Evolution of the wage gap in Spain by age and gender between 2006 and 2014

Abstract

The gender wage gap is a relevant policy topic affecting our societies. This paper analyzes the gender wage gap in Spain depending on the age —and its evolution— by using quadrennial microdata provided by the Instituto Nacional de Estadística for three different years, 2006, 2010, and 2014. Our results show that the gap still exists and is likely to have increased due to the crisis. Female workers struggle with getting job positions with similar wages compared to men and the situation does not seem to be improving. There is a particularly unfair gender wage gap: a woman getting a lower salary compared to a man when working exactly in the same job —what we call arbitrary gender wage gap. Our findings in the three years analyzed suggest that this arbitrary gender wage gap, although unbearable, tends to decrease for younger cohort of workers. In general women have struggled to reconcile their time between work and family life; the measures taken to reduce this gap are not likely to benefit as much older women who have already been affected. However, further research is needed to assess the causes of this trend and to better understand why older female workers are left behind.