Gender composition effects in the Netherlands: a multilevel analysis of occupational wage inequality

Abstract

US-based research consistently shows that female-dominated occupations tend to yield lower wages than male-dominated occupations, net of diverse individual- and occupation-level controls. However, few studies have explicitly compared the effect of occupational gender composition to the within-occupation gender gap in terms of their relative contribution to overall gender wage inequality. We address this by testing a two-level hierarchical linear model, using highly reliable wage and occupational data from the Dutch labor market. Our results suggest that although female-dominated occupations pay less than male-dominated occupations, much of this gap is explained by a set of individual-, and occupation-level controls. However, we find compelling evidence of men’s net wage advantage across all occupations, regardless of occupational gender composition. Finally, we find that this male wage advantage decreases as percentage female in an occupation increases.