Gender differences in productivity rewards: the role of human capital

In this paper, we evaluate the gender wage gap component due to differences in characteristics’ rewards in Italy. The main focus is on the relationship between human capital characteristics and gender differences in rewards. We propose a methodology that combines the quantile regression analysis with non-parametric procedures for the estimation of the probability density functions of reward differentials in order to evaluate the evolution of the gap due to human capital characteristics. The analysis is carried out on Italian data taken from the latest available cross-section of the European Community Household Panel (2001). Our study suggests that education can be a good productivity signal and helps reduce the range of the gap; furthermore, highly educated women experience lesser gender-based pay differences as the length of the employment relationship increases.