Research Article

Deinstitutionalized Careers: Intersectionality of Gender Pay Gap among Women Knowledge Workers

Volume: 5 Number: 1 March 27, 2024
EN TR

Deinstitutionalized Careers: Intersectionality of Gender Pay Gap among Women Knowledge Workers

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to explore women knowledge workers’ experiences of the intersectionality of the gender pay gap and to scrutinize the reasons behind gender pay gap. The study problematizes the gender pay gap phenomenon by using intersectionality theory. The study describes how the gender pay gap varies based on ethnical differences besides being women and reveals how this situation deinstitutionalizes women’s careers. The study utilized a descriptive qualitative research design employing thematic analysis conducted in Germany and Türkiye with a purposively selected sample of participants. The study’s empirical material was generated through semi-structured interviews with women knowledge workers who differ in ethnicity and generally work in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. The study’s findings indicated that ethnicity should be considered among other intersectional factors to analyze the gender pay gap comprehensively. The reasons behind the gender pay gap are found to be the lack of transparency in the workplace, gender-based occupational segregation, culture, the glass ceiling, the existence of male-dominated informal communication channels, and the fact that women workers are more easily preferred in organizational downsizing initiatives.

Keywords

gender pay gap, intersectionality theory, women knowledge workers, Germany, Türkiye

Supporting Institution

The research did not receive any support from any institution or organization.

Ethical Statement

In this study, the rules stated in the “Higher Education Institutions Scientific Research and Publication Ethics Directive” were followed.

Thanks

The authors would like to thank the anonymous reviewers of Sosyal Mucit Academic Review and the members of the thesis defense jury for their constructive comments.

References

  1. Abudy, M., Aharon, D. Y., & Shust, E. (2023). Can gender pay-gap disclosures make a difference?. Finance Research Letters, 52, 103583. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.frl.2022.103583
  2. Acker, J. (2012). Gendered organizations and intersectionality: Problems and possibilities. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, 31(3), 214-224. https://doi.org/10.1108/02610151211209072
  3. Adams, W. C. (2015). Conducting semi-structured interviews. In K. E. Newcomer, H. P. Hatry, & J. S. Wholey (Eds.), Handbook of practical program evaluation (pp. 492-505). Jossey-Bass. https://doi.org/10.1002/9781119171386.ch19
  4. Alkadry, M. G., & Tower, L. E. (2013). Slowly but can we say “surely”? Pay equity & segregation a decade later in West Virginia state government. Public Administration Quarterly, 37(2), 210-239. http://www.jstor.org/stable/24372008
  5. Alvesson, M. (2003). Beyond neopositivists, romantics, and localists: A reflexive approach to interviews in organizational research. Academy of Management Review, 28(1), 13-33. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2003.8925191
  6. Arthur, M. B. & Rousseau, D. M. (1996). Introduction: The boundaryless career as a new employment principle. In Arthur, Michael B., Rousseau, & Denise M. (Eds.), The boundaryless career: A new employment principle for a new organizational era (pp. 3-20). Oxford University Press.
  7. Arulampalam, W., Booth, A. L., & Bryan, M. L. (2007). Is there a glass ceiling over Europe? Exploring the gender pay gap across the wage distribution. ILR Review, 60(2), 163-186. https://doi.org/10.1177/001979390706000201
  8. Bennedsen, M., Larsen, B., & Wei, J. (2023). Gender wage transparency and the gender pay gap: A survey. Journal of Economic Surveys, 37(5), 1743-1777. https://doi.org/https://doi.org/10.1111/joes.12545
  9. Bishu, S. G., & Alkadry, M. G. (2017). A systematic review of the gender pay gap and factors that predict it. Administration & Society, 49(1), 65-104. https://doi.org/10.1177/0095399716636928
  10. Blau, F. D., & Kahn, L. M. (2017). The gender wage gap: Extent, trends, and explanations. Journal of Economic Literature, 55(3), 789-865. https://doi.org/10.1257/jel.20160995
APA
Polat, B., & Ağlargöz, O. (2024). Deinstitutionalized Careers: Intersectionality of Gender Pay Gap among Women Knowledge Workers. Sosyal Mucit Academic Review, 5(1), 94-117. https://doi.org/10.54733/smar.1432985
AMA
1.Polat B, Ağlargöz O. Deinstitutionalized Careers: Intersectionality of Gender Pay Gap among Women Knowledge Workers. SMAR. 2024;5(1):94-117. doi:10.54733/smar.1432985
Chicago
Polat, Büşra, and Ozan Ağlargöz. 2024. “Deinstitutionalized Careers: Intersectionality of Gender Pay Gap Among Women Knowledge Workers”. Sosyal Mucit Academic Review 5 (1): 94-117. https://doi.org/10.54733/smar.1432985.
EndNote
Polat B, Ağlargöz O (March 1, 2024) Deinstitutionalized Careers: Intersectionality of Gender Pay Gap among Women Knowledge Workers. Sosyal Mucit Academic Review 5 1 94–117.
IEEE
[1]B. Polat and O. Ağlargöz, “Deinstitutionalized Careers: Intersectionality of Gender Pay Gap among Women Knowledge Workers”, SMAR, vol. 5, no. 1, pp. 94–117, Mar. 2024, doi: 10.54733/smar.1432985.
ISNAD
Polat, Büşra - Ağlargöz, Ozan. “Deinstitutionalized Careers: Intersectionality of Gender Pay Gap Among Women Knowledge Workers”. Sosyal Mucit Academic Review 5/1 (March 1, 2024): 94-117. https://doi.org/10.54733/smar.1432985.
JAMA
1.Polat B, Ağlargöz O. Deinstitutionalized Careers: Intersectionality of Gender Pay Gap among Women Knowledge Workers. SMAR. 2024;5:94–117.
MLA
Polat, Büşra, and Ozan Ağlargöz. “Deinstitutionalized Careers: Intersectionality of Gender Pay Gap Among Women Knowledge Workers”. Sosyal Mucit Academic Review, vol. 5, no. 1, Mar. 2024, pp. 94-117, doi:10.54733/smar.1432985.
Vancouver
1.Büşra Polat, Ozan Ağlargöz. Deinstitutionalized Careers: Intersectionality of Gender Pay Gap among Women Knowledge Workers. SMAR. 2024 Mar. 1;5(1):94-117. doi:10.54733/smar.1432985