives," Working Papers 0152, European Historical Economics Society (EHES).
    2. Sara Horrell, 2023. "Household consumption patterns and the consumer price index, England, 1260–1869," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 76(4), pages 1023-1050, November.
    3. Judy Stephenson, 2018. "Looking for work? Or looking for workers? Days and hours of work in London construction in the eighteenth century," Oxford Economic and Social History Working Papers _162, University of Oxford, Department of Economics.
    4. Alexandra de Pleijt & Jan Luiten van Zanden, 2021. "Two worlds of female labour: gender wage inequality in western Europe, 1300–1800," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 74(3), pages 611-638, August.
    5. Nicholas Crafts, 2021. "Understanding productivity growth in the industrial revolution," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 74(2), pages 309-338, May.
    6. Cédric Chambru & Paul Maneuvrier‐Hervieu, 2023. "The evolution of wages in early modern Normandy (1600–1850)," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 76(3), pages 917-940, August.
    7. Rota, Mauro & Weisdorf, Jacob, 2019. "Expensive Labour and the Industrial Revolution: Evidence from Stable Employment in Rural Areas," CAGE Online Working Paper Series 442, Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy (CAGE).
    8. Palma, Nuno & Reis, Jaime & Rodrigues, Lisbeth, 2023. "Historical gender discrimination does not explain comparative Western European development: evidence from Portugal, 1300-1900," Explorations in Economic History, Elsevier, vol. 88(C).
    9. Judy Z. Stephenson, 2020. "Working days in a London construction team in the eighteenth century: evidence from St Paul's Cathedral," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 73(2), pages 409-430, May.
    10. Peter Sandholt Jensen & Cristina Victoria Radu & Paul Sharp, 2020. "Standards of Living and Skill Premia in Eighteenth Century Denmark: What can we learn from a large microlevel wage database?," Working Papers 0180, European Historical Economics Society (EHES).
    11. Sara Horrell & Jane Humphries & Jacob Weisdorf, 2019. "Working for a Living? Women and Children’s Labour Inputs in England, 1260-1850," Oxford Economic and Social History Working Papers _172, University of Oxford, Department of Economics.
    12. Cormac Ó Gráda, 2019. "Economic History: «An Isthmus Joining Two Great Continents»?," Rivista di storia economica, Società editrice il Mulino, issue 1, pages 81-120.
    13. Mauro Rota & Jacob Weisdorf, 2021. "Italy and the little divergence in wages and prices: evidence from stable employment in rural areas," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 74(2), pages 449-470, May.
    14. Mario García-Zúñiga, 2020. "Builders’ Working Time in Eighteenth Century Madrid," Working Papers 0195, European Historical Economics Society (EHES).
    15. Ernesto López Losa & Santiago Piquero Zarauz, 2016. "Spanish real wages in the Northern-Western European mirror, 1500-1800. On the timings and magnitude of the Little Divergence in Europe," Documentos de Trabajo (DT-AEHE) 1607, Asociación Española de Historia Económica.
    16. Jane Humphries & Jacob Weisdorf, 2019. "Unreal Wages? Real Income and Economic Growth in England, 1260–1850," The Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 129(623), pages 2867-2887.
    17. Emmanuel Bovari & Victor Court, 2019. "Energy, knowledge, and demo-economic development in the long run: a unified growth model," Working Papers hal-01698755, HAL.
    18. Rota, Mauro & Weisdorf, Jacob, 2019. "Why was the First Industrial Revolution English? Roman Real Wages and the Little Divergence within Europe Reconsidered," CAGE Online Working Paper Series 400, Competitive Advantage in the Global Economy (CAGE).
    19. Horrell, Sara & Humphries, Jane & Weisdorf, Jacob, 2020. "Life-cycle living standards of intact and disrupted English working families, 1260-1850," LSE Research Online Documents on Economics 106986, London School of Economics and Political Science, LSE Library.
    20. Robert C. Allen, 2020. "Spinning their wheels: a reply to Jane Humphries and Benjamin Schneider," Economic History Review, Economic History Society, vol. 73(4), pages 1128-1136, November.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:bla:ehsrev:v:74:y:2021:i:3:p:691-720. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Wiley Content Delivery (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://edirc.repec.org/data/ehsukea.html .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.