Achieving Equity: Women, The Workplace, And The Law Temple University PERSISTENT INEQUITY: GENDER AND ACADEMIC EMPLOYMENT John W. Curtis, Director of Research and Public Policy American Association of University Professors October 20, 2010

Major Topics  Data on gender equity in academic employment  Explaining the persistence of inequity  Social structures and the rhetoric of “choice”  Shared governance and equity  Implementing equity October 20, 2010Persistent Inequity: Gender and Academic Employment 2

Academic Gender Equity: Data  Student population (Fig. 1)  Employment status (Fig. 2-4)  Leadership positions (Fig. 5-7)  Gender and contingency  Instructional Staff (2007) Women: 79.3%, Men: 70.6%  Salary (Fig. 8-9)  Service; teaching vs. research October 20, 2010Persistent Inequity: Gender and Academic Employment 3

Explaining Persistent Inequity  No longer as much blatant discrimination  Family responsibilities/caregiving (Mason, et al.)  Women impacted disproportionately (sacrificing career for family or sacrificing family for career)  Children (“mommy track”)  Eldercare  Partner accommodation (“trailing spouse”) (AAUP, 2010) October 20, 2010Persistent Inequity: Gender and Academic Employment 4

Explaining Persistent Inequity  Expectations (roles and norms) (Drago)  Stigma against caregiving (Williams)  Assumptions about competence and caregiving, varying impact on women and men (Valian; Williams)  Paternalism (Williams)  “Ideal worker” norm  Changing roles for men and women both  The notion of “balance” October 20, 2010Persistent Inequity: Gender and Academic Employment 5

Social Structures and “Choice”  Social structures  Changes in jobs and compensation  Consumption patterns  Variations by race/ethnicity and SES  Rhetoric of “choice”  Paycheck Fairness Act (Sommers)  Constraints: gendered roles; economics  Children/childlessness October 20, 2010Persistent Inequity: Gender and Academic Employment 6

Shared Governance and Equity  Faculty role in appointments and compensation  Shared governance and the faculty voice  Leadership vs. “pleading”  Unions  Representation of women (May, et al)  Pay differentials (Smith and Grosso)  Support for caregiving (Labor Project For Working Families) October 20, 2010Persistent Inequity: Gender and Academic Employment 7

Implementing Equity  “Just a matter of time”  Equity studies (Curtis, 2010)  Intersection of law and data (reference)  “Fear factor” (Ward and Wolf-Wendel, 2004; Drago et al., 2005)  Awareness; Consciousness-raising October 20, 2010Persistent Inequity: Gender and Academic Employment 8

Achieving Equity: Women, The Workplace, And The Law Temple University JOHN W. CURTIS DIRECTOR OF RESEARCH AND PUBLIC POLICY AMERICAN ASSOCIATION OF UNIVERSITY PROFESSORS (202) ext. 143