All about the money? The gendered effect of education on industrial and occupational sorting

Abstract

Using the 1972 UK compulsory education reform as a natural experiment, we investigate the impact of education on occupational and industrial sorting through Quarterly Labour Force Surveys. Higher education levels increase the likelihood of men working in public administration and non-manual occupations. For women, it leads to a higher probability of employment in health and education industries. The shift of men towards non-manual occupations significantly boosts earnings, while the impact on women’s earnings is more limited. These findings echo gender differences in job characteristic preferences we show using UK International Social Survey Programme data. Men prioritise pecuniary aspects, while women prioritise pro-social aspects of their jobs. Importantly, greater education does not reduce these disparities in job preferences.