Female leaders and gender gaps within the firm: Evidence from three sub-Saharan African countries

We study the association between the gender of the highest-ranking manager (the CEO) and gender differences in employees' outcomes using detailed linked employer-employee data from the formal sector in Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, and Senegal. Our empirical strategy relies on the inclusion of firm fixed effects and workers' characteristics. Our results point toward a negative correlation between female CEO and the relative wages and job satisfaction of female employees. However, female employees working under a female CEO who owns the firm are not paid less than their male colleagues.