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Stock image of a female worker (Picture: Wikimedia Commons/Peter van der Sluijs)
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Stock image of a female worker (Picture: Wikimedia Commons/Peter van der Sluijs)
Wednesday, 11 November 2015 - 10:10
Ethnic minorities, women earn thousands less than white Dutch men
Women and ethnic minorities earn lower salaries in the Dutch labor market than Dutch men. This is the conclusion of the National Salary Survey done by career site Intermediair and Neynrode business University and research done by the Volkskrant
The survey found that working women earn an average of 2,513 euros a year less than men. The salary gap is smaller among younger women than older. Women up to the age of 36 years earn an average of 928 euros less per year than Dutch men. Women over the age of 36 earn almost 3 thousand euros less. There has been some improvement in the salary differences - women's salaries are an average of 7.2 percent lower than men's this year, compared to 7.8 percent in 2013.
The only exception is young women between the ages of 20 and 25 years working in executive positions. These young, female executives actually earn more than their male counterparts, according to the survey.
A similar trend can be seen among ethnic minority women, according to the Volkskrant. The salary gap for the younger is smaller than for the older.Turkish women up to the age of 36 earn 2,600 euros less, compared to those older than 36 who earn 6,500 less a year. Turkish and Moroccan men under the age of 36 years earn an average of 1,700 euros less a year than Dutch men
This disadvantage can be explained in several ways. The "queue for jobs" is one factor, according to Joop Schippers, professor of labor economics at the University of Utrecht. "White men between 25 and 50 years are the first to be taken on. After that white women in the same age .Then older people. Ethnic minorities are further down the line. That is changing, but it needs time", he explained to the Volkskrant. The woman or person of ethnic minority is so happy with the job they got that they are willing to work for a lower salary.
Choice of career also makes a difference. Women often work in healthcare, where salaries are generally lower than in engineering, for example. The fact that many women change to part-time work after having children has an influence as well as level of education.
For the first time this year, the National Salary Survey also looked at what effect greed has on salaries. The researchers expected to find that greed leads to a higher salary, but this only turned out to be the case in sales management positions. Greedy sales management employees earn an average of 10 percent more. Among employees over the age of 35 years in other jobs, greed has a negative effect on the salary.
The survey discovered that people with above average amounts of greed mainly work in mining, realty, banks and insurance. Professors are also more greedy than average. People with below average greed mainly work in education, healthcare and government.