According to the YWCA Employment fact sheet, women earn only 77 cents for every dollar earned by men. African American and Latina women earn even less compared to man, 68 cents and 56 cents respectively. Even more shocking is that 60% of minimum wage workers and 60% of low wage workers are women. Sex segregation in jobs continues to exist despite laws prohibiting sex discrimination because “women and people of color tend to be concentrated in lower paid clerical, service, and retail occupations” (YWCA). Being part of the “secondary labor market,” these jobs are “characterized by low wages, few benefits, and little occupational mobility” (YWCA).
Gender socialization aids in the formation of occupational segregation because when women or men envision having a career that does not fit into their gendered roles in society, they are often discouraged from following that career goal. If a man wants to pursue a career that is seen by society as being a feminine job, their masculinity is questioned and they may be teased about their sexuality. Women seeking traditionally “male” jobs often have their intelligence and stamina challenged.
Women gain many advantages by entering into a non-traditional career. For example, non-traditional jobs usually pay 20-30% more than jobs traditionally held by women (YWCA). Therefore, non-traditional jobs can be a pathway out of poverty for the many minimum-wage and low-income women. Non-traditional jobs also offer short training programs, apprenticeships, and on-the-job training, enabling trainees to work and gain firsthand experience at the same time. Succeeding in a non-traditional job, not only allows for the individual to receive more attention, but also opens the door to others.
Men are not loosing anything by women entering into male dominated careers. According the YWCA, the percentage of women employed in non-traditional occupations has been and continues to decline. Additionally, a large percentage of young women continue to remain in traditionally female roles of attending schools for cosmetology and healthcare. Finally, according to the YWCA, women make up an extremely small percentage of the high paying construction and trade occupations. Not only do women make up, at the very most, 5% of the workers, it was also found that men were 9 times more likely as women to be employed in trade work, and 4 times more likely than women to be in protective service occupations (YWCA).
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I agree, it's awful that the media and society put on this perception that if a man decides to be in a career such as a nurse that he obviously isn't masculine. No job should be gender specific because we as men and women all have certain talents and if a man wants to be a nurse or ballerina he shouldn't be judged because he's still a man no matter what job he decides to do. This whole gender ordeal has become quite extreme and it's sad that society makes us feel belittled just by the occupations we choose and they put specific gender standards on job titles.
ReplyDeleteAs you mentioned in your blog, women have much to gain from entering into typically male jobs. However, success in these jobs is essential for women to gain anything. And these jobs can be more challenging for women then for men because most people are watching them with a critical eye. They also have to deal with the possibility that their co-workers and supervisors may harbor ill-resentment toward them which may make their job that much more difficult. Success in non-traditional fields is much harder for a woman than for a man, but if she can do she will gain experience, opportunity, and money. But, if she fails, she also has a lot to lose. That is why I question why it is that women have to go to “male” jobs in order to make money and be valued. Why is that skills used in “female” jobs is not as valuable as those in “male” jobs? For me, this is funny because I know those men who work in administrative positions probably could not function without the skill sets of their clerical workers. At my job, my boss does not even know how to book his own flight! He would be completely lost without me and our receptionist. Clearly, these skills are valuable and they should be treated that way. Why are the skills involved with searching not highly valued? It is almost certain that those men working in high paying jobs were taught by a teacher, so these skills, again, are highly important to their functioning. I guess I just think it is unfair that women have to do “male” jobs to have a chance at making forward progress but men can work in any field they choose and do well.
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