The Nexus of Sexual Orientation and Gender in the Determination of Earnings

This analysis of 1989-96 General Social Survey data reveals how sexual orientation and gender jointly influence earnings outcomes. Gay and bisexual men experienced a 30-32% income disadvantage relative to heterosexual peers, while lesbian and bisexual women enjoyed a wage premium of 17-23%. The disp...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Industrial & labor relations review 2003-07, Vol.56 (4), p.622-642
Main Author: Blandford, John M.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bisexual females
Bisexuality
Discrimination
Earnings
Employer Attitudes
Equal Opportunities (Jobs)
Female homosexuality
Gender
Gender discrimination
Income Inequality
Industrial relations
Labour force
Labour market
Labour relations
LGBT
Marital Status
Men
Regression analysis
Salary Wage Differentials
Same sex marriage
Sex
Sex Differences
Sex Role Orientations
Sexual Orientation
Sexual orientation discrimination
Sexuality
Single status
Studies
Trade unions
Wage differential
Wage differentials
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Summary:This analysis of 1989-96 General Social Survey data reveals how sexual orientation and gender jointly influence earnings outcomes. Gay and bisexual men experienced a 30-32% income disadvantage relative to heterosexual peers, while lesbian and bisexual women enjoyed a wage premium of 17-23%. The disparate earnings effects of sexual orientation across genders suggest that workplace discrimination may be only one factor accounting for measured wage differentials associated with sexual orientation. These findings qualify pioneering work on the subject that indicated that wage differentials were attributable largely to employer bias. A further analysis that distinguishes the separate effects of gender, marital status, and sexual orientation suggests that differentials long attributed to marital status may in part reflect previously unobserved effects of sexual orientation.
ISSN:0019-7939
2162-271X
DOI:10.1177/001979390305600405