Researchers find female graduates paid less, even when accounting for parenting expectations and 'glass ceiling' effect
While there’s been a lot of progress made on gender equality in the workplace, a new academic study focusing on male and female workers in Quebec suggests there’s still much work to do to solve the problem of pay inequality.
One of the striking conclusions of the study – released by the Institut du Québec and the FutureSkills Research Lab at the University of Toronto as part of the Research Initiative on Education + Skills – shows the 9% average salary disparity between men and women.
The difference was studied between those with similar career paths and who work full time the first year they complete their CEGEP or university education. And the disparity continues to grow throughout their early careers, reaching 16% five years after graduation.
"Although there are now more young women in Quebec graduating with a postsecondary diploma or degree than their male counterparts, they continue to be paid less, even when many of the factors that contribute to labour market inequality, such as having children, are removed from the equation," said Emna Braham, Deputy Director of the Institut du Québec.
The gender gap is most pronounced among the highest-earning graduates, those in the top 10%, standing at 13% one year after graduation and 19% five years later.
Co-author Annie Pan explained that in conducting this analysis, they gained access to a new source of data which allowed them to chart graduates' academic progress over time and compare it to their incomes.
"We were also able to isolate the effect that certain factors might have on earnings, including the level and field of study, the chosen line of business and whether or not there were any dependent children in the household,” Pan added.
Female CEGEP and university graduates had a harder time climbing the ranks and landing the highest-paying positions, according to the research.
Employer choice appears to be important as well. Women are less likely to work for high-paying companies and are frequently confronted with business policies that hinder their advancement.
Similarly, whether or not women have children, the prospect of having family responsibilities to fulfill as a parent or caregiver, as well as the mental strain that entails, appears to impact their decisions. In other words, they choose to work for companies and industries that prioritize work-life balance.
Between the 1960s and the 2010s, the gender wage gap in Quebec reduced dramatically, but progress has since slowed.
This clearly shows that current strategies to combat inequality, such as pay equity legislation and family-friendly workplace policies (focused on topics like childcare and parental leave), are insufficient.
The authors suggested some possible lines of action for addressing economic inequality between men and women:
- Government. Modernize family policies so that men and women share family obligations more equally.
- Private sector. Implement career assistance programs to help women advance to the highest-paying C-suite positions and experiment with new ways to set wages that are less discriminatory toward women.
- Educational institutions. Develop more inclusive learning strategies to help close the digital literacy gap between men and women.
