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Differences in positions along a hierarchy: Counterfactuals based on an assignment model

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  • Gobillon, Laurent
  • Meurs, Dominique
  • Roux, Sébastien

Abstract

We propose an assignment model in which positions along a hierarchy are attributed to individuals depending on their characteristics. Our theoretical framework can be used to study differences in assignment and outcomes across groups and we show how it can motivate decomposition and counterfactual exercises. It constitutes an alternative to more descriptive methods such as Oaxaca decompositions and quantile counterfactual approaches. In an application, we study gender disparities in the public and private sectors with a French exhaustive administrative dataset. Whereas females are believed to be treated more fairly in the public sector, we find that the gender gap in propensity to get job positions along the wage distribution is rather similar in the two sectors. The gender wage gap in the public sector is 13.3% and it increases by only 0.7 percentage points when workers are assigned to job positions according to the rules of the private sector. Nevertheless, the gender gap at the last decile in the public sector increases by as much as 3.6 percentage points when using the assignment rules of the private sector.

Suggested Citation

  • Gobillon, Laurent & Meurs, Dominique & Roux, Sébastien, 2017. "Differences in positions along a hierarchy: Counterfactuals based on an assignment model," CEPR Discussion Papers 11982, C.E.P.R. Discussion Papers.
    • Handle: RePEc:cpr:ceprdp:11982
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Dominique Meurs & Sophie Ponthieux, 2015. "Gender Inequality," Post-Print hal-01410766, HAL.
    2. Fortin, Nicole & Lemieux, Thomas & Firpo, Sergio, 2011. "Decomposition Methods in Economics," Handbook of Labor Economics, in: O. Ashenfelter & D. Card (ed.), Handbook of Labor Economics, edition 1, volume 4, chapter 1, pages 1-102, Elsevier.
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    4. Laurent Gobillon & Dominique Meurs & Sébastien Roux, 2015. "Estimating Gender Differences in Access to Jobs," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 33(2), pages 317-363.
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    6. Domenico Depalo & Raffaela Giordano & Evangelia Papapetrou, 2015. "Public–private wage differentials in euro-area countries: evidence from quantile decomposition analysis," Empirical Economics, Springer, vol. 49(3), pages 985-1015, November.
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    Cited by:

    1. Bargain, Olivier & Etienne, Audrey & Melly, Blaise, 2018. "Public Sector Wage Gaps over the Long-Run: Evidence from Panel Administrative Data," IZA Discussion Papers 11924, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    2. Matthieu Bunel & Dominique Meurs & Élisabeth Tovar, 2024. "Moving apart: job-driven residential mobility and the gender pay gap Evidence from a large industrial firm," EconomiX Working Papers 2024-6, University of Paris Nanterre, EconomiX.

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    More about this item

    Keywords

    Assignment; Distributions; Counterfactuals; Wages; Gender; Public sector;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • C51 - Mathematical and Quantitative Methods - - Econometric Modeling - - - Model Construction and Estimation
    • J31 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Wages, Compensation, and Labor Costs - - - Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
    • J45 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Particular Labor Markets - - - Public Sector Labor Markets

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