The Expanding Gender Earnings Gap: Evidence from the LEHD-2000 Census

Claudia Goldin; Sari Pekkala Kerr; Claudia Olivetti; Erling Barth

doi:10.1257/aer.p20171065

The Expanding Gender Earnings Gap: Evidence from the LEHD-2000 Census

Claudia Goldin¹; Sari Pekkala Kerr²; Claudia Olivetti³; Erling Barth⁴

¹ Department of Economics, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138 (e-mail: ) · ² Wellesley College, WCW 106 Central Street, Wellesley, MA 02481 (e-mail: ) · ³ Boston College, 104 Commonwealth Avenue, Chestnut Hill, MA 02147 (e-mail: ) · ⁴ Institute for Social Research, Postboks 3233 Elisenberg 0208 Oslo, Norway (e-mail: )

American Economic Review 2017 open access

The gender earnings gap is an expanding statistic over the lifecycle. We use the LEHD Census 2000 to understand the roles of industry, occupation, and establishment 14 years after leaving school. The gap for college graduates 26 to 39 years old expands by 34 log points, most occurring in the first 7 years. About 44 percent is due to disproportionate shifts by men into higher-earning positions, industries, and firms and about 56 percent to differential advances by gender within firms. Widening is greater for married individuals and for those in certain sectors. Non-college graduates experience less widening but with similar patterns.

DOI: 10.1257/aer.p20171065
Volume: 107 (5)
Pages: 110-114
Language: en
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