Page 38 - TLU magazine - The Way to The Top

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TALLINN UNIVERSITY MAGAZINE / NO. 14 / SPRING 2020
a higher level of education does not necessarily mean
HIGHERPAYFOR
WOMENINESTONIA
According to Eurostat, the gross hourly salary of female workers in Estonia was 22.7 per cent lower than that of male workers in 2018, while the EU average is 14.8 per cent after the UK's departure. Since the analyses so far have not found clear reasons for the difference in the wages of men and women in Estonia, the Ministry of Social Affairs commissioned a more detailed study to explain the pay gap.
The study is led by Tallinn University sociolo- gists Marge Unt, Kadri Täht and Triin Roosalu. They have the first exciting results to share. Researchers comment on them in an interview with BFM associate professor Barbi Pilvre.
The study confirmed that there is a large gender pay gap in Estonia due to women and men working in different sectors, occupations and companies and that higher education levels for women do not always mean higher salary.
Marge Unt (MU): In terms of the so-called raw or uncorrected gap, how much men and women earn on average in Estonia, the gap is the larg- est in Europe, according to both Eurostat and Statistics Estonia. While the average gap shows signs of decline over the long term, it is still persistent and significantly large. Of course, this is partly explained by the same arguments that are often used – men and women work in dif- ferent positions and consequently earn different wages. The primary analysis of our study also confirms this – the structural factors, i.e. which professions, sectors, types of companies, etc., mainly explain the pay gap in Estonia.
Triin Roosalu (TR): The human capital factors (such as education, employment experience)
are different here than one might expect. This means that people do not receive (more) money according to their level of education, but more important are the field of operation and the characteristics related to the employer.
From what data was the study conducted and what are the plans for further study?
MU: For our analysis, we had a survey dataset of 125,000 Estonian employees, supplemented by information from various registers. Such a vast amount of data will undoubtedly allow the analysis to go into detail. We are also plan- ning to conduct a study ourselves. Specifically, case studies where we investigate and analyse different processes at a company level that may influence the pay gap.
You also found that it might be appropriate to further broaden the definition of the gender pay gap and not limit it to basic pay?
MU: Indeed, a much more appropriate reflec- tor of the gender pay gap is the total income subject to social tax. Of course, non-monetary bonuses can be added here, but simple measur- ability is important in the research process. Income subject to social tax gives a much more adequate picture because when you go to the store or pay your bills, it doesn't matter whether