This study explores how gender and age interact in shaping beliefs about fair pay through a factorial survey experiment conducted with German employees. Respondents evaluated hypothetical worker descriptions varying in age, gender, and earnings. While no gender gap in fair earnings was found for the youngest hypothetical workers, a significant gap favoring men emerged with increasing age. This suggests that male workers receive a higher age premium on fair earnings than female workers. The findings highlight the need to understand how gender interacts with other characteristics to legitimize workplace inequalities.
Keywords: distributive justice; factorial survey experiment; gender bias; gender inequality.
© 2024 The Author(s). The British Journal of Sociology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of London School of Economics and Political Science.