Abstract:
This study focuses on the wage gap between Mexican American men and Mexican American women, and factors contributing to this disparity. People of Mexican descent make up 67% of the U.S. Hispanic population. Previous research tends to lump Hispanics together, masking differences between groups. Even more, studies considering Hispanic subgroups rarely examine gender differences on income. Using secondary data analysis of the March 2005 Current Population Survey Annual Social and Economic Supplement, this study examines a neglected subgroup, Mexican Americans, and the income gap within this group. The sample size is 3,408 with Mexican American men comprising 55.2% of the sample and Mexican American women 44.8%. This study employs an income determination model composed of three model segments. Theoretical models include an individual component (comprised of variables such as age and education), a structural component (comprised of variables such as occupation and skill-level), and a gender component (comprised of variables such as sex and occupational sex segregation). Univariate, bivariate, and multivariate analyses are used to examine the independent effects of variables on income. Based on mean annual earnings, analysis shows that net of other factors, an 81% wage gap exists between groups with Mexican American men earning $30,337 and Mexican American women earning $24,548. When examining different elements of the theoretical model, structural model components account for the most variance explained on income between groups. This suggests that gendered discrimination within institutions may affect inequality in pay between men and women.
