© 2021 Published by VŠB-TU Os a a. All igh s ese ed. ER-CEREI, Volume 24: 69–79 (2021).
ISSN 1212-3951 (P in ), 1805-9481 (Online)
Gende Gap in Ea nings in China: A C oss
Sec ional S udy
Yajun MENG a,b
*
a Depa men o Na ional Economy, Facul y o Economics, VSB - Technical Uni e si y o Os a a, Sokolská řída
33, 702 00 Os a a, Czech Republic.
b Facul y o Economics and T ade, Hebei GEO Uni e si y, Shijiazhuang, China.
Abs ac
The p i a iza ion o he Chinese economy and he mobili y o he labou o ce om u al a eas o u ban a eas a e
inc easing he p essu e o gende wage inequali y in China. This pape analyses he gende wage gap based on
mic oda a om he Chinese Gene al Social Su ey conduc ed in 2015. The me hodologies employed in his pape
include he Mince ea nings unc ion (1974) and he Blinde –Oaxaca decomposi ion (1973). The empi ical esul s
e eal ha he gende wage gap was o e 20% in China in 2014. Educa ion has a signi ican ly posi i e in luence on
wages, bu he a e o e u n o educa ion on wages di e s o male and emale g oups. The e ec s o educa ion on
wages in a ious egions in China a e di e en . Educa ion con ibu es o na owing he di e ence in wages be ween
emale and male wo ke s in Wes China.
Keywo ds
Educa ion, gende wage gap, Chinese labo ma ke , mince ea ning unc ion.
JEL Classi ica ion: J16, J21, J24, J31
*
yajun.meng@ sb.cz @ sb.cz (co esponding au ho )
70 Ekonomická e ue – Cen al Eu opean Re iew o Economic Issues 24, 2021
Gende Gap in Ea nings in China: A C oss
Sec ional S udy
Yajun MENG
1. In oduc ion
A e 1978, he mobili y o he labou o ce caused in e -
nal mig a ion om u al a eas o u ban a eas in China.
The de elopmen o he Chinese labou ma ke in ecen
yea s shows b oken segmen a ion caused by he ea lie
household egis a ion sys em (Hukou ). Al hough he
Hukou s ill has e ec s on wo ke s’ indi idual wel a e
and hei employmen oppo uni ies in some ci ies, his
ac o is now less impo an in he Chinese labou ma ke
(Weng, 2016). Be o e 1978, s a e-owned en e p ises
domina ed he na ional economy in China. The Go e n-
men uni o mly a anged college g adua es’ employ-
men . Female and male wo ke s had equal oppo uni ies
o employmen , and he e was li le di e ence in hei
wages, which we e decided by he go e nmen ules in-
s ead o he indi id-ual cha ac e is ics o human capi al
(Wang, 2005). Wi h he e o m o a ma ke -o ien ed
economy, non-s a e-owned en e p ises and businesses
wi h mul iple p ope ies c ea ed a huge demand o la-
bou in China. By he end o 2017, he e we e mo e han
27 million p i a e en e p ises and 65 million indi idual
and p i a e businesses in China in o al. These p i a e en-
e p ises and businesses accoun o 90% o all en e -
p ises in China. Non-s a e-owned en i ies p o ide mo e
han 80% o all jobs (Wuhan Uni e si y, 2018). The deci-
sions o hi e o i e wo ke s and se he wages a e he du-
ies o companies (Cai e al., 2009). In addi ion, women’s
pa icipa ion in he labou o ce in China is much highe
han he global le el; see Table 1.
Table 1 Female labou o ce pa icipa ion a e in 2012–2017
(%)
Yea
2012
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
China
63.3
63.1
62.8
62.4
62
61.5
Wo ld
48.9
48.93
48.85
48.79
48.88
48.68
Sou ce: Wo ld Bank (2018)
Wi h he imp o emen o he social li ing and eco-
nomic le el in China, mo e and mo e educa ed wo ke s
a e en e ing he labou ma ke . The numbe o g adu-
a es wi h college and junio college deg ees is con inu-
ally inc easing, as shown in Table 2.
Table 2 College and junio college g adua es in China in
2008–2015 (million)
Yea
2008
2009
2010
2011
G adua es
5.12
5.31
5.75
6.08
Yea
2012
2013
2014
2015
G adua es
6.25
6.38
6.59
6.80
Sou ce: Na ional Bu eau o S a is ics o China, 2018
Wi h he de elopmen o i s mode n labou ma -ke ,
he income di e en ial be ween male and emale wo k-
e s in China became a social phenomenon. The di e -
ence in mon hly income be ween men and women was
22% in 2017, and he gende wage gap was o e 30%
in he ea ly yea s (Jiang, 2018).
The aim o his pape is o s udy he gende wage
gap using a ich and new longi udinal da a se . Fo ha
pu pose, i analyses he gende di e en ial o wages in
Wes , Cen al, and Eas China and he con ibu ion o
educa ion o indi idual wages. The Mince ea nings
unc ion and Blinde –Oaxaca de-composi ion a e used
o es he e ec s o ele an ac o s on wages and o
iden i y he di e ences in wages be ween men and
women. Ou con ibu ion is o analyse he e ec s o
a ious le els o educa ion on pe sonal wages and o
s udy he di e ences be ween Wes China, Cen al
China, and Eas China wi h he newes a ailable da a.
The emainde o his pape is o ganized as ol-
lows. Sec ion 2 summa izes he empi ical pape s ha
ela e o his opic in China. Sec ion 3 in oduces he
da a used o his empi ical analysis. Sec ion 4 ou -lines
he empi ical models. Sec ion 5 p o ides an analysis o
he empi ical esul s. Las ly, conclusions and some pol-
icy ecommenda ions a e p o ided in Sec ion 6.
2. Li e a u e e iew
This sec ion p esen s some s udies ha a e ele an o
his opic. The wo k o G. Becke (1964) and J. Mince
(1958) s a s he discussion on he ela ionship be-
ween human capi al, such as educa ion, and pe sonal
ea nings. Empi ical s udies om China show ha he
e u n o educa ion on ea nings has inc eased since he
1990s and he capabili y o indi idual educa ion has
imp o ed pe sonal wages signi ican ly. A high educa-
ion le el has an inc easing ma ginal e u n o wages.
Howe e , he e ec o educa ion does no domina e he
wages o wo ke s, and o he ac o s, such as he indus-
y, he wo kplace, and so on, play impo an oles. The
expanding scale o college educa ion does no dec ease
he e u n o high educa- ion on pe sonal ea nings bu ,
Y. Meng – Gende Gap in Ea nings in China: A C oss Sec ional S udy Wage di e en ial o emale and male employee in
China
71
in con as , inc eases i . The cha ac e is ics o human
capi al make di e en con ibu ions o he di e ence in
men’s and women’s wages, and he gende wage gap in
China keeps changing o e ime (Fang and Huang,
2017; Pa k and Qu, 2013; Wang, 2005; Yang and
Wang, 2015).
The gende di e ence in wages in China became a
new social and economic p oblem a e i s ma ke -o i-
en ed e o m. The mobili y o labou om s a e-owned
en e p ises o non-s a e-owned companies and he
ans e o wo ke s om he seconda y sec o o he e -
ia y sec o ha e changed he s uc u e o he labou
ma ke . The gende wage gap g adually wid-ened om
1995 o 2007 in Chinese u ban a eas, and he di e en-
ial o men’s and women’s wages declined a e 2007
and has picked up again since 2014 (Song e al., 2017).
Chen (2011) s a es ha he gende wage gap inc eased
by 10% om 1989 o 2009. The la ges gende wage
gap is in he g oup o employees who a e o e 40 yea s
old and ha e less educa ion in he non-s a e-owned sec-
o (Zhang, 2004).
Women wi h high educa ion ha e a highe a e o
educa ional e u n on hei pe sonal wages han men,
bu women ha e lowe wages han men (Liu, 2008;
Peng, 2011). The le el o educa ion is nega i ely e-
la ed o he deg ee o disc imina ion (Liu, 2008). The
di e ence in wages be ween wo ke s who ha e mo e
educa ion and wo ke s who ha e less educa ion is
g ea e o women han o men.
The gende wage gap is caused by a a ie y o ac-
o s. The economic ansi ion has c ea ed di e ences in
wages be ween he sec o s and he egions in China.
The sec o al ea u es de e mine he wage le el and he
di e ence in wages o wo ke s. The gende wage gap
in China is mainly caused by he in e -sec o al ac o
(Peng, 2011; Song e al., 2017). Many small s a e-
owned en e p ises became bank up due o he e o m
o en e p ises in he mid-1990s. Wo ke s mo ed om
s a e-owned en e p ises o p i a e businesses. The p i-
a iza ion o he Chinese economy inc eased he gende
wage gap since mo e and mo e women we e employed
by p i a e en e p ises. This inc eased he disc imina-
ion in he labou ma ke (Chen, 2011).
Meanwhile, mig an s mo ed om u al China o u -
ban China. They wo ked in a ious indus ies and di -
e en en e p ises ins ead o being concen a ed in he
ag icul u e sec o . The gende wage gap is mo e ob i-
ous in he p i a e sec o (Chen, 2011). Howe e , he
social insu ance and he employmen p o ec ion o mi-
g an s in in o mal employmen a e no enough (Cai e
al., 2009).
A new egula ion, The Employmen Con ac Law,
was implemen ed in China in 2007. The en o cemen o
his law allowed he wo ke s who bo e he wo s wo k-
ing condi ions o equi e highe paymen s. This im-
p o ed he equali y o wo ke s’ ea nings in he labou
ma ke (Cai e al., 2009). The labou ma ke policy,
such as The Minimum Wage Policy in oduced in 2007,
posi i ely a ec ed he gende di e ence in wages
(Song e al., 2017).
Wang (2005) s udies he gende wage gap in China
wi h employmen da a om i e big ci ies. The decom-
posi ion esul s show ha he di e ence in wages be-
ween he sec o s domina es he gende wage gap. Mo e
han 80% o he gende wage gap in an indus y canno
be explained. The disc imina ion agains women is sig-
ni ican . A simila esul is epo -ed by Chen in 2011.
Li and Dong (2008) employ he cha ac e is ics o
en e p ises as he explana o y a iable o s udy he gen-
de wage gap. Thei esul s show ha he e u n o ed-
uca ion on wages dec eases signi ican ly when adding
ele an ac o s. The scale o he en e p ise, he p i a -
iza ion o he company’s p ope y, and he ou side com-
pe i i e en i onmen a e impo an in de e mining he
gende wage gap.
The p e ious s udies also es he wage gap be-
ween in o mal employmen and o mal employmen .
Hou (2013) s a es ha he cha ac e is ics o wo ke s
can explain one- hi d o he wage gap be ween o mal
employmen and in o mal employmen in ci ies.
Women who wo k in he in o mal sec o ace mo e dis-
c imina ion in he Chinese labou ma ke . Pa k and Qu
(2013) in es iga e he mic oda a o six Chinese ci ies
and s a e ha he wage di e ence in he e u n o edu-
ca ion be ween he o mal sec o and he in o mal sec-
o has inc eased. Wo ke s in he in o mal sec o ha e
a lowe e u n o educa ion on wages han wo ke s in
he o mal sec o . Fu he mo e, he educa- ional e u n
inc eases wi h quan iles o in o mal employmen .
Some s udies s a e ha he declining e ili y o he
young gene a ion in u ban China and he inc easing
numbe o single indi iduals will na ow he gende
wage gap. Unma ied wo ke s ha e a smalle gende
wage gap han ma ied wo ke s who ha e one o mo e
child en (Song e al., 2017). Zhang e al. (2006) analyse
he wage gap be ween di e en a eas wi h spa ial econ-
ome ics and indica e ha he economic ansi ion, he
local egula ion, he local educa ion, a change in he
company’s owne ship, and capi al in es men a ec he
wage gap in he di e en a eas.
3. Da a and me hodology
3.1 Da a
This sec ion in oduces he mic oda a and me hodol-
ogy used in his pape . I employs mic oda a om he
Chinese Gene al Social Su ey (hence o h CGSS) in
72 Ekonomická e ue – Cen al Eu opean Re iew o Economic Issues 24, 2021
he yea 2015. This p ojec has been un by he Na-
ional Su ey Resea ch Cen e a Renmin Uni e si- y
o China since 2003 and is o ganized wi h 48 o he uni-
e si ies. I consis s o a su ey conduc ed wi h a ep-
esen a i e sample o 10,000 Chinese households in
mainland China. I collec s o iginal da a on he le el o
social, amily, and indi idual esidences, including
basic in o ma ion and some speci ic e-sou ces neces-
sa y o s udy he di e en ields in each su ey sys em-
a ically. The CGSS ocuses on he change in ela ion-
ship be ween he social s uc u e and he quali y o li e
in China. I is he main da a-base o social and ela ed
esea ch o academic ins i u ions and he go e nmen .
The CGSS conduc ed in 2015 p o ides he mos e-
cen ly disclosed da a. I co e s 23 p o inces and ou
municipali ies in China and con ains in e iews wi h
abou 11,000 andomly chosen indi iduals and mo e
han 1,000 a iables. This pape selec s he sample o
wo ke s who a e 18 o 59 yea s old wi h ull- ime em-
ploymen . I excludes people who se e in he a my and
a me s. The pu pose o his pape is o s udy he wage
gap be ween men and women wi h a ull- ime job. I
he e o e excludes pa - ime wo ke s and unemployed
wo ke s. In 2014, he a e age minimum wage in China
was abou 1,050 CNY pe mon h, so i selec s indi id-
uals who ecei e mo e han 12,500 CNY pe yea .
Thus, he o al numbe o obse a ions is 2,359 (men
accoun o 57.4% and women o 42.6%).
In his pape , he wo kplaces o he obse ed wo k-
e s a e in Eas China, Cen al China, and Wes China
acco ding o he de ini ion om he China Heal h S a-
is ics Yea book. Eas China is mo e de eloped han
Cen al China and Wes China. O he op 10 p o inces
o municipali ies ega ding pe capi a income in China
in 2014, se en o hem belong o Eas China.
The obse ed ac o s ha ha e an impac on pe -
sonal wages include demog aphic ac o s and em-ploy-
men ac o s. The demog aphic ac o s a e wo king ex-
pe ience, educa ion, and wo kplace. The second g oup
consis s o job- ela ed a iables.
Educa ion is an impo an ac o in he human capi-
al model and is a measu able abili y. Acco ding o Xie
and Hannum (1996), he du a ion o he Chinese edu-
ca ional deg ee is de e mined by he ime spen o
achie e he ce i ica e. The du a ion o di e en educa-
ion le els anges om 3 yea s o 19 yea s in his anal-
ysis. S uden s comple e p ima y school educa ion a e
6 yea s (3 yea s o lowe educa ion); middle school a -
e 9 yea s; high school a e 12 yea s; junio middle
echnical school a e 11 yea s; special seconda y
1
Edu0–P ima y school and less educa ion; Edu1 –Junio
middle school; Edu2–High school and echnical seconda y
school a e 13 yea s; junio college a e 15 yea s; col-
lege o uni e si y a e 16 yea s; and pos g adua e edu-
ca ion a e 19 yea s.
The educa ional le el consis s o i e ca ego ies,
each ep esen ing di e en le els o educa ional a ain-
men . These i e ca ego ies a e p ima y school and less,
junio middle school, high school and ech-nical o sec-
onda y school, college and junio college, and pos -
g adua e educa ion.
The en e p ise’s owne ship also causes a di e -
ence in wages. In he pape , employees a e sepa a ed
in o i e ca ego ies acco ding o he owne ship o he
company: wo ke s who a e sel -employed, wo ke s
who wo k in a p i a e en e p ise, s a who wo k in a
s a e-owned o collec i e en e p ise, employees who
a e hi ed by o eign en e p ises o en e p ises om
Hong Kong, Macao, and Taiwan, and s a who wo k
in a go e nmen o ins i u ional o ganiza ion.
The desc ip i e s a is ics o he male and emale
wo ke s selec ed a e p o ided in Table 3. Abou 60%
o hose wo ke s ha e he u ban Hukou in a ci y. The
p opo ion o wo ke s who ha e educa ion om a col-
lege and junio college is much la ge han o he g oups
ega ding he educa ion le el o women. The sha es o
men who ha e middle school educa ion, high school
and echnical seconda y school educa- ion, and college
and junio college educa ion a e app oxima e, and each
accoun s o abou 30% o all male wo ke s. The highe
p opo ion o women wi h highe educa ion p o es ha
women need mo e educa ion o be employed in a simi-
la posi ion o men. Women ha e a highe mean alue
o yea s o educa- ion han men.
Table 3 Desc ip i e s a is ics and dis ibu ion o obse ed
wo ke s by gende (%)
Va iables
Male
Female
Di e ence
Expe ience
(yea s)
21.45
(11.14)
19.38
(10.34)
2.07
Educa ion
(yea s)
12.00
(3.51)
12.34
(3.83)
-0.34
Mean log hou ly
wage
3.09
(0.63)
2.91
(0.57)
0.18
Wes China
14.69%
15.74%
-1.05%
Middle China
28.93%
24.20%
4,73%
Eas China
56.38%
60.06%
-3.68%
Edu01
7.52%
10.26%
-2.74%
Edu1
29.45%
24.70%
4.75%
Edu2
29.37%
23.80%
5.57%
school; Edu3–College and he junio college deg ee; Edu4–
Mas e and highe deg ee.
Y. Meng – Gende Gap in Ea nings in China: A C oss Sec ional S udy Wage di e en ial o emale and male employee in
China
73
Edu3
31.37%
38.55%
-7.18%
Edu4
2.29%
2.79%
-0.50%
Hukou (U ban)
64.94%
58.97%
5.97%
P12
15.86%
15.44%
0.42%
P2
46.86%
46.51%
0.35%
P3
15.06%
11.75%
3.31%
P4
2.44%
2.79%
-0.55%
P5
19.78%
23.51%
-3.73%
Obse a ions
1,355
1,004
2,359
Sou ce: au ho ’s calcula ion, s anda d de ia ions a e gi en
in b acke s
Conside ing he indi idual employmen , 46% o he
wo ke s wo k in p i a e en e p ises, while abou 16%
o he obse ed wo ke s a e sel -employed. The p opo -
ion o esponden s who wo k in he go e n-men o in-
s i u ions is abou 24% o women and abou 20% o
men. The sha e o men who wo k in s a e-owned and
collec i e en e p ises is 4% la ge han ha o women.
Employmen in he go e nmen o ins i u ions is mo e
a ac i e o women, while men p e e compe i i e
wo k. The a e age numbe o wo king yea s o men
and women is 21 and 19, espec i ely.
The a e age annual wage is abou 55,900 CNY o
men and 44,700 CNY o women. Women’s a e age
wage is 24% lowe han men’s. Figu e 1 shows he dis-
ibu ion o log hou ly wages o he obse ed wo ke s
by gende . Women ha e a le -o ien ed dis ibu ion o
wages ela i e o men.
Figu e 1 Densi y dis ibu ion o log wage by gende
Sou ce: Au ho calcula ed
Wi hou a doub , he a e age wage o wo ke s in
Eas China is much highe han ha in Cen al China
and Wes China. The wage dis ibu ion o wo ke s in
Cen al China and Wes China is simila ; see Figu e 2.
2
P1– Indi idual and p i a e business; P2–P i a e en e p ise;
P3–S a e-own and collec i e en e p ise; P4–Fo eign and
Figu e 2 Densi y dis ibu ion o log wage by egion
Sou ce: Au ho calcula ed
The employees who wo k in p i a e companies in
Wes China ha e he lowes a e age wage, which is
one- hi d o he highes a e age wage o wo ke s who
a e employed by o eign und companies in Eas China.
Educa ion imp o es he indi idual income signi i-
can ly. Wo ke s wi h highe educa ion ha e g ea e
equali y in he wage dis ibu ion; see Figu e 3. The ed-
uca ion a he p ima y school le el and lowe and junio
middle school educa ion show li le di e -ence in he
e ec s on indi idual wages.
Figu e 3 Densi y dis ibu ion o log wage by le el o educa-
ion
Sou ce: Au ho calcula ed
3.2 Me hodology
The empi ical analysis s a s wi h he s anda d Mince
ea nings unc ion o exp ess he ela ionship be ween
he indi idual wages and he pe sonal capabili y o hu-
man capi al, such as educa ion and wo king expe- ience
(Mince , 1974). I is gi en by:
𝐿𝑛(𝑤𝑎𝑔𝑒)= 𝛽0+𝛽1𝐸𝑑𝑢 +𝛽2𝐸𝑥𝑝
+𝛽3𝐸𝑥𝑝2+𝜇,
(1)
Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan und en e p ise; P5–Go e n-
men and ins i u ions.
0.2 .4 .6 .8
kdensi y lnwage
2 3 4 5 6
Male Female
0.2 .4 .6 .8
kdensi y lnwage
2 3 4 5 6
Wes Middle
Eas
0.2 .4 .6 .8
kdensi y lnwage
2 3 4 5 6
Edu0 Edu1
Edu2 Edu3
Edu4

74 Ekonomická e ue – Cen al Eu opean Re iew o Economic Issues 24, 2021
whe e Ln(wage) is he na u al loga i hm o he g oss
hou ly wages, Edu s ands o he a e age yea s o
schooling, Exp ep esen s he labou ma ke expe i-
ence, and 𝐸𝑥𝑝2 is a a iable o squa ed yea s o wo k
expe ience desc ibing he decline o wages as he
wo ke ages. Yea s o educa ion is a con inuous a ia-
ble. In his pape , he yea s o educa ion o obse ed
wo ke s a e calcula ed acco ding o hei educa ional
le el, as men ioned abo e. He e, 𝛽𝑖 a e he unknown
coe icien s o be es ima ed and 𝜇 is he e o e m,
which con ains o he ac o s ha in luence a wo ke ’s
wage. This s udy es ima es he model using o dina y
leas squa es (OLS).
The expanded Mince ea nings unc ion is used o
es he impac o gende on indi idual wages, shown
as
𝐿𝑛(𝑤𝑎𝑔𝑒)= 𝛽0+𝛽1𝐹𝑒𝑚𝑎𝑙𝑒 +𝛽2𝐸𝑑𝑢
+𝛽3𝐸𝑥𝑝 + 𝛽4𝐸𝑥𝑝2+ 𝜇,
(2)
whe e 𝐹𝑒𝑚𝑎𝑙𝑒 is he dummy a iable o gende ha
equals one o women and ze o o men. Mo eo e , he
linea eg ession o es ima e he loga i hm wage o in-
di idual i in g oup A is
𝐿𝑛(𝑤𝑎𝑔𝑒𝐴𝑖) = 𝑋𝐴𝑖𝛽𝐴𝑖 +𝜇𝐴𝑖, 𝐸(𝜇𝐴) = 0,
(3)
whe e Χ is a ec o o indi idual cha ac e is ics, β is a
ec o o coe icien s o be es ima ed, and μ is an e o
e m.
The model is ea anged o include demog aphic
ac o s such as he ype o hukou, he wo kplace o he
wo ke , and he ype o educa ion. Ano he dummy a -
iable ep esen s he di e en business p ope ies. The
age o he obse ed wo ke s is no included in his pa-
pe .
3
In addi ion, we p esen he esul s o he Blinde –
Oaxaca decomposi ion (Blinde , 1973; Oaxaca, 1973)
based on he Mince ea nings eg ession o iden i y he
indi idual e ec s o obse able ac o s on he gende
wage di e en ial. The di e ence in wages be ween
men and women is shown as he di e ence in he linea
p edic ion a he g oup-speci ic means. Le 𝛽
󰆹𝑚 and 𝛽
󰆹𝑓
be he eg ession es ima es o he coe icien o men
and women, espec i ely; hen, he mean di e ence in
log wages be ween men and women is decomposed as
3
We omi he age o wo ke due o i s collinea i y wi h a i-
able o wo king expe ience in his pape .
𝐷𝑖𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 = 𝐿𝑛𝑊𝑚−𝐿𝑛𝑊𝑓
=(𝑋𝑚
′−𝑋𝑓
′)𝛽
󰆹𝑚
+𝑋𝑚
′(𝛽
󰆹𝑚−𝛽
󰆹𝑓)
+(𝑋𝑚
′−𝑋𝑓
′)(𝛽
󰆹𝑚−𝛽
󰆹𝑓).
(4)
This equa ion decomposes he gende wage gap in o
h ee pa s. (𝑋𝑚
′−𝑋𝑓
′)𝛽
󰆹𝑚 is he pa o he wage gap
ha can be explained by he di e en ial o he obse ed
cha ac e is ics o indi idual wo ke s ( he endowmen s).
𝑋𝑚
′(𝛽
󰆹𝑚−𝛽
󰆹𝑓) ep esen s he di e ence in wages
caused by he di e en ial o he coe icien s be ween
he wo g oups. (𝑋𝑚
′−𝑋𝑓
′)(𝛽
󰆹𝑚−𝛽
󰆹𝑓) is he in e ac-
ion ha p esen s he di e ence in coe icien s and en-
dowmen s simul aneously (Guo e al., 2011; Jann,
2008).
To exp ess he wo old decomposi ion o he wage
di e en ial, equa ion (4) is used:
𝐷𝑖𝑓𝑓𝑒𝑟𝑒𝑛𝑐𝑒 = 𝐸𝑥𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑑 𝑃𝑎𝑟𝑡
+ 𝑈𝑛𝑒𝑥𝑝𝑙𝑎𝑖𝑛𝑒𝑑 𝑃𝑎𝑟𝑡.
(5)
The explained pa shows he gende di e ence in
wages caused by he endowmen , and he unexplained
pa ep esen s he gende di e ence in wages caused
by he coe icien and he in e ac ion.
In his pape , he index p oblem
4
(Guo e al., 2011;
Oaxaca, 1973) is no conside ed. Male wo ke s o m
he e e ence g oup in his analysis.
4. Empi ical esul s
This sec ion p esen s he empi ical esul s. The esul s
o he o dina y leas squa es (OLS) eg ession a e dis-
played in Table 4. O e all, he model i s he da a well.
The coe icien s ha e he expec ed signs and a e signi -
ican a he con en ional signi icance le els. A posi i e
associa ion be ween educa ion and pe sonal wages is
ound. In pa icula , he ma ginal e u n a e o one yea
o educa ion is 7.2% o all wo ke s. One yea o edu-
ca ion and wo king expe ience ha e mo e bene i s o
men. The gende di e ence in wages is signi ican , and
male wo ke s ha e wages ha a e 21% highe han
hose o emale wo ke s. This esul is in line wi h he
p e ious li e a u e ( o ins ance Zhang, 2004).
Table 4 Es ima es o Mince ea ning eg essions
Model 1 Model 2
Female
Male
To al
4
The index p oblem is he choice o e e ence g oup in he
model. I a di e en e e ence g oup is chosen by gende , i
would lead o a di e en esul o wage decomposi ion.
Okomen o al(a): [ARA1]: Replenished?
Y. Meng – Gende Gap in Ea nings in China: A C oss Sec ional S udy Wage di e en ial o emale and male employee in
China
75
Female
-0.213**
(9.23)
Educa ion
(Yea s)
0.068**
(13.31)
0.075**
(15.45)
0.072**
(20.45)
Expe ience
0.016*
(2.52)
0.024**
(4.00)
0.021**
(4.82)
(ExpSq*)2
-0.037*
(-2.43)
-0.055** (-
4.21)
-0.043**
(-4.82)
In e cep
1.942**
(19.88)
2.001**
(21.58)
1.856**
(26.96)
Obse a-
ions
1,004
1,355
2,359
Adjus ed R2
0.20
0.18
0.21
*p<0.05; **p<0.015
ExpSq*= Expe ience/100
Sou ce: au ho ’s calcula ion, s anda d de ia ions a e gi en in
b acke s
Educa ion imp o es indi idual wages signi ican ly
ac oss China. The con ibu ions o educa ion o he
wages o wo ke s in Wes China, Cen al China, and
Eas China a e di e en . An ex a yea o educa ion
makes he g ea es posi i e con ibu ion o he wages o
wo ke s in Eas China. Women’s pe sonal wage bene-
i s mo e om one yea o educa ion han men’s in
Wes China; see Table 5.
Elemen a y educa ion has a posi i e e ec on ea n-
ings o women in Wes China. Educa ion a junio
middle school shows signi ican and posi i e e ec s,
inc easing women’s wages by 30% in Wes China. Ed-
uca ion a high school and echnical sec-onda y school
inc eases women’s wages by 55% in Wes China. In
Eas China, indi idual educa ion con ibu es mo e o
men’s wages han o women’s wages. Al hough high
educa ion, including junio college, college, and pos -
g adua e educa ion, ha e di e en e ec s on wo ke s’
wages in Wes China, Cen al China, and Eas China, i
is he mos e icien in es men o imp o e indi idual
wages; see Table 6.
Table 7 displays he esul s o expanding he Mince
eg ession. I appea s ha Hukou did no a ec indi id-
ual wages signi ican ly in 2014. The loca ion o wo k
is an unigno able a iable, showing ha male wo ke s
in Eas China ha e a 26% highe wage han women in
Wes China. Women would ea n a 17% highe wage i
hey mo ed om Wes China o Eas China, and men
would ha e a 26% highe wage i hey we e employed
in Eas China. Jobs in Eas China a e a ac i e o wo k-
e s.
A posi i e associa ion is consis en ly ob ained be-
ween he le el o educa ion and he pe sonal wages.
This esul is also in line wi h he p e ious li e a u e
(including ci a ions). Educa ion a junio college and
5
* signi ican a 1% and ** signi ican a 5%.
college inc eases pe sonal wages by 30% in Cen al
China and by mo e han 50% in Wes China and Eas
China when con olling all he explana o y a iables.
In es men in pos g adua e educa ion inc eases pe -
sonal wages by mo e han 100% o men and women in
China. Each successi e educa ional s age can double
pe sonal wages when con olling he explana o y a i-
ables o men and women.
Conside ing he e ec s o he di e en p ope ies o
en e p ises on indi idual wages, bo h men and women
wo king in he go e nmen and ins i u ions and in s a e-
owned and collec i e en e p ises ha e signi ican ly
lowe wages han wo ke s who a e sel -employed (as
he e e ence g oup). Ha ing a job in he go e nmen
o an ins i u ion educes women’s wages by 39% and
men’s wages by 29%.
Rega ding he di e ence in wages be ween g oups
p oduced by he owne ship o en e p ises, i shows a
g ea e e ec on he wages o emale wo ke s. The a -
e age di e ence in wages be ween he e e ence g oup
and each o he o he g oups o women is 10% la ge
han ha o men, espec i ely; see Table 7.
Following he me hodology p esen ed abo e, he e-
sul s o he wo old decomposi ion a e p esen ed in Ta-
ble 8. P edic ion-1 shows ha he mean log hou ly
wage is 3.09 o men, and P edic ion-2 indica es ha
he mean log hou ly wage is 2.91 o women, yielding
a wage gap o 0.18.
Educa ion, which is he obse ed cha ac e is ic o
human capi al in his pape , na ows he gende wage
gap. The possible eason is ha he obse ed emale
wo ke s ha e a highe a e age numbe o yea s o pe -
sonal educa ional a ainmen han male wo ke s by 0.34
yea s. Al hough he sha e o employees wi h college o
junio college educa ion is la ge o women han o
men in his pape , he a e age wage is lowe o women
han o men.
wo ke s ha e a highe a e age numbe o yea s o
pe sonal educa ional a ainmen han male wo ke s by
0.34 yea s. Al hough he sha e o employees wi h col-
lege o junio college educa ion is la ge o women
han o men in his pape , he a e age wage is lowe
o women han o men.
I seems ha he di e ence in wages be ween men
and women canno be explained by he obse ed a ia-
bles. The a e age compensa ion ha men ecei e o
he ad an age o expe ience oughly equals he a e age
compensa ion ha women ecei e o he ad an age o
educa ion. Unknown easons domina e he di e ences
in wages be ween male and emale. I is ha d o es he
Okomen o al(a): [ARA2]: T y o di ide he a iable expe i-
ence2 /100, o scaling he coe icien s.
76 Ekonomická e ue – Cen al Eu opean Re iew o Economic Issues 24, 2021
le el o disc imina ion based on hese limi ed a iables
o indi idual wo ke s in his esea ch.
Table 5 Es ima ing e u n o one-yea educa ion on income
Female
Male
Wes
Middle
Eas
Wes
Middle
Eas
Educa ion (Yea s)
0.073**
(4.78)
0.050**
(4.95)
0.084**
(11.42)
0.048**
(3.74)
0.050**
(4.95)
0.099**
(14.15)
Expe ience
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Expe icence2
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Employmen
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Obse a ions
158
243
603
199
392
764
Adjus ed R2
0.23
0.12
0.30
0.15
0.12
0.26
* p<0.05; **p<0.01
Sou ce: au ho ’s calcula ion, s anda d de ia ions a e gi en in b acke s
Table 6 Es ima es o he e u n on wage by he le el o educa ion
Female
Male
Wes
Middle
Eas
Wes
Middle
Eas
P ima y school and less educa ion
Re e ence
Re e ence
Junio middle school
0.304*
(2.02)
-0.095
(0.97)
-0.028
(0.33)
0.097
(0.70)
-0.016
(0.15)
0.152
(1.75)
High school and echnical seconda y
school
0.554**
(3.27)
-0.010
(0.09)
0.242**
(2.83)
0.356*
(2.44)
0.154
(1.39)
0.285**
(3.22)
College and junio college
0.823**
(4.51)
0.361**
(2.77)
0.646**
(7.13)
0.468**
(2.92)
0.403**
(3.24)
0.838**
(9.09)
Mas e and highe deg ee
1.442**
(3.37)
0.754**
(2.67)
1.073**
(7.67)
0.354
(0.90)
0.742**
(3.14)
1.404**
(9.37)
Expe ience
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Expe icence2
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Employmen ac o s
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Obse a ions
158
243
603
199
392
764
Adjus ed R2
0.25
0.16
0.30
0.16
0.13
0.27
* p<0.05; ** p<0.01
Sou ce: au ho ’s calcula ion, s anda d de ia ions a e gi en in b acke s
Table 7 Es ima ing wage o he emale and male employee in 2014
Female
Male
Female
Male
Demog aphic
Expe ience
0.015**
(2.61)
0.026**
(4.33)
0.021**
(3.37)
0.027**
(4.51)
Expe ience2
0.000*
(2.33)
-0.001**
(4.52)
-0.000**
(3.28)
-0.001**
(4.79)
Okomen o al(a): [ARA3]: Wha I unde s and is ha you consi-
de as dependen a iable he log o wages, and hen you can con ol
o …. Educa ion, and bla bla,
I is a bi con using, once you use he a e age yea s o schooling, o
you jus use dummy a iables o cap u e he le el o educa ion ea-
ched by indi iduals (dummies)
Okomen o al(a): [P4R3]: Yes , i i log o wageYea s o edu-
ca ion
Okomen o al(a): [ARA5]: Foo no e is missing, wi h p alues,
and addi ional in o ma ion
Okomen o al(a): [P6R5]: Yes as oo no e7
Okomen o al(a): [ARA7]: In my iew, we also need o see he
coe icien s.
Okomen o al(a): [P8R7]: I will be oo big able since aim o
his albe only o show he e ec s o ypies o educaion
Okomen o al(a): [ARA9]: Please spe icy i his a p alue, and
wha is be ween b acke s, in all es ima ion ables
Okomen o al(a): [P10R9]: Yes
Y. Meng – Gende Gap in Ea nings in China: A C oss Sec ional S udy Wage di e en ial o emale and male employee in
China
77
Hukou (Ru al)
Re e ence ca ego y
Hukou (U ban)
0.093
(2.00)
0.054
(1.41)
0.102*
(2.23)
0.068
(1.77)
Wes
Re e ence ca ego y
Middle
-0.049
(0.99)
-0.039
(0.87)
-0.038
(0.77)
-0.034
(0.74)
Eas
0.177**
(3.95)
0.264**
(6.18)
0.172**
(3.82)
0.263**
(6.14)
Educa ion Yea s
0.074**
(11.32)
0.077**
(13.23)
P ima y school and less educa ion
Re e ence ca ego y
Junio middle school
0.004
(0.08)
0.085
(1.47)
High school and echnical seconda y school
0.204**
(3.17)
0.236**
(3.86)
College and he junio college
0.589**
(8.32)
0.644**
(9.43)
Mas e and highe deg ee
1.039**
(8.37)
1.111**
(7.91)
Employmen
Indi idual and p i a e business
Re e ence ca ego y
P i a e en e p ise
-0.315**
(6.01)
-0.194**
(4.01)
-0.305**
(5.78)
-0.188**
(3.84)
The S a e-owned and collec i e en e p ise
-0.302**
(4.49)
-0.185**
(3.06)
-0.289**
(4.34)
-0.164**
(2.71)
Fo eign and Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan und en-
e p ise
-0.029
(0.22)
0.050
(0.42)
-0.031
(0.24)
-0.026
(0.22)
Go e nmen and ins i u ional o ganiza ion
-0.388**
(6.04)
-0.292**
(5.06)
-0.391**
(6.18)
-0.283**
(4.91)
In e cep
1.967**
(16.27)
1.945**
(17.53)
2.526**
(24.38)
2.527**
(25.94)
Adjus ed R2
0.270
0.250
0.276
0.255
Obse a ions
1,004
1,335
1,004
1,335
* p <0.05, ** p <0.01
Sou ce: au ho ’s calcula ion, s anda d de ia ions a e gi en in b acke s