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Social Sciences
Special Issues
Dynamics of Gender Income Inequality
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Dynamics of Gender Income Inequality

A special issue of Social Sciences (ISSN 2076-0760). This special issue belongs to the section "Social Economics".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (15 July 2022) | Viewed by 16529

Special Issue Editors

Dr. Karina Doorley

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
1. Tax, Welfare and Pensions team, Economic and Social Research Institute, Whitaker Square, Dublin 2, Ireland
2. IZA Institute of Labor Economics, 53113 Bonn, Germany
Interests: labour market policy evaluation; inequality; demographic change
Dr. Denisa Maria Sologon

E-Mail Website
Guest Editor
Luxembourg Institute of Socio-Economic Research (LISER), 4366 Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg
Interests: quantitative approaches to welfare economics, in particular income inequality, income distribution dynamics, taxation, social policy and social protection; social mobility; environmental policy and health; the development and application of policy microsimulation models

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Rising income inequality is a defining challenge of our times, with far-reaching consequences for social cohesion, political stability, economic prosperity, and wellbeing. The asymmetric nature of the COVID-19 shock has further revealed the deep-rooted inequalities that exist within our societies. The drivers of changes in income inequality have been the focus of a substantial body of research. Despite this, conclusions are still strongly debated, particularly with respect to the role of globalization, technological change, market forces, policies, and institutions.

Within global measures of income inequality, there are important trends worth monitoring. Income inequality across space and between ethnic groups and other advantaged and disadvantaged groups is also of interest to policy makers. Income differences between men and women and their drivers and evolution are particularly significant given the recent interest in and the adoption of gender-responsive budgeting.

The gender gap in income is largely composed of the gender wage gap (explained and unexplained) and the gender work gap (intensive and extensive margin). Although much progress has been achieved on both in recent decades, there is still some way to go to achieve gender income equality. Improvements in gender income equality can come from policies that tackle the gender income gap at source—through incentivizing equal pay for equal work or removing barriers to work for women or through policies which seek to redistribute between men and women through the tax-benefit system.

This Special Issue seeks to understand trends in gender income inequality and policy solutions to address the persistent gap in earnings between men and women. We will consider papers seeking to understand:

  • Gender income inequality trends within countries and between countries;
  • The effect of economic shocks on gender income inequality;
  • Drivers and consequences of gender income inequality;
  • The societal costs of gender income inequality;
  • The likely effect of future technological progress on gender income inequality;
  • Policy solutions to reducing the gender gap in income.

Dr. Karina Doorley
Dr. Denisa Maria Sologon
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a double-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Social Sciences is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 1800 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • gender income inequality trends
  • Income inequality across space and between groups
  • gender wage gap and gender work gap
  • globalization
  • technological progress
  • market forces
  • policies and institutions
  • redistribution

Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

18 pages, 310 KiB  
Article
Are Women’s and Men’s Pay Increase Trajectories Different in Nonprofit and For-Profit Human Services Organizations?
by Rong Zhao
Soc. Sci. 2023, 12(3), 152; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci12030152 - 03 Mar 2023
Viewed by 1426
Abstract
Using the Survey of Income and Program Participation panel data, this study compares women’s and men’s pay increase trajectories and patterns of job mobility in the nonprofit and for-profit sectors. As recent studies suggested that industry-specific rather than economy-wide analysis is more appropriate [...] Read more.
Using the Survey of Income and Program Participation panel data, this study compares women’s and men’s pay increase trajectories and patterns of job mobility in the nonprofit and for-profit sectors. As recent studies suggested that industry-specific rather than economy-wide analysis is more appropriate in nonprofit/for-profit comparison, this study only focuses on the human services field. The results indicate that: (1) there was a selection in workers’ choices regarding staying or changing sector of employment; (2) nonprofit workers who chose to move to the for-profit sector tended to be those worse off in the nonprofit sector, whereas for-profit workers who chose to move to the nonprofit sector tended to be those better off in the for-profit sector, and both of the mover groups gained by moving; (3) in both nonprofits and for-profits, men enjoyed a steeper pay increase curve by occupying more managerial positions, having higher levels of education, and working longer hours; (4) on average, there was no statistically significant difference in pay increase trajectories between workers who chose to stay in their sector of employment. Consistent with previous studies, the regression analyses further support the argument that, within human services, there is not necessarily a sectoral difference in the gender pay gap—in other words, nonprofits are not necessarily more equitable than for-profits. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Dynamics of Gender Income Inequality)
21 pages, 430 KiB  
Article
Labour Rights for Live-In Care Workers: The Long and Bumpy Road Ahead
by Christina Hiessl
Soc. Sci. 2022, 11(12), 547; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci11120547 - 25 Nov 2022
Viewed by 1216
Abstract
Domestic work, as one of the most feminised occupations in existence, is also one of those least likely to offer a prospect of equal treatment with workers in other sectors. Notably, live-in domestic workers are regularly excluded from even the most fundamental entitlements [...] Read more.
Domestic work, as one of the most feminised occupations in existence, is also one of those least likely to offer a prospect of equal treatment with workers in other sectors. Notably, live-in domestic workers are regularly excluded from even the most fundamental entitlements such as that to an hourly minimum wage. The rise of an international industry organising live-in care work for the frail and disabled brings the questions of how to regulate this sector back to the table also and especially in the most affluent countries. Departing from a prominent recent court decision in Germany, the contribution explores how jurisdictions around the globe approach the key legal questions determining the labour rights of live-ins. On this basis, it offers a discussion of the way forward in a policy area which urgently requires an honest discussion of how to balance conflicting vital interest of different disadvantaged groups in a fair and realistic way. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Dynamics of Gender Income Inequality)
24 pages, 1437 KiB  
Article
The Lock-in Effect of Marriage: Work Incentives after Saying “I Do”
by Michael Christl, Silvia De Poli and Viginta Ivaškaitė-Tamošiūnė
Soc. Sci. 2022, 11(11), 493; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci11110493 - 24 Oct 2022
Viewed by 1734
Abstract
In this paper, we use EUROMOD, the tax-benefit microsimulation model of the European Union, to investigate the impact of marriage-related tax-benefit instruments on the financial incentives to work of married couples. For each spouse, we estimate their individual marginal effective tax rate and [...] Read more.
In this paper, we use EUROMOD, the tax-benefit microsimulation model of the European Union, to investigate the impact of marriage-related tax-benefit instruments on the financial incentives to work of married couples. For each spouse, we estimate their individual marginal effective tax rate and net replacement rate before and after marriage. We show that the marriage bonus, which is economically significant in eight European countries, decreases the work incentives for women, particularly on the intensive margin. In contrast, for men the incentives on the intensive margin increase once they are married, pointing to the marriage-biased and gender-biased tax-benefit structures in the analysed countries. Our results suggest that marriage bonuses contribute to a lock-in effect, where second earners, typically women, are incentivised to work less, with negative economic consequences. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Dynamics of Gender Income Inequality)
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21 pages, 1853 KiB  
Article
How Has the Gender Earnings Gap in Ireland Changed in Thirty Years?
by Michelle Barrett, Karina Doorley, Paul Redmond and Barra Roantree
Soc. Sci. 2022, 11(8), 367; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci11080367 - 17 Aug 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2232
Abstract
Since 1987, the wages of women in Ireland have been growing faster than those of men. This, coupled with a decrease in the average hours worked by men, has resulted in a reduction in the gender earnings gap in Ireland, most notably at [...] Read more.
Since 1987, the wages of women in Ireland have been growing faster than those of men. This, coupled with a decrease in the average hours worked by men, has resulted in a reduction in the gender earnings gap in Ireland, most notably at the bottom of the earnings distribution. This paper provides a descriptive analysis of the growth of male and female wages, weekly earnings, and differences in working patterns across the wage and earnings distribution in Ireland over the last three decades, using detailed microdata covering the period 1987–2019. Using a Oaxaca–Blinder decomposition approach, based on unconditional quantile regressions for each time period, we also show how the explained and unexplained components of the gender wage gap have changed across the wage distribution. We find that the mean and median gender gap in earnings fell by one-sixth and one-quarter, respectively, between 1987 and 2019. This change is attributable to the faster growth of women’s wages compared to men’s and some convergence in the average hours worked by men and women. However, there has been relatively stable structural inequality at the top of the wage and earnings distribution over the past three decades, which points towards a persistent glass ceiling in Ireland. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Dynamics of Gender Income Inequality)
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23 pages, 2093 KiB  
Article
The Gender Gap in Income and the COVID-19 Pandemic in Ireland
by Karina Doorley, Cathal O’Donoghue and Denisa M. Sologon
Soc. Sci. 2022, 11(7), 311; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci11070311 - 17 Jul 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 3145
Abstract
The gender income gap is large and well documented in many countries. Recent research shows that it is mainly driven by differences in working patterns between men and women but also by wage differences. The tax–benefit system cushions the gender income gap by [...] Read more.
The gender income gap is large and well documented in many countries. Recent research shows that it is mainly driven by differences in working patterns between men and women but also by wage differences. The tax–benefit system cushions the gender income gap by redistributing it between men and women. The COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in unprecedented levels of unemployment in 2020 in many countries, with some suggestions that men and women have been differently affected. This research investigated the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on the gender gap in income in Ireland. By using nowcasting techniques and microsimulation, we modeled the effect of pandemic-induced employment and wage changes on the market and disposable income. We showed how the pandemic and the associated tax–benefit support could be expected to change the income gap between men and women. Policy conclusions were drawn about future redistribution between men and women. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Dynamics of Gender Income Inequality)
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26 pages, 3008 KiB  
Article
How Do Gendered Labour Market Trends and the Pay Gap Translate into the Projected Gender Pension Gap? A Comparative Analysis of Five Countries with Low, Middle and High GPGs
by Gijs Dekkers, Karel Van den Bosch, Mikkel Barslund, Tanja Kirn, Nicolas Baumann, Nataša Kump, Philippe Liégeois, Amílcar Moreira and Nada Stropnik
Soc. Sci. 2022, 11(7), 304; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci11070304 - 12 Jul 2022
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 3182
Abstract
This article explores how the Gender Pension Gap (GPG)—the relative difference in average pension received by men and women—might evolve in the future in various European countries, given past, current, and projected future labour market behaviour and earnings of women and men, and [...] Read more.
This article explores how the Gender Pension Gap (GPG)—the relative difference in average pension received by men and women—might evolve in the future in various European countries, given past, current, and projected future labour market behaviour and earnings of women and men, and current pension regulations. The GPG reflects career inequalities between women and men, though these are partly mitigated by the redistributive impact of the public retirement pensions. They are further mitigated by survivor benefits. This study aims to document both mechanisms in the projections of the GPG. As the GPG varies widely across European countries, we analyse countries with a high (Luxembourg), high and low middle (Belgium and Switzerland Portugal), and low (Slovenia) GPG. We find that the GPG will fall significantly in all five countries over the coming decades. The fundamental drivers behind this development are discussed. In addition to the base scenario, we simulate two variants to show the impact of the Gender Pension Coverage Gap and of survivor pensions. Additionally, we project the GPG if current labour market gender gaps were to remain at their present level, and, conversely, if these were to disappear overnight. These alternative scenarios, one of which also serves as a robustness test, suggest that the future decline of the GPG is largely the result of labour market developments that have already happened during the past decades. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Dynamics of Gender Income Inequality)
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34 pages, 1116 KiB  
Article
What Works? How Combining Equal Opportunity and Work–Life Measures Relates to the Within-Firm Gender Wage Gap
by Charlotte K. Marx and Martin Diewald
Soc. Sci. 2022, 11(6), 251; https://doi.org/10.3390/socsci11060251 - 08 Jun 2022
Cited by 1 | Viewed by 2168
Abstract
In this paper, we investigate how organizational equal opportunity and work–life measures when combined are associated with the gender wage gap within large German establishments. By looking at both kinds of measures as parts of a comprehensive personnel strategy, we provide a novel [...] Read more.
In this paper, we investigate how organizational equal opportunity and work–life measures when combined are associated with the gender wage gap within large German establishments. By looking at both kinds of measures as parts of a comprehensive personnel strategy, we provide a novel way to distinguish between a career-supportive implementation of work–life measures versus implementation as a compensating differential. Using a linked employer–employee dataset, we performed a cross-sectional multilevel regression analysis with fixed effects for 6439 respondents within 122 establishments. The results indicate that work–life measures that support employees in their parenthood responsibilities are linked to a significantly higher GWG, particularly for parents. Our results indicate that the implementation of work–life measures is used as compensating differentials, primarily for mothers. Particularly, this can be found when looking at the combination of multiple measures. In combination with equal opportunity measures for women, work–life measures that highlight the long-term absence from the workplace are associated with a higher GWG for parents. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Dynamics of Gender Income Inequality)
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