|
on Gender |
|
Issue of 2026–05–04
five papers chosen by Jan Sauermann, Institutet för Arbetsmarknads- och Utbildningspolitisk Utvärdering |
| By: | Peter Fredriksson; Dogan Gülümser; Lena Hensvik |
| Abstract: | We show that the wages of men and women are differentially affected by outside options, and that these differential responses contribute to the gender pay gap. We develop a simple model of on-the-job search that integrates two crucial gender differences: job preferences and the propensity to renegotiate wages in response to external offers. Both factors contribute to lower wage responsiveness for women when they receive outside offers, and a negative female-male pay gap. However, women's job mobility responses vary depending on the underlying mechanism. To empirically test our model's predictions, we analyze wage and job mobility responses of men and women to external job opportunities, mediated through family networks. Using Swedish register data, we find that improved outside options are associated with higher within-job wage growth for men but not for women. Importantly, we can rule out that these gendered responses arise from differences in the quality of external offers as these are balanced across genders by design. Additionally, men's and women's job mobility responses are very similar. In the light of the model, we attribute these findings to differences in negotiation behavior between men and women. Policies encouraging women to bargain in response to outside options may thus be a powerful tool for reducing the remaining within-job gender gap in pay. |
| Keywords: | Gender wage gap, outside options, wage bargaining, on-the-job search |
| JEL: | J16 J31 J62 |
| Date: | 2025–09 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:crm:wpaper:2571 |
| By: | Johanna Rickne; Olle Folke |
| Abstract: | We study misunderstandings of a widely used research graph that visualizes how parenthood affects gender inequality in the labor market. The child penalty graph typically displays overlapping trend lines for women and men before parenthood and a sharp divergence thereafter. A large survey experiment asks participants about the gender gap in earnings before and after random assignment across three alternative graph designs. Approximately one-third of respondents misinterpret the distance between the trend lines in the child penalty graph as the gender gap in earnings. After viewing the graph, nearly 50% of respondents (and 60% of those with a PhD) report an earnings gap of 0-5% before parenthood, far below the true gap of about 20%. We examine two consequences of this misunderstanding and assess whether alternative graph designs improve comprehension. |
| Keywords: | Child penalty, gender inequality, graph design |
| JEL: | J01 |
| Date: | 2026–02 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:crm:wpaper:26056 |
| By: | Frémeaux, Nicolas (University of Rouen); Maarek, Paul (Université Paris Panthéon-Assas) |
| Abstract: | This paper investigates gender-based differences in cooperativeness among French parliamentarians by analyzing legislative behaviors, such as cosponsorship and voting patterns. Using a comprehensive dataset covering all bills and amendments authored in France's Lower House between 2012 and 2022, we show that female parliamentarians attract fewer cosponsors, particularly from members of their own parties, despite being more likely to support their colleagues' initiatives and exhibit higher voting participation. This asymmetry highlights a paradox: while female legislators display greater cooperative and altruistic behaviors, they receive less reciprocal backing, limiting their legislative influence. The observed patterns are driven by behavioral gender differences rather than differences in observable characteristics, thematic alignment, or the quality of the politicians. |
| Keywords: | gender, cooperativeness, politicians, parliament |
| JEL: | J16 D72 D73 |
| Date: | 2026–04 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:iza:izadps:dp18559 |
| By: | Francesco Del Prato; Salvatore Lattanzio |
| Abstract: | Men experience workplace injuries at roughly twice the rate of women. We study whether compensating differentials for injury risk contribute to gender differences in firm pay policies. We develop a search model that microfounds an AKM wage equation, decomposing firm pay effects into productivity and injury-risk components. Using Italian matched employer-employee data with individual injury records, we estimate gender-specific firm wage effects and firm-level injury risk. We find that injury-related channels account for 8 percent of the gender gap in firm wage effects, rising to 17 percent in manufacturing. While women receive only 86 percent of men's wage response to firm-level injury risk, conditioning on broad occupation eliminates this within-firm disparity. This indicates that the injury channel reflects sorting across firms and occupational allocation within firms, rather than differential pricing of identical risk. |
| Keywords: | Gender wage gap, workplace injuries, compensating differentials, AKM, rent sharing |
| JEL: | J16 J28 J31 J64 J71 |
| Date: | 2026–03 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:crm:wpaper:26081 |
| By: | Greta Morando; Lauro Carnicelli |
| Abstract: | The motherhood penalty is a major source of gender inequality, yet it varies substantially across women. We exploit the random gender of the firstborn in Finnish register data to study how parental preferences for family time interact with occupational constraints to generate this heterogeneity. We document a consistent preference for daughters across education groups, reflected in fertility behavior and maternal leave duration. Despite similar preferences, long-run labor market consequences differ sharply by maternal education. Ten years after birth, university-educated mothers experience a 10% larger earnings penalty when their first child is a son, whereas less educated mothers incur a 5% larger penalty when the first child is a daughter. These differences are consistent with lower employment among non-tertiary-educated women and with job sorting into more family-friendly positions among tertiary-educated women following the birth of a firstborn daughter. Our findings show that parental preferences, mediated by education-specific labor market opportunities, generate substantial heterogeneity in the motherhood penalty. |
| Keywords: | Motherhood penalty; gender inequality; parental preferences; child gender; labor-market sorting; work-family balance; education heterogeneity |
| JEL: | J13 J16 J22 J24 |
| Date: | 2026–04 |
| URL: | https://d.repec.org/n?u=RePEc:crm:wpaper:26101 |