Gender Differences in Job Flexibility

Abstract

In this paper, I explore the factors of workplace flexibility under the compensating differential framework and examine the gender differences in how flexibility is experienced from three different angles: workplace culture, flexible work arrangements, and occupational characteristics. I propose and examine four components, which are reasons for paid leave, intermissions during work hours, work from home, and flexible job characteristics that arise from work style and values. The regression analysis of these measures against weekly wage revealed that the same flexible work arrangements could be cheaper or more expensive based on gender, which may be connected to traditional gender roles. In identifying that the worker’s skill level leads to endogeneity, I employ the spouse’s usual work hours as an instrument. Although the instrument turned out to be poor, the IV regression results support that there is some female penalty—making the price of taking flexible work arrangements more expensive for females—correlated with flexible work. This penalty seems to be also related to the findings by Goldin (2014), which states that nonlinearity of wage with respect to work hours generates a gender pay gap for women who require more workplace flexibility.