The Nobel Prize in Economics for 2023 was awarded to Claudia Goldin, a Harvard University professor.
This is awarded for “having advanced our understanding of women’s labour market outcomes and pay gaps”.
Her work has shed light on the participation of women in the labour market over the past 200 years.
Goldin’s work found that by the beginning of the 20th century, only around 20 per cent of women were gainfully employed.
But, the share of married women was only five per cent.
Goldin noted that legislation known as “marriage bars” often prevented married women from continuing their employment as teachers or office workers.
Goldin's research covers a wide range of topics, including the female labor force, the gender gap in earnings, income inequality, technological change, education, and immigration.
Goldin follows two other women — Elinor Ostrom in 2009 and Esther Duflo in 2019 — in being awarded the prize in economic sciences.
A Nobel Prize in Economics was not part of Alfred Nobel’s 1895 will that established the other prizes.
The economic sciences award was added by Sweden’s central bank in 1968 only.