Harvard University professor Claudia Goldin wins Nobel economics prize research on the workplace gender gap – the third woman to ever win the accolade

A renowned Harvard professor has won the Nobel Prize in economics for her research on the women’s labor market.

Claudia Goldin was awarded the economics prize on Monday – for a body of work that seeks to explain why women are less likely than men to secure employment and are likely to earn less when they do.

She is the third woman to win the top economics prize.

Fittingly, the announcement marked a small step towards closing a gender gap among Nobel laureates in the prize’s economic category – with American Elinor Ostrom winning a win in 2009 and Esther Duflo doing so a decade later.

Born in New York just after World War II, Godin is a product of the advances seen since then — and was over the moon when she received a phone call in the Cambridge, Massachusetts, home she shares with her husband and dog revealing the victory of her.

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Claudia Goldi — a Harvard adjunct professor known for her research on the male-female wage gap — won the Nobel Prize in economics on Monday for research on the women’s labor market. The 77-year-old is seen here speaking to the press at the prestigious school after securing victory

In Stockholm, officials from the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences – the committee that awards the prize – hailed the tenured professor for “(providing) the first comprehensive account of women’s earnings and labor market outcomes over the centuries”.

Some 5,000 miles away in Sweden, officials from the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences – the committee that awards the prize – hailed the 77-year-old for ‘(providing) the first comprehensive account of women’s earnings and labor market outcomes over the centuries’.

Randi Hjalmarsson, a member of the committee, added how the Harvard historian ‘had to be a detective’ after analyzing more than 200 years of US data to demonstrate that much of the gender pay gap could be explained historically .

Driven largely by differences in education and occupation, the disparity was uncovered in a body of work that spanned decades — and centered around topics such as the evolution of women’s labor force and its implications for future labor markets.

However, thanks to her extensive studies that helped her become the first female in her school to secure tenure, Goldin also shed light on other lesser-known sources of the earnings gap—such as a woman’s first child.

During a 15-year study of business school students conducted by Godin in 2010 at the University of Chicago, she found evidence that the wage gap between men and women began to widen a year or two after a woman had her first child .

When the prize winner was announced in Stockholm on Monday, Hjalmarsson cited such discoveries as the driving force behind his and other committee members’ decisions – along with the ‘huge societal implications’ of her findings.

These findings sought to answer long-standing questions such as why only half of the world’s nearly 4 billion women have paid jobs, compared to 80 percent of men.

Economists have historically attributed the existence of the gap to the failure of jobs to give qualified women a chance, or because they either did not compete for jobs or were not properly considered.

Goldin, the first woman ever to attend the prestigious university, is seen here arriving at Harvard with her husband, fellow Harvard economist Lawrence, and their 14-year-old dog, Pika, whom she raised from a puppy.

Sge was all smiles as she arrived in a procession of press and faculty at the Cambridge school, before giving a speech in which she thanked being recognized and even considered

Earlier in the day, she said she hoped her work would help others understand how important long-term life changes are to understanding the job market – including women.

Her research – which spanned decades – sought to find the reasons for wage disparities and often found that they resulted from decisions women made about their prospects in the labor market and about their families’ personal circumstances.

Goldin, however, sought to find the reasons behind such disparities—and often found that they resulted from decisions women made about their prospects in the labor market and the personal circumstances of their families.

Some women underestimated their employment opportunities, she found, while others felt overwhelmed by responsibilities at home.

“Women are now more educated than men,” Goldin noted in an interview Monday, shortly before arriving at Harvard after winning the award to address members of the press and faculty.

“They graduate from college at much higher rates than men. They do better in high school than men. So why do these differences exist?’ she asked rhetorically,

“We recognize that these differences, although some are found within the labor market, are really reflections of what happens inside individuals’ homes.

She added further, after learning she was the first woman to be the sole winner of the award in each year: “And they are an interaction between what happens at home and what happens in the labor market.”

Goldin is only the third woman to win the award and the first woman to be the sole winner in each year

Goldin was seen talking to a reporter on the phone at her home in Cambridge, Massachusetts, after learning she won the Nobel Prize in Economics on Monday.

During a 15-year study of business school students conducted by Godin in 2010 at the University of Chicago, Goldin found evidence that the wage gap between men and women began to widen a year or two after a woman had her first child .

Golding – seen here with dog Pika – was asleep when the phone call informing her of her win came, having got up earlier in the day to let the dog out. She said she was ‘delighted’ with the news

In an interview with the New York Times shortly after her win, she revealed she was asleep when the phone call informing her of the award came, saying she had gotten up earlier to let her golden retriever Pika out, but had gone back to bed. . .

She told the paper she was ‘delighted’ with the news.

“We see a remnant of history around us,” she said, trying to explain some of the sentiment seen in her work.

“We will never have gender equality until we have couple equality,” she added, citing the dynamics present in relationships that influence pay disparities.

Acknowledging that there have been “monumental progressive changes” even since she joined Harvard in 1990, she added that “at the same time, there are important differences” that can often be explained by women doing more work at home.

Furthermore, a persistent wage gap that sees women in advanced economies earn on average around 13 percent less than men further discourages women from pursuing work or furthering their education to qualify for more advanced gigs, fueling inequality.

Goldin compiled new databases using sources such as industrial statistics and historical surveys of how people used their time to find these and other answers, which Nobel officials on Monday credited “for advancing our understanding of women’s labor market outcomes”.

Her prize follows this year’s Nobel honors in medicine, physics, chemistry, literature and peace that were announced last week.

It also follows last year’s three winners in economics: Former Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, Douglas W. Diamond and Philip Dybvig for their research into the bank failures that helped shape America’s aggressive response to the 2007 financial crisis. – is.