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Gender Wage Gap in Urban Nicaragua: Evidence from Decomposition Analysis

Pacheco Medina, Eduardo Camilo LU (2013) EKHR92 20131
Department of Economic History
Abstract
This paper empirically investigates explanations to the gender wage gap in urban Nicaragua for 2005 and 2009. For this task, using data from the EMNV survey, we applied an Oaxaca-Blinder (1973) decomposition (standard and correcting for selection bias) of the mean wage and the novel Recentered Influence Function (RIF) regression method introduced by Firpo, Fortin, and Lemieux (2009) for the wage distribution. In this way, we explore in detail which factors influence the mean wage gap and the presence of a "sticky floor effect". The results show that the wage structure accounts for a large share of the differences in mean wages and across the distribution. We do not find evidence that selection bias affects this result for the mean.... (More)
This paper empirically investigates explanations to the gender wage gap in urban Nicaragua for 2005 and 2009. For this task, using data from the EMNV survey, we applied an Oaxaca-Blinder (1973) decomposition (standard and correcting for selection bias) of the mean wage and the novel Recentered Influence Function (RIF) regression method introduced by Firpo, Fortin, and Lemieux (2009) for the wage distribution. In this way, we explore in detail which factors influence the mean wage gap and the presence of a "sticky floor effect". The results show that the wage structure accounts for a large share of the differences in mean wages and across the distribution. We do not find evidence that selection bias affects this result for the mean. Moreover, we found a reduction in the wage gap and in discrimination during the period of study, especially at the lower and upper part of the distribution. We argue that the mean gap and the differences at the upper half are driven by taste-based discrimination outlined in Becker's (1971) view. In contrast, the sticky floor effect is driven by occupational segregation due to discrimination in commerce and service activities. Meanwhile, at the upper part of the distribution this effect appears in sales and clerical occupations. (Less)
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author
Pacheco Medina, Eduardo Camilo LU
supervisor
organization
course
EKHR92 20131
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
Gender wage gap, Nicaragua, discrimination, Oaxaca-Blinder, RIF-regressions.
language
English
id
3878693
date added to LUP
2013-06-28 15:48:01
date last changed
2013-06-28 15:48:01
@misc{3878693,
  abstract     = {{This paper empirically investigates explanations to the gender wage gap in urban Nicaragua for 2005 and 2009. For this task, using data from the EMNV survey, we applied an Oaxaca-Blinder (1973) decomposition (standard and correcting for selection bias) of the mean wage and the novel Recentered Influence Function (RIF) regression method introduced by Firpo, Fortin, and Lemieux (2009) for the wage distribution. In this way, we explore in detail which factors influence the mean wage gap and the presence of a "sticky floor effect". The results show that the wage structure accounts for a large share of the differences in mean wages and across the distribution. We do not find evidence that selection bias affects this result for the mean. Moreover, we found a reduction in the wage gap and in discrimination during the period of study, especially at the lower and upper part of the distribution. We argue that the mean gap and the differences at the upper half are driven by taste-based discrimination outlined in Becker's (1971) view. In contrast, the sticky floor effect is driven by occupational segregation due to discrimination in commerce and service activities. Meanwhile, at the upper part of the distribution this effect appears in sales and clerical occupations.}},
  author       = {{Pacheco Medina, Eduardo Camilo}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{Gender Wage Gap in Urban Nicaragua: Evidence from Decomposition Analysis}},
  year         = {{2013}},
}