RT Journal Article
T1 Labor Market Segmentation and the Gender Wage Gap in Spain
T2 Segmentación del Mercado de Trabajo y Brecha Salarial de Género en España
A1 Núñez Hernández, Fernando
A1 Usabiaga Ibáñez, Carlos
A1 Álvarez de Toledo, Pablo
K1 Oaxaca–blinder decomposition
K1 Gender wage gap
K1 Clustered contingency tables
K1 Labour matching heatmap
K1 Segmented Spanish labour market
AB Purpose: The purpose of this study is to analyse the gender wage gap (GWG) in Spain adopting a labour market segmentation approach. Once we obtain the different labour segments (or idiosyncratic labour markets), we are able to decompose the GWG into its observed and unobserved heterogeneity components. Design/methodology/approach: We use the data from the Continuous Sample of Working Lives for the year 2021 (matched employer–employee [EE] data). Contingency tables and clustering techniques are applied to employment data to identify idiosyncratic labour markets where men and/or women of different ages tend to match/associate with different sectors of activity and occupation groups. Once this “heatmap” of labour associations is known, we can analyse its hottest areas (the idiosyncratic labour markets) from the perspective of wage discrimination by gender (Oaxaca-Blinder model). Findings: In Spain, in general, men are paid more than women, and this is not always justified by their respective attributes. Among our results, the fact stands out that women tend to move to those idiosyncratic markets (biclusters) where the GWG (in favour of men) is smaller. Research limitations/implications: It has not been possible to obtain remuneration data by jobplacement, but an annual EE relationship is used. Future research should attempt to analyse the GWG across the wage distribution in the different idiosyncratic markets. Practical implications: Our combination of methodologies can be adapted to other economies and variables and provides detailed information on the labour-matching process and gender wage discrimination in segmented labour markets. Social implications: Our contribution is very important for labour market policies, trying to reduce unfair inequalities. Originality/value: The study of the GWG from a novel labour segmentation perspective can be interesting for other researchers, institutions and policy makers.
PB Emerald
YR 2024
FD 2024
LK https://hdl.handle.net/10433/21216
UL https://hdl.handle.net/10433/21216
LA en
NO International Journal of Manpower, vol 45, nº 10, pp. 16-41.
NO Proyectos de investigaciónR+D+i Project PROYEXCEL-00724 (Andalusian Board)PAIDI SEJ 513 Research Group (Andalusian Board)
NO Departamento de Economía, Métodos Cuantitativos e Historia Económica
DS RIO
RD May 13, 2026