Gender, Absenteeism, and Job Characteristics

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Abstract
It is well documented that women are generally absent from work more often than men. Using data from two large samples of Norwegian public sector employees, the authors use fixed effects methods to compare men and women who have identical job titles and work in the same workplace. Even under presumably very similar employment and working conditions, women have 1.3 to 1.7 times as many absences as men. The authors also provide strong indications that the gender difference is not due to women's greater problems in combining paid work with care for children. Because the gender difference is larger for longer absences requiring certification by a physician than for short absences not requiring such certification, the authors suggest that the gender difference in absenteeism is not primarily due to differences in work values. The difference in absenteeism is more likely to reflect general health or personality differences between men and women.