GENDER INEQUALITIESG674

DO MEN OR WOMEN FACE MORE DISADVANTAGE IN THE CONTEMPORARY UK? (COPY & COMPLETE – PAIRS)

Female Advantage

Male Advantage

No difference

Home Life

Workplace

Health

Media Representation

Crime

Education

Political Life

KEY POINT

Gender is considered the main site of social inequality in the contemporary

UK.

Discuss: Do you agree? Is gender more divisive than ethnicity, age or class?

HOME

The role of homemaker is still most associated with women.

P/T and flexible working arrangements compliment this role – the dual role.

Men increasingly have a bigger domestic role; there are almost as many male carers as female (Carers UK; 2007)

Using time diaries, Seager (1997) found women spend more time on domestic tasks and men on paid work.

POLITICS

Following the 2010 General Election, only 146 out of 650 MPs were female.

Why are there so few female MPs?

List as many possible reasons as you can: Which are the most likely?

HEALTH (SEE NEXT SLIDE ALSO!)

Men Women

Life Expectancy

76.6 81

Healthy life expectancy

67.9 70.3

Years spent in ill health

8.7 10.7

HEALTH: DISCUSS (PAIRS)

What does the table show?

What are some potential problems with the data?

What explanations might there be for the data?

MASS MEDIA Ratio of men to women on television has barely

changed in the last ten years.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZkC_fNxmQk

In Movies, TV shows, literature etc: The Bechdel Test, sometimes called the Mo Movie

Measure or Bechdel Rule is a simple test which names the following three criteria: (1) it has to have at least two women in it, who (2) who talk to each other, about (3) something besides a man.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bLF6sAAMb4s

ACTIVITY (GROUPS – 5 MINS THEN FEEDBACK)

Study the two tables on the handout and answer the two questions provided.

EMPLOYMENT: DISCUSS – RECORD AND JUSTIFY YOUR RESPONSES

Do any jobs specifically require a man rather than a woman? If so, why?

Should a woman have the right to 18 weeks’ maternity leave, regardless of the impact it might have on her workplace? How has the rules regarding maternity leave changed?

What are your views on ‘positive discrimination’ to get more men or women into jobs where they are under-represented (e.g. could this work with female MPs?).

EMPLOYMENT

Do women remain discriminated against in the UK workplace?

80% of men and 70% of women are employed (2005), compared to 92% men and 56% women in 1971.

42% of women work part-time vs. 10% of men.

Women only get 82% of the average male wage (up from 63% in 1971).

EMPLOYMENT Men are more likely than women to work full

time and be self-employed.

Regardless of their status as fathers, men tend to work longer hours than women (Dermott; 2006)

Women working full time are less likely than men to achieve authority positions (e.g. under-representation of female directors in FTSE 100).

EMPLOYMENT

Horizontal Segregation Meaning: Men and women have different

types of jobs. Women more likely to be in secretarial work,

primary school teachers, working in hotels and restaurants.

Men dominate construction, manufacturing and transport.

EMPLOYMENT

Vertical Segregation Meaning: Men predominate in high-paid jobs

and women in low-paid jobs.

In 2005, 83% of directors and CEOs were men. 74% of waiting staff were women.

The glass ceiling concept: Women can reach certain positions, but find it hard to get up to the top jobs.

IN PAIRS

Discuss and Identify:

What barriers do you think prevent women from reaching the top positions in the workplace?

(Minimum of 4 reasons per pair)

EMPLOYMENT - GENDERQUAKE

Equal Pay Act (1970) – women should be paid the same as men for the same work.

Sex Discrimination Act (1975) – discrimination on the grounds of sex is illegal in all employment, education etc.

Equality Act (2006) – all public bodies must act to remove all illegal discrimination against women.

MEN AT WORK

Mac an Ghaill (1996) argued that the rise of the service sector and female employment within it was leading to a crisis of masculinity.

Willott & Griffin (1996) explored this idea further and concluded that masculinity as a whole was not in ‘crisis’ – although some traditional elements of masculinity were weakening.

EDUCATION

Females outperform males in SATs, KSs, GCSEs, A Levels, diplomas and degrees.

Maths, physics and IT remain male dominated; English, modern languages and Biology are female dominated.

Truancy rates are significantly higher for males.

Some studies have found that girls receive less attention than boys in the classroom.

DISCUSS

What reasons can you identify that explain why girls do so much better than boys in education...

...Do you even agree it is true?

EDUCATION

Explanation: Why do girls do better at school?

Cultural change in girls’ attitudes (Sharpe; 1994)

Opening career opportunities for women (due to equality legislation) / growth of the service sector.

Feminist campaigns for women’s rights and to raise women’s self-esteem (Mitsos & Browne; 1998)

Bedroom culture encourages verbal skills. Schools no longer patriarchal institutions.

EDUCATION

Explanation: Why do boys do so badly? They’re not: It’s a moral panic.... ...But also, employment opportunities have

decreased. Threat of losing traditional identities leads

boys to adopt a laddish attitude (Jackson; 2006)

More at risk from negative consequences of single-parenthood

More likely to be socialised into activities that require limited verbal skills

DISCUSS (PAIRS)

If women do better in education than men, why is their position in the workplace not improving at the same rate?

Relationship between

Education & Employment

Sexism in the

workplace

CRIME

What studies/evidence did we look at in the previous unit that might suggest Gender inequalities in relation to Crime & Deviance?

WATCH

Clickview: Sociology: Women at Work

RESEARCH ACTIVITY

Find a minimum of 3 contemporary examples of gender inequality or disadvantage in one of the areas we have covered.

You will present your findings to the class.