Ethnicity as a mediator of pharmacists' labour supply

Abstract

Objective Explore the extent to which ethnic identification is associated with the way in which pharmacists respond to determinants of the number of hours worked (i.e. labour supplied). Methods Separate labour supply functions were estimated for non-Hispanic white, black and Hispanic pharmacists in South Florida. The labour supply determinants included in the equations were the wage rate, human capital variables (age, academic degree, gender and number of children) and job-related preferences (practice site, satisfaction with the profession, workload, stress, advancement opportunities and flexibility). Key findings The empirical results showed that all coefficients in the non-Hispanic white equations were statistically significant, but several coefficients in the black and Hispanic equations lacked significance. Even in those instances in which the coefficients were significant for one or both minority groups, cultural differences were manifested in the direction and/or magnitude of impact of the covariates. Conclusions The findings suggest that minorities in the pharmacist workforce may deviate from dominant standards established by the nonminority group. The labour supply behaviour of minorities seemed to be associated with institutional factors that hinder the observed effects of the wage rate from conforming to expectations.