by Jim Rose in discrimination, gender, human capital, labour economics, labour supply, occupational choice, politics - Australia, politics - New Zealand, politics - USA Tags: Australia, British economy, Canada, gender wage gap, Ireland

If there is an inherent inequality of bargaining power between workers and employers, as we are so frequently lectured by those in the self appointed know, why is the gender wage gap so small at the bottom of the earnings distribution?

Figure 1: % Gender gap in full-time earnings at the bottom decile of earnings distribution, 2012

Source: OECD family database

Figure 2: % Gender gap in full-time earnings at the median decile of earnings distribution, 2012

Source: OECD family database

Figure 3: % Gender gap in full-time earnings at the top decile of earnings distribution, 2012

Source: OECD family database

The gender gaps are unadjusted, and are calculated as the difference between the earnings of men and women for their respective earnings percentile.