Pay differences between women and men in 1975 and 1985

The study examines pay differences between the sexes in Finland during the years 1975–1985.

Although according to neoclassical theory wages should be determined on the basis of marginal productivity, in practice wages vary by sex across all sectors. The differences have been explained by, among other things, productivity differentials, discrimination, and differences in human capital — and in more recent research also by the unequal distribution of domestic work between the sexes.

Using econometric methods, the study measures the effect on wages of factors related to human capital (education, work experience, occupation, sector) and assesses the magnitude of any wage discrimination and its change over the period under review. The data used are the annual wages of full-time wage earners.

The study also acknowledges its limitations: the statistical data are incomplete, and so-called pre-labour market discrimination — the influence of social norms on the educational and occupational choices of women and men before entering the labour market — complicates the measurement of the pure wage differential. (AI translation)

• ISSN: 0358-5980
• ISBN: 951-9282-33-5