Gender Gaps and the Rise of the Service Economy
L. Rachel NgaiLondon School of Economics, Centre for Macroeconomics and Centre for Economic Policy Research, Houghton Street, London WC2A 2AE (email: )Bárbara PetrongoloQueen Mary University, Centre for Economic Performance (LSE) and Centre for Economic Policy Research, Mile End Road, London E1 4NS (email: )
2017en
ABI
Abstract
This paper investigates the role of the rise in services in the narrowing of gender gaps in hours and wages in recent decades. We highlight the between-industry component of differential gender trends for the United States and propose a model economy with goods, services, and home production, in which women have a comparative advantage in producing services. The rise of services, driven by structural transformation and marketization of home production, raises women's relative wages and market hours. Quantitatively, the model accounts for an important share of the observed trends in women's hours and relative wages. (JEL J16, J21, J22, J24, J31, L80)
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Cited by 20 references