Evolución de las diferencias salariales entre el sector público y el sector privado en Uruguay

The aim of this paper was: i) to study the evolution of the wage differential between the public and the private sector and, ii) to analyze the impact of said evolution on income distribution. The main conclusions of this paper are the following: -The average hourly wage is higher in the public sector than in the private sector. -The basic wage is substantially higher in the public sector than in the private sector, although the returns to human capital are higher in the private sector. Differences in the basic wage have varied significantly since 1997. -The decomposition of differences in wages between the public and private sector has shown a total advantage for the public sector since 1997. -Wage inequality levels are always higher in the private sector than in the public one. During the period under study there has been an important change in terms of the contribution of each sector to total inequality. The explanation of total inequality by public wages increased considerably.