The gender pay gap is well documented in Britain, with the latest figures showing that the average pay in the UK is 14.3 per cent less for women than men.
But a new study has shown that men don’t just get higher wages – they expect them too.
Researchers from the University of Cologne surveyed over 15,000 students about their salary expectations after university.
Their results show that male students anticipate being paid 15 per cent more than females in their first job.
‘Even prior to labor market entry women expect much lower wages than men,’ the researchers wrote.
The gender pay gap is well known in the UK, with the latest figures showing that the average pay in the UK is 14.3 per cent less for women than men. But a new study has shown that men don’t just get higher wages – they expect them too (stock image)
Throughout their careers, men (represented by the blue dotted line) expect to be paid significantly more than women (represented by the red line), the study revealed
A report by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) published last year revealed that female workers typically earn 14.3 per cent a year less than men.
But until now, the gender differences in expected wages before entering the job market has been largely unexplored.
In their new study, the team set to rectify this by surveying 15,000 students and recent graduates.
The participants were asked about their degree, salary expectations, sociodemographic information, expectations on child-rearing and salary negotiation plans.
The results revealed that the female participants expected to earn significantly less than the male participants.
Male students said they expected to earn €40,582 (£34,679) on average in their first job out of university.
A report by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) published last year revealed that female workers typically earn 14.3 per cent a year less than men
Meanwhile, female students said they expected to be paid €34,331 (£29,337) on average – 15 per cent less than the males.
This means that the female students would need to work on average around four hours more per week in the same occupation and industry to catch up with the expected starting wages of their male peers.
Over a lifetime, this gender gap in expected wages is even more pronounced, totalling a whopping €600,000 (£512,728).
Delving deeper into the results, the researchers found that males expect to earn on average €49,000 (£41,872) after nine years of experience.
This is almost as high as the highest level of females expect to earn throughout their entire careers (€51,000 [£43,581] at the age of 50).
While the reason for this remains unclear, the researchers have several theories.
Writing in their study, published in Labour Economics, the researchers wrote: ‘Our finding that females plan to be less bold compared to their male counterparts seems to be driven by anticipation of gender discrimination, as well as a preference for having children soon.
‘Women also fear to be viewed as impudent and to risk a lower final wage outcome if they act boldly in wage negotiations.’
The team says the findings suggest women should be better trained in salary negotiation.
‘It might be important for women to be trained in wage negotiation to ensure they do not undervalue themselves, and do not allow any anticipated gender discrimination to stop them from demanding more money, as our research suggests that bold bargaining does make a positive difference,’ said Pia Pinger, lead author of the study.
