Major Changes That Affected The Role Of Women In The Workplace

By Author: Jenifer Brown
Total Articles: 29
Comment this article

Introduction
Among the several outstanding upheavals of the 20th century, the enormous growth in women's employment stands out. The change of women to paid work has resulted to an extensive transformation of traditional regulations and practices of every day life, not only in the workplace, but also in families. As work and family were modified, there were reverberations all through the society. As Hakim (1997) notes the functions women play at present would not be recognizable to our ancestors of 100 years ago.
In the recent past there have been an increased number of women into paid work due to changing social structures, concepts such as feminization which refers to the increasing number of women in paid work. Have come up to try and explain these changes. In a survey carried out in Britain in 1986 it was found that 45% of the total British workforce was made up of women, while the percentage of female continue to rise their male counterparts numbers show a decline. However the increase in number of female on participating in paid work has not been matched by any important reduction in wages gap among women and ...
... men, though a number of laws have been enacted in different countries to try and closure the gap. Such laws are the equal pay law enacted in 1987.
(Miller, et al, 2004)
During the previous century, employers specifically sought after women for numerous rapidly developing occupations, which included clerical duties, nursing and teaching These were the kind of jobs which men generally declined, partly because these jobs were comparatively low paying and provided little opportunity for progression, and partly because the jobs were stigmatized as women's work. At the same moment, many women continued to acquire the high school certificates or college degrees essential to occupy these jobs. In the past 25 years, employment fields have been opened up which in effect had been closed down to women and huge numbers of women were educated in these fields such as medicine, business, law, and engineering. Women's income increased corresponding with their education, levels making employment more attractive. (Miller, et al, 2004)
Women started being interested in paid work because of the complexity of economy which called for more services and products. This required extra income. For instance, as medical advancements were made women no longer found it adequate to offer nursing care direct to their critically ill children as it was done by their mothers and grandmothers. Women required earnings to pay for medical services, doctors and hospitals. Later on, women sought medical benefits which crone with having an employment.

Flexibilization
In the recent past flexibilization concept has also been formulated to try and explain the transformation of gender composition at the work place. The concept tries to shed light on changes of the workforce in relation to development of differentiation among core workforce and peripheral worker. Hakim (1997) observes that, supposing the workers are separated into two groups, permanent (full-time) on one side and the flexible (part-time) on another side, then it will be revealed that the flexible fraction comprising of part timers or temporary workforce rose to 34% in1986 down from 30% in 1981. though only a quarter of men where in this group of flexible half of women workforce was to be found in this group. Part time women workers according to calculations done by the
Equal Opportunities Commission (1987) comprised the biggest single group on temporary workers. (EOC, 1987)
The question one thus can ask is if this flexibility is gender based or not, where by core workforce is male and flexible workforce is female. Or do flexibility meets the needs of women, husbands and employers, or it is only suitable to one of the group. To answer these questions and many more, it good to explore Atkinson's model of flexibility, Atkinson formulate a model explaining am flexible firm and questions if there has been important movement towards it (flexible firm) in the last few years. According to him there are four main categories of flexibility which are:
1. Numerical flexibility; employers can fluctuate the amount of workers within a very short time
2. Functional flexibility; employees are able to undertake various range of duties increasing the efficiency i.e. standing in for a sick colleague
3. Distancing (particularly sub-contracting) flexibility; a firm is able to sub -contract its tasks to another person or a firm to perform those duties.
4. Pay flexibility; the amount being paid to workers varies widely (Wood, 1989)
Atkinson formulated the model of a flexible company in relation to division amongst core and peripheral workforce, the separation being just theoretically, though practically it is being seen as dichotomous. According to him peripheral workforce is that having unskilled and semi-skilled, this category is numerical flexible. While the core workforce most likely, are those who are skilled and have long term contracts with the company. Atkinson points out that over the years there have a significant change in the management conduct regarding workers. These changes have accelerated the movement towards flexible firm. Atkinson proposes the causes as being the following;
The recession, particular as it weakens the union power while increasing the workforce supply (though it may a temporary effect)
Technical changes being witnessed over time
Legislative changes, though its effect has been limited
Changes in business objectives; particularly transformations in environment requiring faster responses, decentralization and workforce reductions (Wood, 1989)
A lot of studies carried out by other scholars support also indicate that there has been an increase of flexibility over the past ten years and it has become wide spread. (Wood, 1989)
Atkinson's model in relation to gender
Atkinson does not make a lot of reference of gender in his model, though he clearly points out that the part time workforce and the distanced home workers who consists a big percentage of numerical flexible are women. Though, he makes this observation empirically instead of significance to gender issue in analyzing the workforce changes. Let us try and review the model I relation to the changes in the work place and how these affects gender aspect in particular women.

Core /periphery
Core workers seems to be equated to men while, women are equated to peripheral, however, there is countervailing reasons. The reasons that support these notion is that normally women hold jobs that are viewed as less professional, low paying, not secure and with little advancement prospects compared to men. When you asses this on the labour market as a whole this argument seem to hold water. As women get merely three-quarters of what men get in hourly income, which is 73.5% as at 1984 (according to New Earnings survey, 1984)
The fact that there is gender segregation in the workplace and in industries implies that women are locked up to narrow category of occupations, for instance where men have even distribution of occupations in the production and service sector women seem to be typically designated to less skilled work compared to men. In addition part time workers are mostly women who seem to fit well in the class of peripheral workers.
Home workers mostly are also women who are paid lowly as they work for few hours per week and the laws of that governed labour maters mostly do not protect this group. Thus this group may be considered as a peripheral workforce in a company.
However not all people agree that women are the peripheral workforce in a company. Thus, some people ague that though women are not well represented in the top echelon of the many of the industries though can not be considered as merely appearing in the peripheral workforce. There is number of women who are in professional jobs such as nursing, teaching and law though they are few but the have a significant presence in these fields. It has also been noted that women make a high percentage of the clerical workforce when you compare with men. (Baldwin, et al, 2001)
This discussion has particularly focused upon the level of women skills, responsibility and also controlling the labour process of women and men when it comes to category of work between core and peripheral, of which it is believed that women are mainly peripheral workers. Women's condition service and their rates of payment in the past have been given less attention in many theoretical literatures, even though the issues have been looked at in a number of empirical studies.
(Baldwin, et al, 2001) It thus appears that due to women's condition of service, their security of tenure and also technical levels of skills a good proportion of women need to considered as part of the core workforce and also some have to be considered as part of periphery workforce.

Environment changes
Atkinson also makes reference to the changes that occurs in the wider environment as another factor concerning more flexibility in management strategies. The main concern of Atkinson is changes occurring in the business surrounding in particular product market and also international competition changes. When one takes a broader definition of environment, he may view main alterations in immediate business perspective in relation to the use of women workforce and the wider environment that has crucially affected women workforce supply. (Baldwin, et al, 2001)
Changes in the environment in business perspective includes the removal of marriage bar immediately after the Second World War, noteworthy lessening of men dominated labour unions resistance in paid job. Other changes include equal opportunity laws that undercut barriers to women who are in paid employment, in addition to employment protection laws that protects both full time and part-time workers. (Baldwin, et al, 2001)
Other important appropriate changes that have occurred in the business environment also include the increased accessibility to education by women. Also the high numbers of divorces cases that have been increasing over the years makes women to be encouraged in pursing career advancement. Generally, gender environment is has significantly undergone changes both in the business perspective and also in the wider environment. Though the impact of legislation on relation to gender is not clear, it has helped in protecting employees where both men and women fall. On this new frontline, there has been increased demarcation of job security for the average man employee and to a considerable minority of women.
Contradictions amongst flexibility and labour market rigidity
Seeking of introduction of flexible employment patterns is one of management motivations, which removes the rigidities n the labour market so that it can assist towards achieving efficient functioning economy. However one important facet of labour market segregation is the occupational segregation by gender. The paradox resulting in gender occupational segregation may be a result of flexibilization that increases labour market rigidities.
Gender restructuring; importance of work changes to women
The most significant and substantial change in composition and also structure of labour force over the years has been remarkable growth of women in part time employment. As to now part time women workers are the single biggest group of temporary full-time workforce. The above fact has helping in removing the perception that women workers are peripheral workforce.
Currently, women are also entering into waged employment in bigger proportions though they fail to stand up on the occupational ladder as a group. However, women presently are not at the underside of the stack, nor are they at disposable reserve. Many women are roughly at the same point in the vertical ladder of paid work. More so, women are least being segregated from their men counterparts as before. (McMichael, 1996)
It is a result of some elimination of some kind of patriarchal practices in paid employment that has enabled women to have a dissimilar position in the current circles of restructuring than before. The attempts to view women as subordinate group in the labour market has been there from the past, but it has been part of a continuous dynamic in co-relationship of capitalist and patriarchal structure. It is partially in effect to successes which women have achieved in regards to entering the labour market that this current circle of restructuring has undertaken its present form. In the current settings part time employment for women suits the desires of many women of having paid work that is well-matched with their present domestic duties. This aspect also suits well with employers who are able to get flexible inexpensive labour and for male workers who continue to maintain best job opportunities for themselves. (McMichael, 1996)
The employment protection laws that have been enacted over the years have given protection to workers from being unfairly dismissed. These laws affords minimal protection to employees who do not qualify to be full protection on the basis of employment terms i.e. part-timers and temporary workers where majority of women lies. Thus has assisted in enabling more women to work as they are protected and thus can not be dismissed anyhow. (Wood, 1989)

Conclusion
The increased number of women in paid work is an aspect that has been going on over a long period of time. It has been occurring due to long term changes concerning gender relationships both in and outside the workplace environment. The elimination of a lot of patriarchal limits in the labour market has greatly assisted in opening up job opportunities for women. In addition other changes such as increased access to education, social alterations particularly in household structure and increased rate of divorce, increased demand for labour and even political changes have continued to have a positive impact on women and o increase their participation in paid labour. Though at present women still don't have the same billing in a workplace a men but is worth noting that they have been tremendous achievement in the work place for women.

Reference:
Baldwin, M.L., Butler, R.J. and Johnson W.G. (2001): A hierarchical theory of occupational segregation and wage discrimination. Economic Inquiry 39(1)
Equal Opportunities Commission (EOC) (1987): Facts about Men and Women in Great Britain.
Hakim, C. (1996): Key issues in women's work: Female Heterogeneity and the Polarization of Women's Employment, Glasshouse, UK
McMichael, P. (1996): Development and Social Change: a Global Perspective. London: Pine Forge Press.
Miller, L., Neather, F. Pollard, E. and Hill, D. (2004): Occupational segregation, gender gaps and skill gaps; Occupational segregation Working Paper Series No. 15. Equal Opportunities Commission, Institute for Employment Studies
Wood, S. (Ed). (1989): The Transformation of Work: Skill, Flexibility and the Labour Process. London: Routledge

Author is associated with ResearchPapers247.Com which is a global Research Papers and Term Papers Writing Company. If you would like help in Research Papers and Term Paper Help you can visit ResearchPapers247.Com>