GENDER PAY EQUITY AND SOCIAL SUSTAINABILITY: PERSPECTIVES FROM UKRAINIAN ENERGY COMPANIES
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17721/1728-2667.2026/229-2/16Keywords:
gender wage gap, energetics, professions groups, inequality, access to work, sustainability.Abstract
Background. The study's relevance lies in analyzing the gender wage gap in Ukraine's energy sector, using survey data from energy companies to identify its key drivers. The study aims to provide empirical insights into the causes of this gap. The object of the study is the processes of wage determination and pay inequality across professional groups within energy companies, while the subject is the approaches and tools for assessing gender-based differences in wages and career progression. Applying the factor-weighted gender pay gap method, the research estimates disparities between women and men with comparable education, tenure, and hierarchical positions. The findings show that unequal access to wage-enhancing qualifications and experience is the main driver of the gap, with evidence of informal institutional barriers limiting women's career progression. These results have practical implications for revising gender equality policies and strengthening women's roles in the energy industry.
Methods. The article applies the factor-weighted gender pay gap method, grouping employees by education, tenure, and position in the qualification hierarchy to estimate gender pay differences.
Results. The study showed that the gender wage gap in Ukraine's energy sector is mainly driven by unequal access of women to wage-enhancing qualifications and experience, with evidence of informal institutional barriers that hinder their career progression.
Conclusions. The study concludes that gender wage inequality in Ukraine's energy sector mirrors patterns seen in Europe, is most pronounced at lower qualification levels, and is reinforced by "men's clubs" practices, highlighting the urgent need to remove institutional barriers to women's career advancement, especially under wartime labor shortages.
Downloads
References
Acker, J. (1990). Hierarchies, jobs, bodies: A theory of gendered organizations. Gender & Society, 4(2), 139–158. https://doi.org/10.1177/089124390004002002
Analysis of gender equality and social inclusion in relation to meeting the needs of the population of Ukraine, affected by the full-scale military invasion of Russia (2023). https://poruch.com.ua/researchukrainianduringthewar
Becker, G. S. (1957). The economics of discrimination. University of Chicago Press.
Bimrose, J., & Hearne, L. (2012). Resilience and career adaptability: Qualitative studies of career counselling. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 81, 338–344. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2012.08.002
Blau, F. D., & Kahn, L. M. (2017). The gender wage gap: Extent, trends, and explanations. Journal of Economic Literature, 55(3), 789–865. https://doi.org/10.1257/jel.20160995
Blau, F. D., & Winkler, A. E. (2017). The economics of women, men, and work. Oxford University Press.
Connell, R. W. (2002). Gender. Polity Press.
Cool, J. (2010). Wage gap between women and men. Ottawa, Canada: Library of Parliament.
Cortina, L. M. (2008). Unseen injustice: Incivility as modern discrimination in organizations. Academy of Management Review, 33(1), 55–75. https://doi.org/10.5465/amr.2008.27745097
Cotter, D. A., Hermsen, J. M., Ovadia, S., & Vanneman, R. (2001). The glass ceiling effect. Social Forces, 80(2), 655–681. https://doi.org/10.1353/sof.2001.0091
Davidson, M. J., & Cooper, C. L. (1992). Shattering the glass ceiling: The women manager. Paul Chapman Publishing.
Dreher, G. F. (2003). Breaking the glass ceiling: The effects of sex ratios and work-life programs on female leadership at the top. Human Relations, 56(5), 541–562. https://doi.org/10.1177/0018726703056005002
Dyachuk, O., Galustyan, Y., & Blizniuk, V. (2019). Women and men in the energy sector of Ukraine. Heinrich Böll Foundation.
Ferry, K. (2018). Gender pay gap: Data and technical report. Korn Ferry.
Fevre, R. (2003). The sociology of labour markets. Cardiff University.
Frome, P. M., Alfeld, C. J., Eccles, J. S., & Barber, B. L. (2006). Why don't they want a male‐dominated job? An investigation of young women who changed their occupational aspirations. Educational Research and Evaluation, 12(4), 359–372. https://doi.org/10.1080/13803610600765786
Gender aspects of employment in the energy sector of Ukraine (2021). https://drive.google.com/file/d/191uzG6R0XKvult9fJEG2ERCORLGToS6X/ view?fbclid=IwAR0n9qDg6kJb9kfSkRytL_WtSoPCDN2ifqh-3X6YWcSps1R pjVQ7HvvqwaY
Goldin, C. (2015). Hours flexibility and the gender gap in pay. Center for American Progress.
ILO (2017). World employment and social outlook: Trends for women. Geneva: International Labour Office.
ILO (2018). Global wage report 2018/19: What lies behind gender pay gaps. Geneva: International Labour Organization.
Iversen, T., Rosenbluth, F. M., & Skorge, Ø. S. (2020). The dilemma of gender equality: How labor market regulation divides women by class. Daedalus, 149(1), 86–99. https://doi.org/10.1162/daed_a_01775
Jogulu, U., & Esmé, F. (2023). The career resilience of senior women managers: A cross-cultural perspective. Gender, Work & Organization, 30(1), 280–300. https://doi.org/10.1111/gwao.12829
Koshulko, O., & Dluhopolskyi, O. (2022). Exploring women's resistance against occupation and war in Ukraine. Estudos Feministas, 30(1), 1–12. https://doi.org/10.17177/estfem.30.1.123
Kräft, C. (2022). Equal pay behind the "glass door"? The gender gap in upper management in a male-dominated industry. Gender, Work & Organization, 29(6), 1910–1926. https://doi.org/10.1111/gwao.12890
Lazear, E. P. (1981). Agency, earnings profile, productivity, and hours restrictions. American Economic Review, 71, 606–620.
Libanova, E. M. (Ed.). (2015). Human development in Ukraine: Modernization of social policy. Kyiv : Ptoukha Institute for Demography and Social Studies of the National Academy of Sciences of Ukraine.
Linnenluecke, M. K. (2017). Resilience in business and management research: A review of influential publications and a research agenda. International Journal of Management Reviews, 19, 4–30. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijmr.12076
Martin, P. Y. (2003). "Said and done" versus "saying and doing" – Gendering practices, practicing gender at work. Gender & Society, 17(3), 342–366. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891243203251716
Mincer, J. (1974). Schooling, experience, and earnings. New York: National Bureau of Economic Research Press.
Munasinghe, L., Reif, T., & Henriques, A. (2008). Gender gap in wage returns to job tenure and experience. Labour Economics, 15(6), 1296–1316. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.labeco.2007.12.003
OECD. (2012). Gender equality in education, employment, and entrepreneurship. Paris: OECD Publishing.
Pereira, P. T., & Martins, P. S. (2004). Returns to education and wage equations. Applied Economics, 36(6), 525–531. https://doi.org/10.1080/0003684042000217571
Psacharopoulos, G., & Patrinos, H. A. (2004). Returns to investment in education: A further update. Education Economics, 12(2), 111–134. https://doi.org/10.1080/0964529042000239140
Risberg, A., & Corvellec, H. (2022). The significance of trying: How organizational members meet the ambiguities of diversity. Gender, Work & Organization, 29(6), 1849–1867. https://doi.org/10.1111/gwao.12883
Sabirianova, K. (2001). The great human capital allocation. EERC Working Paper, 2K/11.
Salop, J., & Salop, S. (1976). Self-selection and turnover in the labor market. The Quarterly Journal of Economics, 90(4), 619. https://doi.org/10.2307/1885325
Simakhova, A., Dluhopolskyi, O., Kozlovskyi, S., Butenko, V., & Saienko, V. (2022). Healthcare sector in European countries: Assessment of economic capacity under the COVID-19 pandemic. Problems and Perspectives in Management, 20(2), 22–32. https://doi.org/10.21511/ppm.20(2).2022.03
State Statistics Service of Ukraine (2019). Economic activity of the population of Ukraine 2018. Kyiv : State Statistics Service of Ukraine.
Szczepanska, A. M. (2023). Women's inclusion and neoliberal governmentality in the Swedish digital game industry: An analysis of discursive positions and recruitment strategies. Gender, Work & Organization, 30(3), 842–861. https://doi.org/10.1111/gwao.12923
Tokbaeva, D., & Achtenhagen, L. (2023). Career resilience of female professionals in the male‐dominated IT industry in Sweden: Toward a process perspective. Gender, Work & Organization, 30(1), 223–262. https://doi.org/10.1111/gwao.12671
Tyshchenko, M., Verba, D., Garashchenko, S., & Verkhovod, I. (2022). Factors of the gender wage gap at Ukrainian energy enterprises. Financial and Credit Activity: Problems of Theory and Practice, 6(41), 512–520. https://doi.org/10.18371/fcaptp.v6i41.251518
Ukrstat (2010). Classifier of professions. https://zakon.rada.gov.ua/rada/show/va327609-10#Text
Vysochyna, A., Vasylieva, T., Dluhopolskyi, O., Marczuk, M., Grytsyshen, D., Yunger, V., & Sulimierska, A. (2023). Impact of coronavirus disease COVID-19 on the relationship between healthcare expenditures and sustainable economic growth. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 20(4), 3049. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph20043049
Windsor, C., & Auyeung, P. (2006). The effect of gender and dependent children on professional accountants' career progression. Critical Perspectives on Accounting, 17(6), 828–844. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.cpa.2004.11.007
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Марія ТИЩЕНКО, канд. екон. наук, доц., Анастасія ВІРКОВСЬКА, канд. екон. наук, доц., Тетяна ДЛУГОПОЛЬСЬКА, канд. екон. каук, доц., Денис ВЕРБА, канд. екон. наук, доц.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Please read more here: https://econom.bulletin.knu.ua/copyright
