Wage differentials

Abstract

The structure of income from employment can be viewed from several perspectives. Differences resulting from trade union activities, and from discrimination by race and gender, were assessed in the previous two chapters. Here we investigate wage differentials between occupations, industries and regions, and discuss the differences in pay for broadly comparable work within the local labour market, before considering the interpretative framework offered by dual and segmented labour market theory. In each case the competing analytical approaches which were outlined in Chapter 1 will be called upon, where possible, to explain the phenomena which are identified. All these dimensions of economic inequality involve comparisons between classes of worker. The dispersion of pay among individuals forms the subject of the next chapter.