Getting married may be the best way for single men to secure a pay rise, new research has found.

Married men can earn up to six per cent more than single men who have similar jobs and who have the equivalent levels of education and experience.

A married man earns £5,700 more than an unattached man on a £100,000 annual salary. But husbands with children are only three per cent better off each year than bachelors.

The findings also showed that divorced men's salaries are 3.5 per cent higher than their single counterparts.

The research, which surveyed 1,300 men and women, found the qualities that make men marriage material are also attributes that appeal to employers.

Belinda Hewitt, a co-author of the report from Queensland University, Australia, said: "Married men are more efficient and productive than single men because they have wives who can split the burden of home life which gives them more time to devote to work."

The report goes on to suggest that while men may benefit financially from marriage, women do not.

It says that any advantages women would get from marriage are "strongly counter-balanced by the negative impact of motherhood."

Miss Hewitt said: "Becoming a mother doubles, even triples, the amount of time that would have to dedicate to the family home.

"This means work is always going to be a second priority, which is reflected in their salary."

　　中文：

　　澳大利亚学者最新公布的一份研究报告显示，结婚可能是男人增加收入的最好方式。

　　据《每日电讯报》11月27日报道，研究报告显示，在从事相同工作或拥有相同学历和工作经验的情况下，已婚男性的收入比未婚的高6％；有孩子的已婚男性比未婚的高3％；而离异后的男性也要比未婚的高3.5％。

　　这项研究报告的作者之一、澳大利亚昆士兰大学的赫维特女士说：“已婚男性工作效率和能力要高于未婚男性，主要原因是他们有妻子可以分担生活中的负担，而将更多的时间投入到工作中。”报告还指出，已婚男性在工作中也更容易得到老板的信任。

　　这项研究对1300名男性和女性进行了调查。但在研究人员表示男人可以从婚姻中受益的同时，也不得不承认婚姻是女人增加收入的“坟墓”。赫维特女士解释说：“女人一旦结婚后成为母亲，就要花费是以前两倍甚至3倍的时间照顾家庭。这意味着，保证收入来源的工作始终只能在已婚女人的生活中位居次要地位。” （蒋黎黎）