Gender earnings discrimination in Jordan: Good intentions are not enough

Abstract

Jordan has long been a party to the main international instruments prohibiting discrimination against women, yet it still displays a significant gender pay gap. Using data from the 2002, 2006 and 2008 Household Expenditure and Income Surveys for decomposition analysis, while also accounting for the labour force participation decisions of women and men, the author finds that the pay gap is entirely explained by gender differentials in his estimated coefficients. The gap is initiated upon recruitment into wage employment through "screening discrimination", though it tends to narrow over time. Women's selectively low participation also contributes to a statistical improvement in their relative earnings.