Job satisfaction, wages and allocation of men and women

Abstract

Previous studies on job satisfaction suggest that: women are more satisfied with their job than men, while workers with higher wages and workers with more education are less satisfied. In this paper we try to explain these somewhat puzzling and counterintuitive findings. Further, we examine the effects of the quality of the match between skills and job requirements on job satisfaction. We also explore the possibility that the atmosphere in which the work is done has an effect on job satisfaction. A novelty is the joint estimation of job satisfaction and wages, where job satisfaction is determined by the wage rate. This joint estimation allows us to indicate whether workers who are paid more than their expected market wage are more satisfied than workers who are underpaid relative to their expected market wage rate. It also enables us to separate the effect of variables on job satisfaction from their effect on wages.

The empirical results show that women are more satisfied with their job than men. The average job satisfaction of female dominated firms is higher than the job satisfaction among workers in male dominated firms. A decomposition analysis shows that women have both the characteristics and the behavioral responses that make them, on average, more satisfied with their job than men. Both absolute and relative wages have an effect on male job satisfaction, but not on female job satisfaction. Workers in jobs that require more education are more satisfied. The same holds for workers in jobs for which they are underqualified.