Discover 8 opportunities in gender

Many operate at the highest levels of governance, where economists comprise an integral cog within the policy-making machine. From this lofty position, their male experience, along with that of their political counterparts, permeates the legislative process, and consequently, male interests - intentionally or otherwise - are formally prioritised and coded into the law. For despite claims to the contrary, no economic decision can be gender neutral; the diverging roles men and women play in the economy make it impossible.

These aren’t easy questions, the rancorous nature of current American politics evidence of their polarising nature. Nevertheless, as social expectations are raised, they require constant reappraisal, for certain injustices necessitate government intervention. Research has shown that gender equality, especially, is reliant on an active, intervening state to provide things the market has historically failed to offer and that are vital to progress - namely parental leave and childcare.

In any field, such inequity would be troubling, but because of the role economics plays in our society—how much it informs public policy—the problem it poses is especially disturbing. While in power, mostly male politicians refer to mostly male economists to legitimise their policy programmes; male priorities derived from male experience are, in effect, trumping their female counterparts. This collaboration serves to imbue patriarchy into the legislation that structures our daily lives, hindering the achievement of gender equality.

The following is an analysis of data taken from the INOMICS Salary Report 2018 - downloadable for registered users here. Specifically, it looks at the representation and average salaries of both men and women, across all levels of seniority, in academia and the private sector. It is the 5th instalment in a series of insights handling the Report’s findings, and the first that seeks analysis through the prism of gender.