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The Return to Hours Worked within and across Occupations: Implications for the Gender Wage Gap

Author

Listed:
  • Jeffrey T. Denning
  • Brian A. Jacob
  • Lars J. Lefgren
  • Christian vom Lehn

Abstract

Prior research suggests that gender differences in hours worked play an important role in the gender pay gap. Yet common estimates of the wage returns to hours worked are close to zero, implying that hours differences explain little of the gender wage gap, even though men work more hours than women on average. However, while the wage returns to hours worked within occupations are small, the authors document that the wage returns to average hours worked across occupations are large. They develop a conceptual framework that reconciles these facts. Findings show that, under some assumptions, gender differences in hours worked can account for a substantial portion of the gender wage gap and that increases in the returns to hours worked over the past four decades slowed progress in reducing the gender pay gap.

Suggested Citation

  • Jeffrey T. Denning & Brian A. Jacob & Lars J. Lefgren & Christian vom Lehn, 2022. "The Return to Hours Worked within and across Occupations: Implications for the Gender Wage Gap," ILR Review, Cornell University, ILR School, vol. 75(5), pages 1321-1347, October.
    • Handle: RePEc:sae:ilrrev:v:75:y:2022:i:5:p:1321-1347
    DOI: 10.1177/00197939211045376
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    Cited by:

    1. German Cubas & Chinhui Juhn & Pedro Silos, 2023. "Coordinated Work Schedules and the Gender Wage Gap," The Economic Journal, Royal Economic Society, vol. 133(651), pages 1036-1066.
    2. Alexander Bick & Adam Blandin & Richard Rogerson, 2022. "Hours and Wages," The Quarterly Journal of Economics, President and Fellows of Harvard College, vol. 137(3), pages 1901-1962.
    3. Kevin L. McKinney & John M. Abowd & Hubert P. Janicki, 2022. "U.S. long‐term earnings outcomes by sex, race, ethnicity, and place of birth," Quantitative Economics, Econometric Society, vol. 13(4), pages 1879-1945, November.
    4. Contensou, François & Vranceanu, Radu, 2019. "Working time and wage rate differences : a contract theory approach," ESSEC Working Papers WP1913, ESSEC Research Center, ESSEC Business School, revised 06 Mar 2021.
    5. Del Rey, Elena & Naval, Joaquín & Silva, José I., 2022. "Hours and wages: A bargaining approach," Economics Letters, Elsevier, vol. 217(C).
    6. Contensou, François & Vranceanu, Radu, 2021. "Working time and wage rate differences: Revisiting the role of preferences and labor scarcity," Research in Economics, Elsevier, vol. 75(2), pages 164-175.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    hourly wage; gender pay gap; labor market flexibility; gender wage differential; wage dispersion;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J3 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs
    • J7 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor Discrimination

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