The Effect of Gender Discrimination in the Labor Market in Turkey on Women's Poverty: Analysis with the Oaxaca-Blinder Discrimination Test

Identifying the existence and extent of gender-based discrimination in the labor market in Turkey is an important guide for policies that can be developed to combat women's poverty.In our study, which aims to determine the discrimination in the labor market that affects women's poverty in Turkey, firstly, a literature review on gender discrimination and women's poverty was made and the results were interpreted. Then, it was desired to measure the effects of discrimination in the labor market on women's poverty, and for this, the Household Budget Survey data of 2019 belonging to TURKSTAT (Turkish Statistical Institute) was used.Oaxaca-Blinder Decomposition Test and crosstabs analysis were performed using the survey data. The income variable used in the model was created by adding the incomes of those active in the labor market, and this variable was divided into five different income levels from the highest income to the lowest income. A crosstabs analysis measuring the employment rates of women and men at each of these income levels was conducted and the Chi Square test was applied to test its significance. After the crosstabs analysis, the Oaxaca-Blinder Decomposition Method was used to determine the income difference between the male and female workforce at each income level and the reason for this difference. Our aim is to estimate the effect of individual characteristics and gender discrimination on wage differentiation.