While women set their average upper salary expectations 34 per cent higher than men ($162,492 versus $121,488), they often apply to jobs with a lower median salary ($68,274 versus $71,378), according to a new report by online job search platform JobLeads.
The report, which analyzed behavioural data from more than 36,500 Canadian job-seekers, found 76 per cent of Canadian men who clicked on a job submitted an application, versus 64 per cent of women — the largest behavioural gender gap in the entire dataset.
Read: 65% of women employees concerned about receiving inadequate pay increases: survey
A third (33 per cent) of women searched for part-time roles versus 23 per cent of men. Notably, women and men opted into hybrid work at nearly identical rates (13 per cent each), yet men in hybrid roles earned $8,287 more on average.
The report also found women (31 per cent) were more likely than men (28 per cent) to apply to roles requiring more soft skills, which carry a lower salary ceiling.
The finance industry had the largest industry-level pay gap, with women applying to roles paying a median salary nearly 10 per cent less than their male counterparts ($78,961 versus $87,523), despite women making up 54 per cent of finance job-seekers. The report also noted while the legal industry is 65 per cent female, yet women applied to roles paying 6.9 per cent less.
Engineering was the only industry where the gap reversed. In the sector with the lowest female participation (27 per cent), women applied to roles with a higher median salary than men.
Read: Pay equity more than a “one-and-done” exercise for Ontario employers: expert