Five things we need to do to close the gender wage gap
‘Firms and universities must take diversity and inclusion seriously. Many already do, but there is still room for progress,’ says NHH Professor Astrid Kunze to Authority Magazine.
Professor Astrid Kunze
- Astrid.Kunze@nhh.no
- Telephone
- +47 55 95 97 54
- Department
- Economics
- Centre
- CBE
- Office
- E248
- Expertise
- Labour Economics Applied Microeconometrics Public Finance
BIOGRAPHY
Astrid Kunze is Professor of Economics at the Norwegian School of Economics in Bergen, Norway. From 2000 to 2002, she was employed as a Research Associate at IZA. She holds a Ph.D. from University College London and an MSc from University of Bielefeld. She also did a traineeship in business economics with Bayer AG Leverkusen. She spent two longer-term research visits in 2006/2007 and 2013/2014 at IZA as a Visiting Research Fellow.
Her main research interests are labour economics and applied micro-econometrics. She is particularly interested in the causal effects of public policies on labour market behavior. Kunze has conducted studies on the evaluation of parental leave policies, child care programmes and cash-for care policies, as well as gender quotas on boards. Another area of her research covers aspects of organizations and diversity in the firm. In her empirical research, she uses large register data applying micro-econometric methods.
She is a contributor to the Handbook on Women and the Economy published with Oxford University Press in 2018. Her research has been published in journals such as the Review of Economics and Statistics, Labour Economics, Oxford Review of Economic Policy, Empirical Economics and Scandinavian Journal of Economics.
In 2020, Kunze received a 6-year Grant from the Norwegian Research Council for her project titled Challenges to shaping an inclusive work-life in rapidly changing labour markets: Firms, human capital, and family policy.
In 2022, Kunze was awarded the Inaugural European Economics Association Teaching Award (Senior) for exceptional teaching. The jury consisted of two EEA Council Members and the Education Committee.
Kunze is Research fellow at IZA and CESIfo.
Download CV
Selected publications
| Author(s) | Title | Publisher |
|---|---|---|
| Corekcioglu, Gozde; Kunze, Astrid; Francesconi, Marco | Do generous parental leave policies help top female earners? | Oxford review of economic policy Volume 36 (4); page 882 - 902; 2020 |
| Kunze, Astrid | The effect of children on male earnings and inequality | Review of Economics of the Household; 2019 |
| Kunze, Astrid | The Gender Wage Gap in Developed Countries | The Oxford Handbook of Woman and the Economy.; 2017 |
| Kunze, Astrid | Types of absence from work and wages of young workers with apprenticeship training. | Zeitschrift für Arbeitsmarktforschung Volume 51 (5); 2017 |
| Kunze, Astrid; Miller, Amalia R. | Women Helping Women? Evidence from Private Sector Data on Workplace Hierarchies. | Review of Economics and Statistics Volume 99 (5); page 769 - 775; 2017 |
| Kunze, Astrid | Parental Leave and Maternal Labor Supply. | IZA World of Labor Volume 279 (9 pages); 2016 |
| Kunze, Astrid | The family gap in career progression | Research in Labor Economics Volume 41; page 115 - 142; 2015 |
| Kunze, Astrid; Troske, Kenneth R. | Gender Differences in Job Search Among Young Workers: A Study using Displaced Workers in the United States | Southern Economic Journal Volume 82 (1); page 185 - 207; 2015 |
| Ejrnæs, Mette; Kunze, Astrid | Work and Wage Dynamics around Childbirth | The Scandinavian Journal of Economics Volume 115 (3); page 856 - 877; 2013 |
| Kunze, Astrid; Kenneth R., Troske | Life-cycle patterns in male/female differences in job search | Labour Economics Volume 19 (2); page 176 - 185; 2012 |
| Epstein, Gil S.; Kunze, Astrid; Ward, Melanie | HIGH-SKILLED MIGRATION AND THE EXERTION OF EFFORT BY THE LOCAL POPULATION | Scottish Journal of Political Economy Volume 56 (3); page 332 - 352; 2009 |
| Kunze, Astrid | Gender wage gap studies: consistency and decomposition | Empirical Economics Volume 35; page 63 - 76; 2008 |
| Kunze, Astrid; Fitzenberger, Bernd | Vocational training and gender: wages and occupational mobility among young workers | Oxford review of economic policy Volume 21 (3); page 392 - 415; 2005 |
| Kunze, Astrid | The evolution of the gender wage gap | Labour Economics Volume 12 (1); page 73 - 97; 2005 |
Other research interests: Applied Macroeconomics, Corporate Governance, Strategic Management
Research in progress
- Do generous parental leave policies help top female earners? (joint with Gozde Corekcioglu (Kadir Has University) and Marco Francesconi (University of Essex)), accepted for publication in Oxford Review of Economic Policy.
- Universal childcare for the youngest and maternal labour supply, joint with Xingfei Liu (University of Alberta)
- Unintended consequences of gender quotas on boards (joint with Katrin Scharfenkamp (University of Duisburg-Essen))
- Flexible work arrangements for mothers, joint with Xingfei Liu (University of Alberta).
- Parental leave from the firms’ perspective (joint with Gozde Corekcioglu (Kadir Has University) and Marco Francesconi (University of Essex))
Other publications in Scandinavian language
- Kunze, A. (2020): Kjønnsmessig mangfold i ledelsen, Magma, No. 320, årgang 23, 3/2020.
- Introduction/Fagleder «Kvinner og Toppledelse» in special issue Kvinner og Toppledelse i Magma, No. 320, årgang 23, 3/2020.
Editor
Other Academic affiliations
- Research Fellow at IZA.
- Research Fellow at CESIfo.
- Member of the Ausschuss für Bevölkerungsökonomie of the Verein für Socialpolitik
- Member of the Council of the European Society of Population Economics (ESPE) – 2010-2016
- Fellow of Center for Business Economics (CBE) Center at NHH
- Fellow of Center for Corporate Finance (CCF) Center at NHH.
TEACHING AREAS
Bachelor:
The Economics of the Firm (VOA 050)
Applied Macroeconomics (VOA 023)
Master:
Diversity in Firms and Ethics (ETI451)
Human Capital, Mobility and Diversity in Firms (STR445) Personnel Economics (STR435)
Introduction to Econometrics (ECN402)
Topics in Empirical Analysis (ECO433)
PhD:
Econometrics
Labour Economics
Statistics
Teaching language: English, Norwegian
Dissemination
Excellence in Reviewing Certificate to Kunze
Astrid Kunze has received the excellence in Reviewing Certificate from Labour Economics.
Astrid KUNZE APPOINTED FULL PROFESSOR
`It is a great honor for me to be appointed as a Full Professor in economics at NHH´, Astrid Kunze says.
Women and Workplace Hierarchies
An article by Astrid Kunze has recently been accepted by The Review of Economics and Statistics. Publication in this prestigious journal triggers NHH´s bonus.
- Prepare for maternity leave
The same old story in Norway? Women with children progress slower on the career path, than women who do not have children. Why is that surprising for a country known for its gender equality and a paid paternal quota of 10 weeks?
Highly educated women lose most from having children
New research by economist Astrid Kunze shows that taking a few years off work results in bigger losses for highly educated women than for women with less education. She is critical of the cash benefit system.
In English:
- Can women have it all: Childcare, paid parental leave and keeping women working, Asia and The Pacific Policy Society, Policy Forum.
- Women Helping Women: Study Shows Promoting One Woman Helps Many More, UVAToday
- Corporate Peak still out of reach for most Women, Financial Times, 5 March, 2015
- How to redress the gender imbalance, Times Higher Education.
In German:
- Frau fördert Frau, Wirtschaftswoche, 11 Feb. 2015.
In Norwegian:
- Jenter velger annerledes, Intervju i Magma, 2019.
- Kvinner har feil, menn har potensial, DN, 30 May 2015.
- I denne likestillingsstatistikk blir vi knust, E24, 25 May 2015.
- Kvinner hjelper hverandre opp og frem på jobb. Eller?, Aftenposten, 28 Sept. 2014.
- Derfor sakker kvinner akterut, Finansavisen, 27 Sept. 2014.
- De lønnsome barn, Finansavisen, 5 May 2014.
- Høyt utdannede kvinner taper mest på å få barn, DN, Forskning.no, Dec. 2013.
- Disse kvinnene taper mest på å få barn, E24, Dec. 2013.