Working Paper: CEPR ID: DP3242
Authors: Astrid Kunze
Abstract: In this Paper we investigate the male-female wage differential: Does it evolve over the early career or does it exist right from entry into first employment onwards? For the analysis we use new administrative longitudinal data and focus on the early careers of skilled workers in Germany. We adopt a simple human capital theory approach. Advantages of the data for this type of analysis are that we can observe complete work and wage histories, and that we are also able to observe workers' skills. Regarding entry wages we find a gap of approximately 25%. For the early career, ie up to eight years of work experience, the differential remains almost constant at this high level. We find that differences in apprenticeship training explain the main part of this gap and seem to lead to a permanent wage disadvantage throughout the early career.
Keywords: apprenticeship training; early career; human capital; male-female wage differentials; occupation; sample selection
JEL Codes: J16; J30; J70
Edges that are evidenced by causal inference methods are in orange, and the rest are in light blue.
| Cause | Effect |
|---|---|
| differences in apprenticeship training (J24) | male-female wage differential (J31) |
| differences in apprenticeship training (J24) | initial wage levels (J31) |
| initial wage levels (J31) | male-female wage differential (J31) |