長期以來公務體系中「男性職等偏高，女性職等偏低」的現象，頗受各方矚目。本文從組織角度探討兩性職場差異。在取得20%之1986行政機關公務人員資料後，本研究鎖定教育、訓練與進修等人力資本條件、初任職等和年資等內部勞動市場特性和職系和機關層級等起始點的三類因素，對兩性職等取得差距的解釋能力。主要的發現為(1)即或公務體系強調唯材是用，仍有顯著的兩性職等差距是無法由個人條件和組織資歷所解釋；(2)兩性現職等差異很大部份來自於兩性在初任職等和年資的差異；(3)兩性在初任職等取得上的差異是顯著的，且無法由教育程度、職系和任用資格以及行政層級和初任年齡來解釋，致使無法排除因性別而有差別對待的說法；(4)男性比女性更致力於教育的提昇，而訓練和進修確有助於高職等的取得，但，女性因訓練或進修所獲致報償要低於男性。兩性在訓練和進修上的差異比初任時的教育程度更能解釋兩性現職等差異；(5)教育程度愈高、初任職等愈高、年資愈長和機關層級愈高，現職等也愈高。職系之間和任用資格之間的差異是存在的。但是，女性因上列因素所獲致的報償顯著的低於男性。甚且在某些職系上女性還承受額外的現職等劣勢；(6)女性在現職等和 初任職等的取得上的劣勢有世代差異。雖然「資深組」的性別差異最大，但「資淺組」的性別差異不是最小的。公務組織對教育、初任職等和初任機關的行政層級，以及年資的累積，隨著時期而對職等取得的影響固然不同，這些因素對性別差異的解釋能力也因世代之不同，而有不同。

This paper addresses the issue of the under-representation of women in the upper echelon of the governments in Taiwan. The empirical focus is the grade attainment of civil servants in 1986. Drawing on a new 20% random sample (13,925 cases) of the 1986 civil servants in the administrative branch, we compare and evaluate different sources of the gender gap in current grade (the grade level of 1986) -- education, grade level of the initial job, administrative level of the initial agency, and cumulative tenure in civil service. Six central findings are obtained. (1)Although the grade attainment process increasingly becomes bureaucratized, net gender gap on current grade attainment remains significant. (2) The gender gap in current grade is mainly due to differences between men and women in initial grade and tenure. Difference between men and women in initial grade is most important factor explaining gender gap on grade. (3) Most of the gender gap on initial grade remains unexplained by difference between men and women on education, categories of job ladder, and initial administrative hierarchy. (4) Men invest more than women on educational upgrading. Training and studying have positive effect on current grade attainment. Difference on training and studying between men and women is more important than difference on educational credentials between men and women in explaining gender gap on current grade attainment. (5) As expected, education, initial grade, initial administrative level and tenure have positive effects on grade achievement. The positive effects on grade achievement are lower for women than for men depending on levels of educational credentials, initial grades, and categories of job ladders. (6) Women's deficits on current and initial grade attainment changed over time. The largest gender gap on current grade is observed among the senior group, the smallest is among the middle group, while the junior group is in between. Although the findings of this study are consistent with an organization-centered perspective on stratification, differential effects of organizational variables do not provide a convincing explanation for the gender gap on current grade attainment.