Gender Pay Gap in the Gig Economy

The rapid ascent of digital platforms and the gig economy has prompted concerns about the gender pay gap. The results show that in the gig economy, gender continues to be a crucial determinant of workers’ earnings, with women earning 85% of what men earn on a monthly basis. Nevertheless, in comparison to the traditional waged employment during the same period, the gender pay gap in the gig economy has narrowed. While some gig jobs (e.g., ride-hailing services, delivery services, online education) exhibit certain occupational segregation, women in gig economy work are no longer concentrated in low-paying roles, thereby challenging the occupational crowding hypothesis prevalent in traditional employment. In the gig economy, the vast majority of the gender pay gaps arise from factors within occupations, and occupational segregation only has a very limited impact on the earnings gap. Additionally, the gender pay gap among platform gig workers can be mostly explained by observable factors, which implies that compared to traditional employment, the gig economy exhibits a lower level of implicit gender discrimination in China. Finally, we investigate new factors that determine the gender pay gap in the gig economy. Women exhibit a stronger aversion to algorithmic control, a preference for job flexibility, and a tendency toward more isolated and less socially interactive work environments—all of which serve to widen the gender pay gap that might have otherwise narrowed. The results of this research suggest that despite the criticisms surrounding the gig economy, it continues to exert a positive influence on China’s labor market.