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The reverse wage gap among educated White and Black women

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  • Jonathan Fisher
  • Christina Houseworth

Abstract

Using the 2004 National Sample Survey of Registered Nurses and the 2004–2005 American Community Surveys, we estimate the Black–White wage gap among females with at least some college education. We find that Black female nurses earn 9% more at the mean and median than White female nurses, controlling for selection into nursing employment. Among K-12 teachers, Black females earn 7% more than White females at the median. There is no Black–White wage gap among all women with a bachelor’s degree. Differences in opportunities for education and marriage between White and Black women may explain why highly educated Black females earn on par with highly educated White females. Copyright Springer Science+Business Media, LLC. 2012

Suggested Citation

  • Jonathan Fisher & Christina Houseworth, 2012. "The reverse wage gap among educated White and Black women," The Journal of Economic Inequality, Springer;Society for the Study of Economic Inequality, vol. 10(4), pages 449-470, December.
    • Handle: RePEc:kap:jecinq:v:10:y:2012:i:4:p:449-470
    DOI: 10.1007/s10888-011-9167-2
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    Citations

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    Cited by:

    1. Peter McHenry & Melissa McInerney, 2012. "Are Wage Premiums for Black Women Illusory? A Critical Examination," Working Papers 120, Department of Economics, College of William and Mary.
    2. Paul F. Byrne, 2014. "Do Workers Profit from the Nonprofit Tax Exemption? The Impact of State Tax Exemption on the Nonprofit Wage Differential of Hospital Workers," Public Finance Review, , vol. 42(2), pages 199-221, March.
    3. Jonathan D. Fisher & Christina A. Houseworth, 2017. "The Widening Black-White Wage Gap among Women," LABOUR, CEIS, vol. 31(3), pages 288-308, September.
    4. Peter McHenry & Melissa McInerney, 2015. "Estimating Hispanic-White Wage Gaps Among Women: The Importance of Controlling for Cost of Living," Journal of Labor Research, Springer, vol. 36(3), pages 249-273, September.
    5. Burn, Ian & Kettler, Kyle, 2019. "The more you know, the better you’re paid? Evidence from pay secrecy bans for managers," Labour Economics, Elsevier, vol. 59(C), pages 92-109.
    6. Christina Houseworth & Jonathan Fisher, 2024. "Not so Black and White: Interracial marriage and wages," Economic Inquiry, Western Economic Association International, vol. 62(2), pages 633-649, April.
    7. Peter McHenry & Melissa McInerney, 2014. "The Importance of Cost of Living and Education in Estimates of the Conditional Wage Gap Between Black and White Women," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 49(3), pages 695-722.
    8. Nicole Coomer, 2015. "An Investigation of the Historical Black Wage Premium in Nursing," The Review of Black Political Economy, Springer;National Economic Association, vol. 42(4), pages 323-335, December.
    9. Fisher, Jonathan D. & Houseworth, Christina A., 2013. "Occupation inflation in the Current Population Survey," Journal of Economic and Social Measurement, IOS Press, issue 3, pages 243-261.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Human capital; Differential demand and supply for schooling; Wage gaps;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • J01 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - General - - - Labor Economics: General
    • J0 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - General

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