Economics of Gender

Month: December 2023 (Page 2 of 2)

Division of Household Labor: Women Put in More Work, But How Does This Effect Them?

December 10, 2023 /

Written by : Himena Yamane and Georgia Fales

The division of labor within households has been a longstanding issue influenced by income, family composition, and deviance neutralization. Although there has become more progression in the equality of household labor disparities persist and have caused long-lasting effects on women. Effects on women can be seen through the wage gap, retention in the labor force, and traditional gender norms that still exist today. 

Many factors influence how the division of labor is distributed. Driving factors such as family composition, income, and participation in the labor force have a substantial effect.

Traditional gender norms has a major effect on the division of labor within households. According to Economic dependence, gender, and the division of labor in the home (Theodore N. Greenstein, 2000) a study showed that in homes that have a male as their source of primary income, there is a higher likelihood that the household labor disparities are larger. In the case that women are the main source of income, there seemed to be a less but similar response with the process of deviance neutralization to counteract those nontraditional norms causing high household labor disproportion. With women taking on more household jobs, as a result, they are less likely to be part of the labor force which in turn widens the income gap and workforce gap. Even when women make more money than the male in a household, gender norms drive women to still taking on more household labor.

Family composition can also highly drive the disparities of household labor. Household labor is more than just cleaning and cooking but can also include stressful parental duties. In The Parenthood Effect on Gender Inequality: Explaining the Change in Paid and Domestic Work When British Couples Become Parents (Katherine Michelmore and Sharon Sassler, 2016)  there seemed to be a reoccurring pattern of women, pre-children, who made higher income tending to have higher retention in the labor force while women, pre-children, who had a lower income had lower retention in the labor force and spent more time dedicated to household chores and parental responsibilities. This pattern can explain the complexities of becoming a parent with different incomes and the responsibilities that are traditionally passed to the mother. With fathers not usually taking on household chores, like being the main caregiver for a child or children, women are deterred from the labor force when they do not have the economic necessities for childcare or support. 

Childcare policies and other policies that challenge gender norms are needed to help change the disparities in household labor and the labor force. Paid leave policies need to be more accessible in all different occupations to support a family’s responsibility in the context of becoming a parent. Affordable childcare policies also need to be implemented to help retain women in the labor force after becoming a parent to minimize disproportions in the labor force and therefore equalize household responsibilities. Promoting more gender equality in aspects of household and labor market, such as equal pay wage, is also needed to help with these enduring complex issues regarding the division of household labor. The implementation of these policies can contribute to a more equitable distribution within the household and the labor market.

Without the implication of these policies we will see a further gender divide in many aspects. Catherine Ross ( 1987), in The division of labor at home, revealed that when analyzing couples with less of an income gap, the distributions of household chores were more equal while couples with a higher income gap, the distribution was disproportional. While this study may have not took into account the specific jobs of each couples, there still is evidence that with the policies supporting equal wages in genders there would be a positive effect on the division of household labor.

Throughout research, it is clear that the world is moving in the right direction but there are still many challenges women are still facing. The understanding of division of household labor is key to understanding the more complex issues that are prevalent in our society today but there are still topics that remain a question. What different patterns can we observe today about the distribution of household labor are there in the current world with lgbtq+ couples? How are disproportions of household labor different in fields that have a higher gender disparity such as fields in STEM? With further research in these topics can help make more policies that specifically target problems within certain fields and relationship compositions.

Baxter, J. (1997) Gender Equality and Participation in Housework: A Cross-National Perspective. Journal of Comparative Family Studies 28: 220 47. https://www.jstor.org/stable/41603517

Igielnik, Ruth, (2021). A rising share of working parents in the U.S. say it’s been difficult to handle child care during the pandemic. Pew Research Center. 
https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2021/01/26/a-rising-share-of-working-parents-in-the-u-s-say-its-been-difficult-to-handle-child-care-during-the-pandemic/

Lively, ―Kathryn, & Suttie, J. S. J. (2019). How an unfair division of labor hurts your relationship. Greater Good. https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/how_an_unfair_division_of_labor_hurts_your_relationship 

 

REFERENCES

1.Greenstein, T. N. (2000). Economic Dependence, Gender, and the Division of Labor in the Home: A Replication and Extension. Journal of Marriage and Family, 62(2), 322–335. http://www.jstor.org/stable/1566742

2. Katherine Michelmore, & Sharon Sassler. (2016). Explaining the Gender Wage Gap in STEM: Does Field Sex Composition Matter? RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences, 2(4), 194–215 https://doi.org/10.7758/RSF.2016.2.4.07

3.Ross, C. E. (1987). The Division of Labor at Home. Social Forces, 65(3), 816–833. https://doi.org/10.2307/2578530

The Effects of Employment on Mental Health

December 10, 2023 /

By Matt Almansi and Ian Coffey

Summary of Issues

Mental health is something everybody has to deal with, one large factor surrounding poor mental health is the pursuit of employment. The use of the word “pursuit” is important because mental health issues arise not just from the stress of working, but also in the process of looking for jobs and being unemployed. Men’s and women’s mental health are both affected by their job or lack thereof but how it is experienced or shown varies between the genders. Five major symptoms of poor mental health include depression, anxiety, somatization, chronic fatigue, and psychotropic drug consumption. These symptoms tend to show up more often, unsurprisingly in high-stress jobs and when compounded with inadequate compensation or support these symptoms are only worse for both men and women. Beginning in the 1980s research on job-related stress has taken off. One of the key findings is that when resources available to the worker are adequate for the demands in the workplace then the mental health of the worker is protected. On the other hand, when the demands of the workplace exceed the resources available to the worker it creates a strenuous atmosphere, and the mental health of the worker becomes compromised. Although men and women both experience mental health issues in the workforce, the roots of their problems differ.

Policy Recommendation

It is hard to force or implement policies regarding what companies should pay their employees but people need better support in the workplace. It is clear that currently corporations do not do nearly enough to give back to their employees, but have no problem profiting from them. Two sound options emerge that the government or individual companies could implement for the betterment of the work culture and employees. The first is that if an employee works over a certain amount of hours in a month, then he or she is entitled to a mandatory day off at some point next month and does not have any effect on their structured PTO days. The second is for those who work in high-strenuous jobs to have medical benefits expanded to include mental health resources such as access to a psychologist or psychiatrist. The implementation of one or both would serve to treat and mitigate the negative health consequences in the workplace. This could take the form of an outright law companies must implement or through tax breaks, they can get by treating their employees well.

Consequences Without Intervention

Without the implementation of our proposed policy, the economy will be in a constant state of underperformance or unsustainable growth. Truth be told, there may not appear to be much change in day-to-day life if this policy is not put in place. However, society and the economy would improve drastically if workers felt better about themselves and thus the work they do. Mental health is a very important aspect of a worker’s ability to maximize productivity. At our current juncture, the U.S. economy is performing well, but that is not to say it could not be performing better. By implementing our proposed policies we theorize that workers will feel less burnt out and thus more productive. If nothing is done for the mental health of our workers, nothing will change drastically for the worse, there will always be someone willing to put themselves through the mental agony of a high-stress job. But if the mental health of employees is taken into account there will only be added benefits. Workers will feel more support in their workspaces, won’t feel as burned out, and will not display symptoms of poor mental health such as anxiety, depression, somatization, chronic fatigue, and drug use as frequently. 

Research Questions

  1. Is work stress an isolated national problem or a global problem?
  2. Are there, and if so, what are the policy differences between countries that have workers with good mental health vs countries with mentally unhealthy workers

References

  • Godin, I., Kittel, F., Coppieters, Y. et al. A prospective study of cumulative job stress in relation to mental health. BMC Public Health 5, 67 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2458-5-67
  • Strandh, Mattias, Anne Hammarström, Karina Nilsson, Mikael Nordenmark, and Helen Russel. “Unemployment, Gender and Mental Health: The Role of the Gender Regime.” Sociology of Health & Illness 35, no. 5 (2012): 649–65. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-9566.2012.01517.x. 
  • Peckham, Trevor, Kaori Fujishiro, Anjum Hajat, Brian P. Flaherty, and Noah Seixas. “Evaluating Employment Quality as a Determinant of Health in a Changing Labor Market.” RSF: The Russell Sage Foundation Journal of the Social Sciences5, no. 4 (2019): 258–81. https://doi.org/10.7758/rsf.2019.5.4.09.
  • Tesch-Römer, Clemens, Andreas Motel-Klingebiel, and Martin J. Tomasik. “Gender Differences in Subjective Well-Being: Comparing Societies with Respect to Gender Equality.” Social Indicators Research 85, no. 2 (2008): 329–49. http://www.jstor.org/stable/27734585.

Division of Household Labor: Women Put in More Work, But How Does This Effect Them?

December 8, 2023 /

By Georgia Fales and Himena Yimane

The division of labor within households has been a longstanding issue influenced by societal norms, disparities in the labor force, and deviance neutralization. Although there has become more progression in the equality of household labor disparities persist and have caused long-lasting effects on women. Effects on women can be seen through the wage gap, retention in the labor force, and traditional gender norms that still exist today. 

Many factors influence how the division of labor is distributed. Driving factors such as family composition, income, and participation in the labor force have a substantial effect. 

According to Economic dependence, gender, and the division of labor in the home (Theodore N. Greenstein, 2000) in homes that have a male as their source of primary income, there is a higher likelihood that the disparities are larger. In the case that women are the main source of income, there seemed to be a similar response with the process of deviance neutralization to counteract those nontraditional norms. With women taking on more household jobs, as a result, they are less likely to be part of the labor force which in turn widens the wage gap.

Family composition and income can highly influence the disparities of household labor. In The Parenthood Effect on Gender Inequality: Explaining the Change in Paid and Domestic Work When British Couples Become Parents (Katherine Michelmore and Sharon Sassler, 2016)  there seemed to be a reoccurring pattern of women, pre-children, who made a higher income tended to have higher retention in the labor force while women, pre-children, who had a lower income had lower retention in the labor force and spent more time dedicated to household chores. This pattern can explain the complexities of becoming a parent and the responsibilities that are traditionally passed to the mother. With fathers not usually taking on household responsibilities, women are deterred from the labor force when they do not have the economic necessities for childcare or support. 

Childcare policies and other policies that challenge gender norms are needed to help change the disparities in household labor and the labor force. Paid leave policies need to be more accessible in all different occupations to support a family’s responsibility in the context of becoming a parent. Affordable childcare policies also need to be implemented to help retain women in the labor force after becoming a parent to minimize disproportions in the labor force. Promoting more equality in aspects of household and labor market is needed to help with these enduring complex issues.

Throughout research, it is clear that the world is moving in the right direction but there are still many challenges women are still facing. The understanding of division of household labor is key to understanding the more complex issues that are prevalent in our society today. With the implementation of these policies can contribute to a more equitable distribution within the household and the labor market.



 

 

 

 

Gender Discrimination in Firing and Workplace Punishment

December 7, 2023 /

by Ellery Campbell and Ali Gall

Overview

Women experience discrimination in the workplace in a number of ways, such as in hiring, in pay, and in cases of harassment. However, one type of gender discrimination that does not receive as much attention is the discrimination in firing and workplace punishment that women experience in comparison to men. Research across a number of occupations show that women are more likely to be fired than men. In the financial advisory industry, women were found to be 20% more likely to be fired than men following an instance of misconduct (Egan et al., 2022).

The Work From Home Gender Gap - EWI Works

Women are also disproportionately punished for poor firm performance, as female executives in the S&P 1500 firms were found to be 15% more likely than men to be fired when there is a decline in firm performance (Landsman, 2019). Additionally, female CEOs are 45% more likely to be dismissed than male CEOs, and the likelihood of being dismissed decreases for male CEOs, but not for female CEOs, when the firm is performing well (Gupta et al., 2020). These findings on gender discrimination in firing and the handling of misconduct display that women are consistently punished based on gender biases rather than on their actual ability.

Policy Recommendations

Policy intervention could be used to ensure that firing, especially in the case of a CEO, is warranted. If a CEO is to be fired, a policy could require that this decision is evaluated by an impartial party who could determine if the firing is purely performance based or if it may be the result of gender discrimination, as we know that female CEOs are more likely to be fired than male CEOs. A summary of the case without any information relating to the gender of the CEO (with just firm performance and crucial decisions made included) could be given to a small group of people from multiple genders, who independently will evaluate the case, and conclude whether firing the person is the appropriate outcome. Also, policy could require that firms implement mandatory anti-discrimination training in hopes of reducing gender discrimination and creating a more inclusive workplace.

Consequences Without Intervention

Gender differences in the average working week | Careersmart

Without implementing this policy intervention, the problems of the glass ceiling and the glass cliff will remain for women in the workforce. The glass ceiling refers to the barriers that prevent women from advancing to positions of authority in the workplace, and the glass cliff refers to the high likelihood that women will fall out of these positions of authority once they enter them (Sabharwal, 2015). These problems imply that even as we see progress in the number of women in leadership positions in the workplace, they still face additional complications when it comes to maintaining those positions. Thus, it is imperative that policies are implemented that prevent women from being punished unfairly and taking the blame for poor firm performance because of their gender.

Research Questions

One research question that emerges is how does the gender of the person handling the firing relate to how many people of each gender are fired? For example, if a man decides to fire someone, are they more likely to fire women or men? If a woman fires someone, is it more likely that the person fired is a man or woman? Another research question is which fields have the greatest and also the least gender discrimination in firing and punishment of misconduct? Is there a reason why certain fields see more gender discrimination in firing and punishment while others see less? Future research could also look into whether the gender imbalances in firing and misconduct punishment differ by region? There may be states that have higher rates of gender discrimination, and future research could look into why that is if the results show that some places do see greater imbalances in this gender discrimination. Finally, future research could look into other characteristics that may cause people to be fired and punished for misconduct more often. For instance, is this discrimination worse for women of color and women in other minority groups?

Infographic

References

Egan, M., Matvos, G., & Seru, A. (2022). When Harry Fired Sally: The Double Standard in Punishing Misconduct. Journal of Political Economy, 130(5), 1184-1248.

Gupta, V., Mortal, S., Silveri, S., Sun, M., & Turban, D. (2020). You’re Fired! Gender Disparities in CEO Dismissal. Journal of Management, 46(4), 560-582.

Landsman, R. (2019). Gender Differences in Executive Departure. Working paper.

Sabharwal, S. (2015). From Glass Ceiling to Glass Cliff: Women in Senior Executive Service

“Gender Differences in the Average Working Week.” Careersmart, careersmart.org.uk/occupations/equality/gender-differences-average-working-week. Accessed 7 Dec. 2023.

“The Work from Home Gender Gap.” EWI Works, June 9 2023, ewiworks.com/the-work-from-home-gender-gap/.

Labor Market Discrimination

December 7, 2023 /

By Nikolas DeAngelo & Ada Sun

Research Questions:

How does gender discrimination impact employment opportunities and career advancements in various labor markets?

How do societal stereotypes influence hiring practices, career advancement, and overall workplace experiences for individuals of different genders?

Summary of the Issue at Hand:

The broad topic of labor market discrimination can be used as an umbrella term that contains the subsection of gendered labor market discrimination. Upon looking at research, women are typically exploited more than men (Goff, 2016). This exploitation is defined as the wage difference between males and females for the same level of productivity (Goff, 2016). Research has also shown that women have repeatedly faced discrimination upon disclosing the number of children they have (White, 2001). More research further backs up the idea that women reported feeling discriminated against in labor markets (Neumark, 1995). The results show that based on a self-reported measure, 88.9% of workers felt discriminated against with 69.9% of those being women (Neumark, 1995). These were women who felt discriminated against based on factors not only including their wages (Neumark, 1995). We want to outline that this discrimination they feel is in the form of sexual harassment, lower benefits, and failure to get desirable promotions or assignments. Another piece of research that we look at regarding discrimination examines discrimination-based case files against companies. They find that it is also important to note that a lot of women do not report the discrimination they face (Bobbitt-Zecher, 2011). One of the biggest findings in these narrative cases was that 44% of women were descriptively discriminated against (Bobbitt-Zecher, 2011). This means that they were discriminated against for their assumed characteristics and incompatible traits relating to the job. We see from this type of discrimination that women are seen as women first and workers second. Employers will typically assume that a woman is significantly less attached to the job at hand because of children that may be in the picture now or in the future. This type of descriptive discrimination also looks at the issue of employers seeing women as emotional and some even go as far as using derogatory terms. Although we only reference a slim number of gender discrimination within labor markets, we attempt to reach a broader implication that brings the large amounts of discrimination to the attention of the reader.

Policy Intervention:

Although policy recommendations are tricky to implement as employers will never say that there is discrimination within their company, we provide a few recommendations. The first is intervention with more general anti-discrimination laws. As stated in the summary of the issue at hand, there is clear discrimination based on sex within the labor market both when hiring and once working on-site. Policymakers must be constantly looking for ways to decrease discrimination through different, effective laws while also not forgetting pre-existing anti-discrimination laws. Another large portion of discrimination that is mentioned is the issue around gender stereotypes of women not being attached to the job due to children or home life. A suggestion that would help increase labor market attachment and eliminate the unknowing on the employer’s end as to how attached a female employee will be, is through providing more childcare compensation (White, 2001). With increased support for childcare, it will allow women who feel the pressure to put their kids above their work, at ease. They can go to work knowing that the company they work for sees value in them as workers and is willing to understand that there are family needs when it comes to a work-life balance not only on the factor of wages but also total compensation.

What will happen without Intervention?

Without intervention, we see conditions of large discrimination climbing. With the ideas previously mentioned in mind, there are already so many women who feel discriminated against in their workplaces. There are large percentages of female workers who are already reporting cases of discrimination. The author also mentions that there are a lot of workers who do not report discrimination (Bobbitt-Zecher, 2011). If we continue to let employers and employees discriminate based on gender and do not see policy intervention, we will see the number of reported discrimination cases increase. This could lead to a decrease in women’s wages and an increase in their overall economic insecurity. We should take measures to prevent this discrimination and ensure that all workers are treated fairly.

Infographic:

References:

Bobbitt-Zeher, D. (2011). Gender Discrimination at Work: Connecting Gender Stereotypes, Institutional Policies, and Gender Composition of Workplace. Gender & Society, 25(6), 764–786. https://doi.org/10.1177/0891243211424741

Goff, S. C. & Department of Philosophy, Florida State University. (2016). How to Trade Fairly in an Unjust Society: The Problem of Gender Discrimination in the Labor Market. Social Theory and Practice, 42(3), 555–580. https://doi.org/10.5840/soctheorpract201642316 

Neumark, D., & McLennan, M. (1995). Sex Discrimination and Women’s Labor Market Outcomes. The Journal of Human Resources, 30(4), 713–740. https://doi.org/10.2307/146229

White, L. A. (2001). Child care, women’s labour market participation and labour market policy effectiveness in Canada. Canadian Public Policy, 27(4), 385-405. Retrieved from https://login.ezproxy.trincoll.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/child-care-womens-labour-market-participation/docview/56094525/se-2Retrieved from https://login.ezproxy.trincoll.edu/login?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-journals/child-care-womens-labour-market-participation/docview/56094525/se-2

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