Effects of Workplace Competition on Work Time and Gender Inequality

Abstract

High-pay, high-status jobs are competitive and male-dominated and demand long work hours. We study the role of competition in producing the latter two outcomes using two field experiments. Paying tournament prizes for performance induces both men and women to work longer, but men respond more to a high-prize tournament and are more likely to choose tournament-based compensation over a wage rate for large prizes. This demonstrates that high-stakes workplace competition can fuel gender inequality both directly, because men are more likely to enter and win tournaments, and indirectly, by raising work hours, which hurts women who face greater time demands in household production.

Keywords: tournaments, performance pay, long work hours, gender inequality

JEL Classification: M52, M55, J16, J22, J33, J44, D91