WORKING WIVES AND INCOME INEQUALITY IN THE UK

The purpose of this paper is to use Family Expenditure Survey data to chart the rise in the numbers of working wives, to describe the salient features of this process and to analyse the impact of this rise upon overall income inequality between families. While there has been, over 1979-93, a significant rise in the proportion of married couple families in which both spouses work, this rise cannot be explained simply in terms of changing female and male employment. Moreover, the incidence of working women was fairly independent of husbands' income. The rise in the number of working wives was mirrored in the increasing contribution that women made to their families' income. However, on the moot question as to whether the growing incidence of working wives (and their tendency to be married to working men) has increased income inequality, our finding is 'yes', but not by much. Indeed, on our analysis it is the growth in inequality in the earnings of husbands, rather than the fact that wives of employed men go to work, that is responsible for the UK's income divide.