Occupational Segregation and the Gender Wage Gap in Private- and Public-Sector Employment: A Distributional Analysis

37 Pages Posted: 7 Jul 2008

See all articles by Juan D. Baron

Juan D. Baron

Central Bank of Colombia (Banco de la República); IZA Institute of Labor Economics

Deborah A. Cobb-Clark

School of Economics, University of Sydney; IZA Institute of Labor Economics

Abstract

We use HILDA data from 2001 - 2006 to analyse the source of the gender wage gap across public- and private-sector wage distributions in Australia. We are particularly interested in the role of gender segregation within sector-specific occupations in explaining relative wages. We find that, irrespective of labour market sector, the gender wage gap among low-paid, Australian workers is more than explained by differences in wage-related characteristics. The gender wage gap among high-wage workers, however, is largely unexplained in both sectors suggesting that glass ceilings (rather than sticky floors) may be prevalent. Gender differences in employment across occupations advantage (rather than disadvantage) all women except those in high-paid, private-sector jobs, while disparity in labour market experience plays a much more important role in explaining relative private-sector wages. Finally, disparity in educational qualifications and demographic characteristics are generally unimportant in explaining the gender wage gap.

Keywords: private and public sector employment, occupational segregation, gender wage gap

JEL Classification: J31, J70, J24

Suggested Citation

Baron, Juan D. and Cobb-Clark, Deborah A., Occupational Segregation and the Gender Wage Gap in Private- and Public-Sector Employment: A Distributional Analysis. IZA Discussion Paper No. 3562, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1155836 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1155836

Juan D. Baron (Contact Author)

Central Bank of Colombia (Banco de la República) ( email )

Bogotá
Colombia

IZA Institute of Labor Economics

P.O. Box 7240
Bonn, D-53072
Germany

Deborah A. Cobb-Clark

School of Economics, University of Sydney ( email )

606 Social Sciences Bldg. (A02)
The University of Sydney
Sydney, NSW 2006
Australia
61435061387 (Phone)

IZA Institute of Labor Economics

P.O. Box 7240
Bonn, D-53072
Germany

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