Internal labor markets and gender inequality: Evidence from Japanese micro data, 1990–2009

Akira Kawaguchi

Journal of the Japanese and International Economies, 2015, vol. 38, issue C, 193-213

Abstract: This study investigate whether internal labor markets (ILMs) are associated with gender inequality in the Japanese workplace and whether their recent erosion has improved gender equality. Specifically, we used data over two decades from the Basic Surveys on Wage Structure to apply pooled ordinary least squares and fixed effect estimation to three indexes on gender equality and another three indexes of internal labor markets. We found that establishments with ILMs have significantly high gender inequality in their workplaces. That is, establishments with the lifetime employment system, the seniority wage systems, or the internal promotion system are likely to have large gender wage gaps, employ less female full-time workers, and have less female managers. However, these negative associations become much smaller or even disappear when we apply a fixed effect model using quasi-panel data. The erosion of ILMs may not be an important driving force of gender equalization, and establishments that have improved gender equality may not necessarily have moved away from ILMs.

Keywords: Lifetime employment system; Seniority wage system; Internal promotion system; Female managers; Gender wage gap (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J24 J71 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2015
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (6)

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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:eee:jjieco:v:38:y:2015:i:c:p:193-213

DOI: 10.1016/j.jjie.2015.04.004

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