Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

The measurement of gender wage discrimination: the distributional approach revisited

  • Published:
The Journal of Economic Inequality Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

This paper presents the advantages of taking into account the distribution of the individual wage gap when analyzing female wage discrimination. Several limitations of previous approaches such as the classic Oaxaca–Blinder and the recent distributive proposals using quantile regressions or counterfactual functions are thoroughly discussed. The methodology presented here relies on Jenkins’ (J Econom 61:81–102, 1994) work and supports the use of poverty and deprivation literature techniques that are directly applicable to the measurement of discrimination. In an empirical illustration, we quantify the relevance of the glass ceiling and sticky floor phenomena in the Spanish labor market.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  1. Albrecht, J., Björklund, A., Vroman, S.: Is there a glass ceiling in Sweden? J. Labor Econ. 21(1), 145–177 (2003)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  2. Albrecht, J., Van Vuuren, A., Vroman, S.: Counterfactual distributions with sample selection adjustments: econometric theory and an application to the Netherlands. Labour Econ. 16, 383–396 (2009)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  3. Arulampalam, W., Booth, A.L., Bryan, M.: Is there a glass ceiling over Europe? Exploring the gender pay gap across the wages distribution. Ind. Labor Relat. Rev. 60, 163–186 (2007)

    Google Scholar 

  4. Blau, F., Kahn, L.M.: Wage structure and gender earnings differentials: an international comparison. Economica 63, 29–62 (1996)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  5. Blau, F., Kahn, L.M.: Understanding international differences in the gender pay gap. J. Labor Econ. 21(1), 106–144 (2003)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  6. Blinder, A.S.: Wage discrimination: reduced forms and structural estimates. J. Hum. Resour. 8, 436–455 (1973)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  7. Bonjour, D., Gerfin, M.: The unequal distribution of unequal pay—an empirical analysis of the gender wage gap in Switzerland. Empir. Econ. 26, 407–427 (2001)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Booth, A., Francesconi, M., Frank, J.: A sticky floors model of promotion, pay and gender. Eur. Econ. Rev. 47(2), 295–322 (2003)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  9. Buchinsky, M.: Changes in the US wage structure 1963–1987: application of quantile regression. Econometrica 62, 405–458 (1994)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  10. De la Rica, S., Dolado, J.J., Llorens, V.: Ceiling or floors? Gender wage gaps by education in Spain. J. Popul. Econ. 21, 751–776 (2008)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  11. Denny, K.J., Harmon, C.P., Roche, M.J.: The Distribution of Discrimination in Immigrant Earnings—Evidence from Britain 1974–93. IFS Working Paper W97/19. Institute for Fiscal Studies, London (1997)

  12. DiNardo, J., Fortin, N.M., Lemieux, T.: Labor market institutions and the distribution of wages 1973–1992: a semiparametric approach. Econometrica 64(5), 1001–1044 (1996)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  13. Donald, S.G., Green, D.A., Paarsch, H.J.: Differences in wage distributions between Canada and the United States: an application of a flexible estimator of distribution functions in the presence of covariates. Rev. Econ. Stud. 67, 609–633 (2000)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  14. Foster, J.E., Greer, J., Thorbecke, E.: A class of decomposable poverty measures. Econometrica 52(3), 761–766 (1984)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  15. Fortin, N.M., Lemieux, T.: Rank regressions, wage distributions and the gender gap. J. Hum. Resour. 33, 610–643 (1998)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  16. García, J., Hernández, P.J., López-Nicolás, A.: How wide is the gap? An investigation of gender wages differences using quantile regression. Empirical Econ. 26, 149–167 (2001)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  17. Gardeazábal, J., Ugidos, A.: Gender wage discrimination at quantiles. J. Popul. Econ. 18(1), 165–179 (2005)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  18. Gradín, C., Del Río, C., Cantó, O.: Gender wage discrimination and poverty in the EU. Fem. Econ. 16(2) (2010)

  19. Gustafsson, B., Li, S.: Economic transformation and the gender earnings gap in urban China. J. Popul. Econ. 13, 305–329 (2000)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  20. Hagenaars, A.J.M.: A class of poverty indices. Int. Econ. Rev. 28, 583–607 (1987)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  21. Hansen, J., Wahlberg, R.: Endogenous schooling and the distribution of the gender wage gap. Empirical Econ. 30(1), 1–22 (2005)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  22. Jenkins, S.P.: Earnings discrimination measurement: a distributional approach. J. Econom. 61, 81–102 (1994)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  23. Jenkins, S.P., Lambert, P.J.: Poverty Orderings, Poverty Gaps, and Poverty Lines. Economics Discussion Paper 93–07. University of Wales, Swansea (1993)

  24. Jenkins, S.P., Lambert, P.J.: Three ‘I’s of poverty curves, with an analysis of UK poverty trends. Oxford Econ. Pap. 49, 317–327 (1997)

    Google Scholar 

  25. Jenkins, S.P., Lambert, P.J.: Three ‘I’s of poverty curves and poverty dominance: TIPs for poverty analysis. Res. Econ. Inequal. 8, 39–56 (1998)

    Google Scholar 

  26. Juhn, C., Murphy, K., Pierce, B.: Accounting for the slowdown in black–white wage convergence. In: Koster, M. (ed.) Workers and their Wages. AEI Press, Washington (1991)

    Google Scholar 

  27. Juhn, C., Murphy, K., Pierce, B.: Wage inequality and the rise in returns to skill. J. Polit. Econ. 101(3), 410–442 (1993)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  28. Machado, J., Mata, J.: Earning functions in Portugal 1982–1994: evidence from quantile regressions. Empirical Econ. 26, 115–134 (2001)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  29. Machado, J.A.F., Mata, J.: Counterfactual decomposition of changes in wage distributions using quantile regression. J. Appl. Econ. 20(4), 445–465 (2005)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  30. Makepeace, G., Paci, P., Joshi, H., Dolton, P.: How unequally has equal pay progressed since the 1970s? J. Hum. Res. XXXIV(3), 534–556 (1998)

    Google Scholar 

  31. Newell, A., Reilly, B.: The gender pay gap in the transition from communism: some empirical evidence. Econ. Syst. 25, 287–304 (2001)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  32. Oaxaca, R.: Male–female wage differentials in urban labor markets. Int. Econ. Rev. 14, 693–709 (1973)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  33. Reilly, B.: The gender pay gap in Russia during the transition, 1992–96. Econ. Transit. 7(1), 245–264 (1999)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  34. Sen, A.K.: Poverty: an ordinal approach to measurement. Econometrica 44, 219–231 (1976)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  35. Shorrocks, A.F.: On the Measurement of Unemployment. Discussion Paper 418, Economics Department, University of Essex (1993). Recently published in Journal of Economic Inequality 7(3), 311–327 (2009)

    Article  Google Scholar 

  36. Shorrocks, A.F.: Deprivation profiles and deprivation indices. In: Jenkins, S.P., Kaptein, S., van Praag, B. (eds.) The Distribution of Household Welfare and Household Production, pp. 250–267. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge (1998)

    Google Scholar 

  37. Ullibarri, M.: Diferencias salariales entre los sectores público y privado por género, escolaridad y edad. El caso de España. El Trimestre Económico 278, 233–252 (2003)

    Google Scholar 

  38. Zheng, B.: Aggregate poverty measures. J. Econ. Surv. 11(2), 123–162 (1997)

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Facultad de CC. Económicas y Empresariales, Universidad de Vigo, Campus Lagoas-Marcosende s/n, 36310, Vigo, Spain

    Coral del Río, Carlos Gradín & Olga Cantó

Authors
  1. Coral del Río
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Carlos Gradín
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Olga Cantó
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Coral del Río.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Cite this article

del Río, C., Gradín, C. & Cantó, O. The measurement of gender wage discrimination: the distributional approach revisited. J Econ Inequal 9, 57–86 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10888-010-9130-7

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10888-010-9130-7

Keywords

Search

Navigation