This paper analyses whether marital status has a significant effect on wages and whether it is a determinant of the gender gap. We use the stochastic frontier approach to explain the differences between the potential and the observed wage that an individual could obtain, given his or her human capital endowment. We construct a balanced panel of wage earners from the European Community Household Panel Survey (ECHP), from 1995 to 2001. The sample is of young workers that remain seven consecutive years in the labour market. Our results show that a significant part of the gender wage gap (distance to the frontier) suffered by married women in Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom is not attributable to differences in human capital endowment or personal and job-related characteristics.

Key words: wage differentials, marital status, Europe.
JEL Classification: J24, J31, J71.