Research shows that where women work contributes to gender pay gaps

Why do women earn less than men? The usual suspects – occupation, hours, experience – explain some of it. But a powerful, often overlooked reason is simply this: where women work. In a new study published in the Journal of Development Economics, using tax data on the universe of formal workers in South Africa, Ihsaan Bassier and Leila Gautham uncover a striking fact: nearly half of the gender pay gap in South Africa is explained by women working at lower-paying companies than men. That is, more women tend to work at companies that pay all workers less. In addition, this phenomenon evolves dramatically over a woman’s life. The gap is greatest from workers’ mid-20s to mid-40s — roughly the child-rearing years. Remarkably, as women age further, the gender gap begins to close.

Read the summary piece in The Conversation here, and the full journal article here.