Yes, according to a fascinating new study by economist Caitlin Knowles, as described in Slate.
She, with her students as research assistants, staked out eight coffee shops in the Boston area and watched how long it took men and women to be served. Her conclusion: Men get their coffee 20 seconds earlier than do women.
I know, I know: you’re thinking a) this is B.S., b) who cares about 20 seconds?, and c) somebody funded a bunch of women to hang out in Starbucks and order tall soy decaf Americanos?
But it’s interesting for what it says about market economics. First of all, why would women wait longer? Knowles debunks the assumption that women simply order more complicated drinks; when men order the same drinks, they waited less. And when the servers were all male, the wait time lengthened; when the servers were women, the lag disappeared.
It is not clear whether women were held up by male staff because the men viewed them with contempt or because the male staff members were flirting furiously. The “contempt” explanation seems more likely, as the extra time that women have to wait seems to increase when the coffee shop is busy. Who would take extra time out to flirt just when the lines are longer?
There’s something else left unmentioned in the article. Women are far less likely to express anger or frustration aloud when kept waiting. I think servers might factor that in when facing a long line of irritated consumers and make decisions based on who won’t throw a fit if they’re served a few seconds later.
The thing that’s intriguing is that coffee shops are a cut-throat business. With a Starbucks, Europa or bodega on every corner, a consumer could find her fix just about anywhere. And economists have long assumed (based on Gary Becker’s theories) that market competition eradicates discrimination:
The reasoning is simple enough: A business that deliberately offers shoddy service or uncompetitive prices to some customers, or that turns down smart minority applicants in favor of less-qualified white male applicants, is throwing money away. If it is a government bureaucracy or a powerful monopolist, that’s a loathsome but sustainable choice. But racist or sexist businesses with many competitors are likely to be shut down by the bankruptcy courts long before the human rights lawyers get to them.
Could it be that coffee retailers haven’t caught up to market forces? Or that women simply don’t notice? Or that we’re loath to make a fuss? I don’t want to get all paranoid, but now that I’ve read about this study, I think this is what happened to me yesterday at the parking garage. Though I arrived first, the attendant fetched the car belonging to the guy behind me. I cocked my head in puzzlement, but didn’t say anything. In any case, my car appeared about three minutes later. All the attendants were male. What do you think?