Top Earnings Inequality and the Gender Pay Gap: Canada, Sweden and the United Kingdom

Nicole M. Fortin (), Brian Bell and Michael Johannes Böhm ()
Additional contact information
Nicole M. Fortin: University of British Columbia, Vancouver
Michael Johannes Böhm: TU Dortmund

No 10829, IZA Discussion Papers from Institute of Labor Economics (IZA)

Abstract: This paper explores the consequences of the under-representation of women in top jobs for the overall gender pay gap. Using administrative annual earnings data from Canada, Sweden, and the United Kingdom, it applies the approach used in the analysis of earnings inequality in top incomes, as well as reweighting techniques, to the analysis of the gender pay gap. The analysis is supplemented by classic O-B decompositions of hourly wages using data from the Canadian and U.K. Labour Force Surveys. The paper finds that recent increases in top earnings led to substantial "swimming upstream" effects, therefore accounting for differential progress in the gender pay gap across time periods and a growing share of the gap unexplained by traditional factors.

Keywords: gender pay gap; earnings inequality; top incomes (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J15 J16 J70 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Pages: 44 pages
Date: 2017-06
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-dem, nep-gen, nep-hme and nep-lab
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (42)

Published - published in: Labour Economics, 2017, 47, 107 - 123

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Journal Article: Top earnings inequality and the gender pay gap: Canada, Sweden, and the United Kingdom (2017)
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