Gender Equality and Positive Action: Evidence from UK Universities
AEA Papers and Proceedings
vol. 109,
May 2019
(pp. 105-09)
(Complimentary)
Abstract
This paper examines the impact of the Athena Scientific Women's Academic Network (SWAN) Charter on the wages and employment trajectories of female faculty. The Athena SWAN Charter is a gender equality initiative that formally recognizes good practice towards the representation and career progression of women in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) through an accreditation process. We find that the gender wage gap closes after Athena SWAN accreditation. However, female faculty at the non-professorial level are not more likely to be promoted to professor after accreditation, or to move to an Athena SWAN accredited university. Taken together these results suggest that the higher wage growth experienced by female non-professorial faculty after Athena SWAN accreditation is likely to come from pay rises within a particular rank.Citation
Gamage, Danula K., and Almudena Sevilla. 2019. "Gender Equality and Positive Action: Evidence from UK Universities." AEA Papers and Proceedings, 109: 105-09. DOI: 10.1257/pandp.20191096Additional Materials
JEL Classification
- D63 Equity, Justice, Inequality, and Other Normative Criteria and Measurement
- I23 Higher Education; Research Institutions
- J16 Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
- J31 Wage Level and Structure; Wage Differentials
- J44 Professional Labor Markets; Occupational Licensing
- J62 Job, Occupational, and Intergenerational Mobility; Promotion
- J71 Labor Discrimination