Mallika Thomas

Mallika Thomas is a professor of economics at Cornell, in the Department of Economics and in the School of Industrial and Labor Relations. She is a labor economist, and her research focuses on examining the causes of persistent wage inequality and the consequences of policy responses. Her most recent work examines the impact of government-mandated family leave policies on the wages and promotion opportunities of young women and the role of employer-based discrimination in the effectiveness of such policies. Thomas’ ongoing work focuses on peer effects in education among female MBA students in male-dominated areas of concentration and the causes of the gender-wage gap upon graduation, the impact of employer-provided benefits on the wages and employment of low-wage workers, and the consequences of rising wage inequality and changing wage structure on the educational investments of men and women. Thomas holds a Ph.D. in economics from the University of Chicago, a B.S. in physics and a B.A. in economics from Yale University. She has received a number of awards during her academic career, including the University of Chicago Presidential Fellowship, the George Stigler dissertation award, and the American Economic Association dissertation fellowship.