Income Losses of Women and Men Injured at Work

Abstract

Women and men injured at work in Wisconsin during 1989 and 1990 have similar levels of lost earnings in the quarter of injury. However, in the three and one-half years after the post-injury quarter, women lose an average of 9.2 percent of earnings, while men lose only 6.5 percent. Even after accounting for covariates with a variant of the Oaxaca-Blinder-Neumark decomposition, the disparity in long-term losses remains. Differences in injury-related nonemployment account for about half the covariate-adjusted gap over the four-year post-injury period. Changes in hours worked may explain all or part of the remaining gap. Gender differences in labor supply appear likely to account for much of the disparity in losses, but discrimination remains a viable explanation.