Gender and potential wage in Europe: a stochastic frontier approach

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to provide evidence concerning wage differentials and the existence of gender pay discrimination in France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom.Design/methodology/approachThe authors used the stochastic frontier approach as an alternative method to measure the relevance of gender discrimination. This methodology allows them to explain the differences between the potential and the observed wage that an individual could obtain, given his or her human capital endowment.FindingsThe authors found support for wage discrimination against women. The results show that a significant part of the gender wage gap in all the countries analysed is not attributa…