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Where do women earn more than men? Explaining regional differences in the gender pay gap

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  • Michaela Fuchs
  • Anja Rossen
  • Antje Weyh
  • Gabriele Wydra‐Somaggio

Abstract

This paper provides new evidence on the magnitude and determinants of regional differences in the gender pay gap. On the basis of a comprehensive data set of all full‐time employees in Germany, we explain the profound variation of the gender pay gap at a small‐scale level with theory‐based individual and job‐related characteristics. Using the Oaxaca–Blinder decomposition, we find pronounced spatial differences in the impact of the considered determinants. Whereas gender differences in job‐related characteristics are important drivers in regions with a high gender pay gap, individual characteristics come into effect in regions with a low and negative gap. The results underscore the role played by the establishment composition in a region and the kind of jobs provided for gendered earnings.

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  • Michaela Fuchs & Anja Rossen & Antje Weyh & Gabriele Wydra‐Somaggio, 2021. "Where do women earn more than men? Explaining regional differences in the gender pay gap," Journal of Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 61(5), pages 1065-1086, November.
    • Handle: RePEc:bla:jregsc:v:61:y:2021:i:5:p:1065-1086
    DOI: 10.1111/jors.12532
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    2. Michael Wyrwich, 2022. "Historical episodes and their legacies across space: A famous case revisited," Journal of Regional Science, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 62(4), pages 1048-1091, September.
    3. Giannina Vaccaro & Maria Pia Basurto & Arlette Beltrán & Mariano Montoya, 2022. "The Gender Wage Gap in Peru: Drivers, Evolution, and Heterogeneities," Social Inclusion, Cogitatio Press, vol. 10(1), pages 19-34.
    4. D'Costa, Sabine, 2024. "Re-evaluating the urban wage premium: The changing roles of geographical and job transitions for women and men," Regional Science and Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 108(C).
    5. Averkamp, Dorothée, 2024. "The Gender Wage Gap, Labor-Market Experience, and Family Choices: Lessons from East Germany?," VfS Annual Conference 2024 (Berlin): Upcoming Labor Market Challenges 302347, Verein für Socialpolitik / German Economic Association.
    6. Costanza Giannantoni & Andres Rodriguez-Pose, 2024. "Regional government institutions and the capacity for women to reconcile career and motherhood," Papers in Evolutionary Economic Geography (PEEG) 2435, Utrecht University, Department of Human Geography and Spatial Planning, Group Economic Geography, revised Oct 2024.

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