Studies, mostly in the developed West, have shown conclusive evidence that tall people (men and women) get paid more than shorter peers. In the paper highlighted this week Xiao Yang et al from the University of Electronic Science and Technology of China in Chengdu decided to look at the phenomenon in China.
It would have been a bore if they had just reported that, yup, the effect is present in China too (and, yup, it is).
What makes this paper unique is they backward induct from their data how a short person can compensate for the discriminatory effect their stature is likely to engender. The effect, BTW, is more acute for females.
There are three fixes they recommend:
- Work experience. An extra year can compensate for between 3~7cm of lack of height. It’s not just time that matters, take courses, go to the off-sites, take on more responsibilities perhaps?
- Increase your level of education. A short Phd. can expect at least a Master’s compensation.
- Go East young (short) man (and women)! The height difference appears to close up in more prosperous regions and more economically vibrant locales.
That such a phenomena exists is a pity; but the fact one can do something about it should be encouraging for individuals who through no fault of their own have drawn the er, short, straw in this particular life lottery.
You can access the paper in full via this link Height Conditions Salary Expectations
Happy Sunday
[A very young John Cleese together with two other British comedy icons were well aware of the height issue back in the 1960’s. A classic sketch on the subject can be found via this link Height; A Very British View]