Blog #14: Theory of Gendered Organizations

Bitton says that the basis of the Theory of Gendered Organizations stems from the wage gap. The wage gap has been apparent since women have started going to work in the work place. Even when women are doing the same job as men they still make less than the men. For example, female correctional officers make 17 % less than their male co-workers (Bitton, 2003). Bitton uses this theory to frame her research questions by showing how the gendered society of America infiltrates the workplace and continues the cycle of women being in positions below men. It is something that is so common that most women are not even aware of the fact that they make less than their co-workers do for the same type of work. When women do go against the norm and work in male-dominated careers they are trapped in a job that does not allow them to advance or they choose to forego promotion so they can fulfill their family obligations. Public and private spheres become engendered concepts because the public sphere starts to mirror the private sphere in the workplace. For generations women have been responsible for the domesticated roles of family and home, but now women are entering the workforce and they are being forced into the same domesticated roles on the job. Women find themselves stuck in a position where they have to fulfill their required job task, just like their male counterparts, but they also have to take care of the clerical and secretarial jobs as well. The only reason this happens is because those types of jobs are seen as women jobs and are beneath men. Women are not able to work the rotating hours or the extra hours that employers value because they have obligations in their private lives that does not allow them to focus on their careers. If they do deviate from the norm they are ostracized for not fulfilling their motherly roles and taking care of the family. Laws have been implemented to keep women from being held back and penalized for their families, but they are not as effective as they should be. Maternity leave is not a guarantee. Women cannot be fired for becoming pregnant, but it does not mean that they do not experience being “pushed out” of their job. Women will never been seen as equals to mean if changes are not made and enforced. Women going to work in male dominated occupations are a start, but we also need to see the wage gap narrow until it is non-existent.