Abstract

This paper investigates the changes in intergenerational occupational mobility in Italy during the Golden Age (1950-1970). These years saw significant economic and social changes, which affected occupational mobility. Specifically, the present work explores whether occupational mobility was only due to a general shift in the occupational structure, or it was the result of more equal opportunities for people from different socio-economic backgrounds. In this endeavour, I draw upon the Bank of Italy Survey on Household Income and Wealth (SHIW) to compare the occupations of 45,945 individuals born between 1923 and 1978 with those of their parents. This work is the first to find a significant increase in relative mobility in Italy for those who were born between the 1930s and the 1970s, lifting the veil on the geographical and gender dimension of intergenerational mobility.