ALL WOMEN BENEFIT - THE MACROLEVEL EFFECT OF OCCUPATIONAL INTEGRATIONON GENDER EARNINGS EQUALITY

Macro-level processes transfer many of the income benefits of occupati onal integration to all women in the labor market, not just to those w omen who enter predominantly male (and therefore high-paying) occupati ons. We investigate these macro-level effects in a multi-level model c omparing 261 metropolitan area labor markets. We find that occupationa l integration is strongly associated with gender earnings equality, ev en after extensive individual-and macro-level controls are introduced. The size of the association implies that the entire gender gap in ear nings would be eliminated if occupational integration were complete. T his macro-level estimate is far higher than the 9 percent to 38 percen t estimates found in individual-level studies. Moreover; an individual -level control for the gender composition of a worker's occupation exp lains little of the macro-level occupational association between integ ration and earnings equality. Women in predominantly female occupation s benefit almost as much from an integrated labor market as do women i n predominantly male occupations.