Race, Space, and Job Accessibility: Evidence from a Plant Relocation

Abstract

Although recent studies have shown support for the spatial mismatch explanation of minorities' employment difficulties, key questions remain unresolved. This paper is the first report of a longitudinal study designed to shed light on this important hypothesis by studying a Milwaukee food-processing plant that is currently moving from the city's Central Business District to the suburban ring. I document the size of the impending disruption in both distance and travel time and, based on a simple model of time valuation, estimate the costs of the increased commuting time in monetary terms for minorities and nonminorities. The results show that the plant relocation has the potential to induce mismatches between workers' residences and jobs, and that these mismatches will be most severe for minorities. I conclude with a discussion of the implications of the findings for future research on the spatial mismatch hypothesis.

Key words:

• spatial mismatch
• commuting
• firm relocation