1. Women and Work

2. Women’s Paid &Unpaid Work  Women are about 42% of the paid labor force in developed regions of the world  Around the world, almost 70% of working-age women are employed  Women do the majority of household tasks and child care worldwide

3. Women’s Unpaid Work

5. Child care responsibilities  Mothers spend nearly twice as many hours providing child care at home as fathers do  Women are the primary custodians of child/family health

6. Women’s paid work  In some cases, women are making inroads into occupations traditionally held by men  Women’s share of professional and managerial jobs has increased  At a much slower rate, women have moved into blue-collar occupations

7. Low-wage workers  Retail sales, child care, fast food, restaurant work, CNA’s, education assistants, domestic labor  60% of low-wage workers are women  33% of women vs. 20% of men work in low- wage jobs  African American and Latino workers are over-represented in low-wage jobs

8. Gender Wage Gap

9. Equity and Discrimination  Women’s work tends to be undervalued  Job applications or resumés are most likely to trigger prejudiced evaluations  Women’s successes may be attributed to luck rather than skill  Undervaluing of women’s work is one cause of the gender pay gap

10. Gender Pay Gap  Women earn 77% of what men earn  Effect persists when controlling for experience, education, industry, and hours worked  Larger gap for minority and disabled women  African American—61%  Latina—52%

11. Gender Pay Gap  Women tend to work in lower-paying fields (nursing, teaching) than men do  Traditionally male-dominated fields (medicine, law, science) pay more

14. The Glass Ceiling  Women hold less than ¼ of senior management positions globally  Philippines and Russia at the top—over 40%  Lowest is Japan—7%  US is 22 nd at 20%

15. Biological Realities  Men cannot bear children or lactate  Leads to biological argument against women earning as much as men  “Married with children” is a disadvantage for women but an advantage for men

16. Firm-specific skills argument  Men are given greater responsibility because they are seen as more committed to their jobs—less likely to leave for family obligations  Hence they develop skills which enhance their value to the firm where they work  This in turn leads to better pay and promotions and is what drives pay disparities

17. Motherhood as a Source of Discrimination against Women  Many employers are reluctant to pay pregnancy-related benefits  The US is one of a very few countries that makes no provision for paid maternity leave  The Family and Medical Leave Act mandates up to 12 weeks of leave (often unpaid) for certain workers

18. Donnicia Venters case  Firing a woman because she wants to use a breast pump at work is not sex discrimination  Lactation “is not pregnancy, childbirth or a related medical condition”

19. Discrimination on the Basis of Sexual Orientation  Legal in most workplaces in the United States  Such discrimination is illegal in Canada  Lesbian and bisexual women earn 13-15% less than heterosexual women—more likely to be working in low-paying, female- dominated occupations

20. Women’s Working Conditions  Jobs dominated by women are often difficult and dangerous  For example, risk of serious injury is greater for a nursing aide than for a coal miner or steel mill worker  Factory work can involve long hours, uncomfortable conditions, and high pressure to produce quickly

21. Some Remedies  Reducing gender stereotypes  Stereotyping most likely when  The person is a “token” in the work environment  Evaluation criteria are not explicit  Organizational norms and policies tolerate or reinforce gender stereotypes

22. Some Remedies (cont.)  Pay equity legislation: equal pay for equivalent work  Comparable worth: equal pay for work of equal value  Affirmative action: strategies to increase the proportion of women and minorities hired, particularly in jobs where they have been traditionally excluded

23. Paycheck Fairness Act  Employers would be required to prove that a pay disparity is based on a “bona fide factor other than sex,” such as education, training, or experience  Passed the US House but was defeated in the US Senate in 2010

24. Activity  Do women need laws such as Affirmative Action and the Paycheck Fairness Act to achieve wage equity with men?  Does this sort of legislation diminish the achievements of women and minorities?

25. Activity  Does the focus on “leveling the playing field” foster competitive "masculine” values to the detriment of “feminine” values?  Should women try to “make it in a man’s world” or create alternative structures?

26. Activity  Does the reproductive role of women justify increased protection for women in the workplace?  Should women be afforded extra benefits (maternity leave) because of biological differences, or is this discriminatory?

27. References  Childcare gap between men and women narrows. (2011, June 16).CBS News. Retrieved March 10, 2012, from http://www.cbsnews.com/2100-201_162-20071588.html  Fitzpatrick, L. (2010, April 20). Equal pay and the gender gap: Men still outearn women - TIME. Time. Retrieved from http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,1983185,00.html  Gibbard Cook, S. (2004). Mothers in the faculty pipeline - Women in higher education. Women in Higher Education, 13(8). Retrieved from http://www.wihe.com/printArticle.jsp?id=18562  New U.S. Women in Business Statistics Released by Catalyst - Women on Business:: Women on Business. (n.d.). Retrieved March 11, 2012, from http://www.womenonbusiness.com/new- us-women-in-business-statistics-released-by-catalyst/  Rampell, C. (2011, March 10). Women lead in unpaid work. New York Times. Retrieved from http://economix.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/10/women-lead-in-unpaid-work/  TradePost: Equal Pay for Equal Work. (n.d.). Retrieved March 10, 2012, from http://tradepost.selectfamily.com/index.cfm/2011/4/14/Equal-Pay-for-Equal-Work  Unequal Harm: Racial Disparities in the Employment Consequences of Minimum Wage Increases | EPI Study. (n.d.). Retrieved March 10, 2012, from http://epionline.org/study_detail.cfm?sid=137  Vermeulen, F. (2011, February 28). Wage differences between men and women - sexist or functional? Forbes. Retrieved from http://www.forbes.com/sites/freekvermeulen/2011/02/28/wage-differences-between-men- and-women-sexist-or-functional/  Work Isn’t Working. (n.d.).Women Employed. Retrieved March 10, 2012, from http://www.womenemployed.org/index.php?id=19