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The social pay gap among occupational twins: a task-based comparison

Author

Listed:
  • Elisabeth Bublitz

    (Universität Hamburg)

  • Tobias Regner

    (Friedrich-Schiller-Universität Jena)

Abstract

The relevance of certain occupations for society has become evident during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, the societal appreciation does not show in earnings, particularly not for care work. In light of the ongoing calls for pay raises in these occupations, our paper provides a rationale to identify differences in job content and pay between social and other occupations. We propose a data-driven approach that compares all jobs based on their tasks content. Accordingly, 13 % of all occupations are highly comparable and, within this group, the wage penalty of social occupations (e.g., health care, education) corresponds to up to around €500 lower earnings per month.

Suggested Citation

  • Elisabeth Bublitz & Tobias Regner, 2020. "The social pay gap among occupational twins: a task-based comparison," Economics Bulletin, AccessEcon, vol. 40(3), pages 2440-2444.
    • Handle: RePEc:ebl:ecbull:eb-20-00646
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    3. David H. Autor & Frank Levy & Richard J. Murnane, 2003. "The Skill Content of Recent Technological Change: An Empirical Exploration," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 118(4), pages 1279-1333.
    4. Bublitz, Elisabeth & Regner, Tobias, 2016. "The social pay gap across occupations: Survey and experimental evidence," HWWI Research Papers 174, Hamburg Institute of International Economics (HWWI).
    5. Claudia Goldin, 2014. "A Grand Gender Convergence: Its Last Chapter," American Economic Review, American Economic Association, vol. 104(4), pages 1091-1119, April.
    6. Christina Gathmann & Uta Schönberg, 2010. "How General Is Human Capital? A Task-Based Approach," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 28(1), pages 1-49, January.
    7. David H. Autor & Frank Levy & Richard J. Murnane, 2003. "The skill content of recent technological change: an empirical exploration," Proceedings, Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, issue nov.
    8. Kristin J. Kleinjans & Karl Fritjof Krassel & Anthony Dukes, 2017. "Occupational Prestige and the Gender Wage Gap," Kyklos, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 70(4), pages 565-593, November.
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    Cited by:

    1. Bublitz, Elisabeth & Regner, Tobias, 2022. "The social pay gap across occupations: Experimental evidence," Journal of Behavioral and Experimental Economics (formerly The Journal of Socio-Economics), Elsevier, vol. 97(C).
    2. Sabine Krueger & Christian Ebner & Daniela Rohrbach-Schmidt, 2024. "Gender Composition and the Symbolic Value of Occupations: New Evidence of a U-shaped Relationship between Gender and Occupational Prestige Based on German Microdata," Work, Employment & Society, British Sociological Association, vol. 38(1), pages 242-261, February.

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    Keywords

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    JEL classification:

    • D2 - Microeconomics - - Production and Organizations
    • J3 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs

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