When Managers Choose: Gender Disparities in Employer Training Provision

Marco Caliendo (), Deborah A. Cobb-Clark (), Katrin Huber (), Harald Pfeifer (), Arne Uhlendorff and Sophie Wagner ()
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Marco Caliendo: University of Potsdam, CEPA, BSoE, IZA, DIW, IAB
Deborah A. Cobb-Clark: University of Sydney, IZA, ARC Centre of Excellence for Children and Families over the Life Course Centre
Katrin Huber: University of Potsdam, CEPA, BSoE, IZA
Harald Pfeifer: Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training (BIBB) Bonn, ROA at Maastricht University
Sophie Wagner: University of Potsdam, CEPA

No 90, CEPA Discussion Papers from Center for Economic Policy Analysis

Abstract: We examine how gender shapes managers’ decisions regarding on-the-job training using a discrete choice experiment embedded in a representative survey of German firms. While previous research on training has focused on employees’ demand for it, we make a contribution by studying firms’ supply of training. In our vignette study, 1,144 managers evaluate hypothetical candidate profiles that differ by gender, age, competence, job mobility, and training characteristics. We find that women are somewhat more likely than men to receive training offers. The exceptions are that female managers are more reluctant to choose young women for training, while male managers favor male candidates for fully employer-funded training. These patterns persist across various model specifications and remain robust when controlling for observable manager characteristics. Heterogeneity analyses reveal that female managers are more reluctant to offer training to women when they operate in competitive product markets, male-dominated industries, and firms without collective bargaining agreements. More broadly, our results highlight that managers influence not only how much training is undertaken, but also how training opportunities are distributed among employees. This has the potential to create gender disparities in early career development that may have implications for organizational equity.

Keywords: gender differences; manager decisions; human capital investment; training (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J16 J24 M53 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025-07
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Working Paper: When Managers Choose: Gender Disparities in Employer Training Provision (2025)
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:pot:cepadp:90

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