Millennial women paid less than male colleagues in similar jobs

Working women in their early 30s in England are paid less than men of the same age, in the same types of jobs, who have similar levels of education and work experience, finds a new study from UCL researchers.

The report, published today by the UCL Centre for Longitudinal Studies, also finds that women are more likely than men to find work stressful, suggesting that lower pay is not compensated for by less pressured work.

What the researchers looked at

The researchers analysed data from more than 7,200 people in England, born in 1989-90, whose lives are being followed by the Next Steps study. Drawing on data collected in 2022-23, when study members were aged 32, they examined information about people’s employment, home and family life, as well as job quality measures, such as work stress, job satisfaction, prospects for career advancement and job security.

Gender pay differences

On average, women without children earned nine per cent less per hour than men without children with similar individual characteristics, such as family background, educational qualifications and work experience, as well as job characteristics, including occupation, hours worked and contract type.

This pay gap was even wider for mothers, who earned on average 16% less than men without children. Fathers’ earnings were similar to men without children.

Job quality

The study’s authors found no evidence to suggest that women were trading off pay against being in less stressful and more fulfilling roles. Women, especially those without children, were more likely than men to report finding work always or often stressful and were equally likely to be satisfied with their roles.

Despite differences in pay, most men and women were happy with their jobs. For instance, 80% of workers were satisfied or very satisfied with their work, and over 90% thought they were unlikely to lose their jobs in the next 12 months. In addition, more than 90% felt they were doing useful work and over 65% said their employers motivated them to give their best performance.

Dr Bożena Wielgoszewska (UCL Centre for Longitudinal Studies) said: “Despite women overtaking men in terms of educational attainment, our new findings highlight sizeable gender pay differences among workers in this well-educated and economically active generation.

“What is concerning is that women are paid less than men, even when comparing women and men working in similar jobs and with similar characteristics such as their educational attainment and age.

Are women paid less because they seek less stressful and more fulfilling jobs?

“One theory suggests that women may accept lower pay for less stressful and more enjoyable work, but we do not find evidence of that,” continued Dr Wielgoszewska.

“Women are equally likely to be satisfied with their jobs and are actually more likely to find their work stressful than men.”

Gender pay differences in England have gradually reduced over time, but progress has stalled in recent years, especially for mothers. The researchers say it is hard to pin down to what extent this motherhood pay penalty is driven by personal choices, gendered social norms or systemic barriers to both parents working full-time.

Policy implications

Dr Wielgoszewska added: “Mothers’ work opportunities are often limited by a lack of good quality and flexible work, and affordable childcare. Whether the new government’s funded childcare initiative will help remains to be seen. Ensuring mothers have access to good quality part-time work opportunities, with potential for wage progression and career advancement should be explored as part of the government’s new ‘make work pay’ agenda.

“Motherhood pay penalty aside, we also found gender differences in pay among workers who do not have children and work full-time. It is possible that more detailed information on work tasks, values, attitudes or preferences may help to better understand the reasons why the gender pay gap persists. It is also possible that other explanations play a role, such as discrimination in hiring, firing, wage-setting or promotion. It is imperative that policymakers do as much as they can to strengthen equal opportunity structures for men and women, including mothers and fathers, to ensure people are able to make the best decisions about work for themselves and their families.”

Media coverage of this research

The Times (£) – Millennial women earn 9% less than men in same jobs

Further information

Women’s pay penalty and job quality: initial findings from Next Steps at age 32, by Bożena Wielgoszewska, Alex Bryson, Claire Crawford and Heather Joshi is available on the CLS website.

Study methodology

Working patterns – At age 32, 86% of both men and women without children were in paid employment, compared to 75% of mothers (including those on maternity leave) and 90% of fathers. Mothers were more likely to be employed part-time, with 33% working reduced hours compared to seven per cent of women without children and four per cent of all men. Mothers were also more likely to be employed on zero-hours contracts.

Unadjusted rates of pay – Among 32-year-olds in employment, the unadjusted median hourly pay was £16.35 per hour for men and £14.27 for women. Gender differences were particularly stark among parents. The median hourly pay of mothers was only £12.50 per hour, while fathers earned £15.56. Some, but not all, of this gap is driven by more mothers working part-time, as part-time work is typically less-well paid per hour than full-time work. There was also a much smaller gender pay gap among those without children who primarily work full-time, with women earning £16.35 and men £16.89 per hour.

People’s background – When comparing wage differences of similar people in similar jobs, the researchers took into account the following individual characteristics: ethnicity, parents’ education, housing tenure, region, partnership status, number and age of children living at home, education, and employment history.

Job characteristics – The researchers considered information from study participants about weekly hours worked, occupation, contract type, how satisfied they were with their job, work stress, job security, career prospects, how useful they thought their work is, and the extent to which their employer motivates them.

Next Steps has followed the lives of around 16,000 people in England, born in 1989-90, since secondary school. The study collects information about cohort members’ education and employment, economic circumstances, family life, physical and emotional health and wellbeing, social participation and attitudes. Next Steps was established in 2004 by the UK Department for Education. Since 2015, the study has been managed by the UCL Centre for Longitudinal Studies and funded by the Economic and Social Research Council. Data from the latest survey, the Next Steps Age 32 Sweep are now available for researchers to download from the UK Data Service. www.cls.ucl.ac.uk/next-steps