Blog #12: Job Segregation

I think that most of the occupational segregation that occurs is because of gender roles. “At Work in the Iron Cage”, states that there are three ways that the work place is gendered: through culture, agency, and through organizational structuring. Yes, there are laws that prohibit sex discrimination, but it is already in most people’s heads that men are meant to do a certain job and women are meant to do other jobs. Women are taught from the beginning that they are supposed to take care of the home and the family. They are trained to be in a “supportive role” instead of a leading role. Men, on the other hand, are taught to be the provider and the “natural protector” of the family. If they do not provide for and protect their families they are looked down on by society. These standards carry over from their home lives and find themselves embedded in their careers as well. When it comes to going against the grain, I think both men and women feel extra pressure. Will they be scrutinized? Can they juggle family and work? How will they be treated?

Men have always been in leadership roles and women in subservient roles. The work place is no different. Men are given jobs where they have more power, more responsibility, and more opportunities to advance. Again, women are supposed to “help” the man in their position when their own personal needs or desires get placed on the back burner, so to speak. I think that there are also a lot of people who are not ready to see women working hard long hours, both men and women, and this leads to more sexual harassment and more hazing in the work place. I think it can be seen as a way of “pushing” women out of male dominated jobs. Women breaking into male dominated jobs have the advantages of being more financially secure and advancing in the “man’s” world. In some cases, they also have the advantage of doing something they love. As far as men go, I do not think that they are really affected by women who enter male dominated occupations. I think back to my days in the Navy when I worked almost entirely with men and I do not think that having me on their crew affected them at all. Maybe I got lucky and was able to work with a great set of guys, so I did not experience any of the typical “female in male” occupational scrutiny.