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Striving for holistic integration : how lesbians come out on topRostad, Faith 11 1900 (has links)
Little has been written about women's career development that specifically addresses
the process of women becoming successful in their occupations. As well, the literature has
neglected to include the experiences of lesbians. Yet there is reason to believe that lesbians,
by virtue of their lesbian identity, may have unique work experiences that are different from
heterosexual women, leading to different paths to occupational success. The purpose of this
study was to investigate the process of lesbians becoming successful in their occupations by
utilizing a grounded theory approach. Fifteen women (age range 35 to 69 years) who were
identified as successful in their occupations (i.e., they were perceived as leaders in their
fields) and who represented a variety of occupational fields, were interviewed about their
experience of becoming successful in their careers.
The grounded theory analysis of the data led to conceptual development, ordering,
and a description of a psychological process "striving for holistic integration." The central
process begins by these women "managing their lesbian identities in the workplace." The
process involved women "taking risks and being out" at work along a continuum that
represented women "working 'in' silence," "working quietly," and being "boldly 'out'
spoken." Other salient categories in this central process included: facing ongoing fear,
handling homophobia, and fighting for social change. Holistic integration involved
participants integrating their lesbian and work "worlds." This integration facilitated
enhanced working relationships based on honesty, and, for many participants, holistic
integration became transformational as they became empowered by being open and
disclosing their lesbian identities in the workplace. This process involved a dynamic,
synergistic interaction between the influencing conditions (i.e., changing social times,
personal background, serendipitous conditions, love and support, and a gay friendly work
environment) and the unfolding of the process of striving for holistic integration.
This research contributes to our understanding of lesbians' occupational success and
is an important first step for further research. The women in this sample were primarily out in
their respective fields and experienced benefits from doing so, despite the barriers many of
them encountered along the way. The findings of this study provide guidance for future
research in the area of lesbian career development and success.
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When work empowers : women in Mexico's City's labour forceLee, Rebecca Anne January 2004 (has links)
The sudden and steady increase in the involvement of women in the Mexican labour force beginning in the 1980s, signifies a major shift in gender roles and activities. It is a little studied outcome of Mexico's combination of economic crisis (which served to increase the supply of female labour) and subsequent adoption of neoliberal economic policies (which stimulated the demand for female labour). In fact, what is not known, are the implications of this employment for the Mexican women themselves. The dissertation moves beyond the existing literature on the gendered consequences of employment and economic development, by bringing in the citizenship literature to help define women's status. Specifically, the dissertation proposes a way of determining these consequences by examining three dimensions of women's status, two of which refer to women's roles and capabilities in the public sphere---political and economic---and one which refers to women's status in the private sphere---the household. By disaggregating the status variable, the dissertation highlights the significant improvements in women's status while identifying the remaining obstacles to gender equality. The dissertation develops a number of measures of women's multidimensional status, and assesses the differences between employed and non-employed women using data obtained from a survey of women in Mexico City. In the economic sphere, the findings indicate that employment improves women's status by enhancing women's independence. Employment provides women with the economic resources that enable them to lessen their dependence on men. At the same time, women continue to face inequality in the labour market, signifying the continuing subordination of women. In terms of women's household status, the findings show that women retain the primary responsibility for childcare, and for the maintenance of the home. This inequality is significant, and serves to limit further improvements in
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The working conditions and careers of KwaZulu-Natal women teachers.Ponnusamy, Marimutu. January 2002 (has links)
Women activists in teacher unions such as Sadtu claimed that there was a disjuncture
between what the South African Constitution says about gender equity and what is
happening in reality. This study was undertaken to investigate this claim from the women
teachers' perspective.
This study explores how the social, cultural, political, historical, economic and educational
factors influence the conditions of work and careers of the women teachers in KwaZulu-Natal.
In this study, an historical outline of the contribution of various philosophies and
attitudes to the relative position of KZN women from 1845 to 2000 is given in an attempt
to seek solutions to the gender equity problem in education. The study also uses the racial
perspectives to investigate the feminists' claim that Black women suffer triple oppression -
that of gender, race and class.
An extensive exploratory study using a multiple method approach, incorporating data from
documentary research, surveys and interviews leads to the presentation of a well etched
picture of the KZN women teachers. A large sample of 339 educators participated in the
study. The major findings of the study include the following aspects:
About 64 percent of the teachers in KZN province are women. Despite their majority in
the teaching profession, their contribution to education is grossly undervalued. The most
visible sign of this discrimination is the under-representativity of the women educators in
managerial and decision-making positions in the education hierarchy. This stems from
patriarchy which is still prevalent. Women are excluded from male dominated areas
through socialisation and male resistance to change. Although about 98 percent of the
women are certificated teachers, the majority of them have only a matriculation certificate
as academic qualification. This stems from the historical under-investment in the girl
child's education by parents and the State.
About 67 percent of the women teachers are married and 68 percent have children. The
majority of them believe in the tradition of marriage and are very comfortable with the
multiple roles they perform. However, the majority of the Black women derive little
satisfaction from teaching at the moment because of the tough working conditions and the
lack of respect from learners, parents and KZNDEC officials. Presently the Govt's R & R
policies cause uncertainty and frustration for the teachers. The work environment at historically Black schools can be unsafe with robbery and muggings which happen in the school grounds.
Women teachers are presently on a par with the men in economic terms. The most
significant aspect of the empowerment is the ability to leave their pension benefits to their
husbands or dependents upon their death, this gives them a new identity, that of
benefactors. Through its affirmative action policies, the State is giving preference to
women when promoting personnel to managerial posts.
Overall, the women teachers are still overworked and, therefore, relatively underpaid.
Because of the role overload they are prone to ailments, frustration, stress etc. Therefore,
it is recommended that their retirement age be reduced; the calculation of pension benefits
for previously disadvantaged women teachers be corrected; women's health be given
priority attention; childcare be provided at the workplace. In addition, more research on
KZN women teachers' issues needs to be undertaken as this is only a baseline study.
This study confirms the women teachers' claim that thus far the new Govt has addressed
only the class issues and not the issues of race and gender. / Thesis (Ph.D.) - University of Durban-Westville, 2002.
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An analysis of the extent, nature and consequences of female part-time employment in post apartheid South Africa.Muller, Colette. January 2009 (has links)
International studies of part-time employment have shown that most part-time workers are women, and specifically married women (Rosenfeld and Birkelund 1995; Caputo and Cianni 2001). The ability to work part-time enables women who have household commitments, such as caring for children, to maintain an attachment to the labour force and to preserve job skills while also undertaking household labour (Long and Jones 1981; Rosenfeld and Birkelund 1995). In many countries, therefore, the growth in part-time employment has constituted an important component of the increase in women’s work. However, part-time jobs are often considered to be poorly remunerated, offering little or no security, limited opportunities for career advancement and few (if any) benefits (Rosenfeld and Birkelund 1995; Rodgers 2004; Hirsch 2005; Bardasi and Gornick 2008). Although empirical research on South Africa’s labour markets has expanded significantly over the post-apartheid period, particularly with the introduction of nationally representative household surveys that capture individual employment data, little is known about the characteristics of South African part-time workers, or about the nature of the work these individuals perform. Using data from a selection of South
Africa’s nationally representative household surveys, namely the October Household Surveys, the Labour Force Surveys and the Labour Force Survey Panel, this thesis aims to redress this lacuna. The thesis comprises four empirical chapters. The first chapter outlines the definition of part-time employment adopted throughout the study, and it presents gendered
trends in part-time employment in South Africa from 1995 to 2006. The descriptive analysis shows that most part-time workers in South Africa are women, and further, that the growth in female part-time employment has been an important part of the feminisation of the labour force in South Africa. The second chapter compares part-time and full-time wage (salaried) employment. The main analytical question addressed in this chapter is whether women are penalised for working part-time. Although hourly wages in part-time employment are, on average, lower than in full-time employment, the study demonstrates that after controlling for differences in observable and unobservable characteristics, women in part-time employment receive a wage premium. The third chapter explores heterogeneity among part-time wage workers, distinguishing between women who choose to work part-time and women who report wanting to work longer hours. Key findings of this chapter are that a wage
premium persists for women both in voluntary and in involuntary part-time work; but that involuntary part-time workers have a stronger labour force attachment than voluntary part-time workers. The fourth chapter uses the distinction between part-time and full-time employment to investigate changes in the gender wage gap in employment. The results show that the total gender gap in wages among part-time and full-time workers has fallen over the years, with the greatest reduction visible for those working part-time. The final chapter summarises the main findings of the thesis
and it outlines avenues for further research on part-time employment in South Africa. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Westville, 2009. / UKZN Economics department; Economic Research South Africa; UKZN Doctoral Scholarship Award
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Power, gender construction, and interactional processes of family-to-work impact in married couples /Wong, Ching-See Connie, January 2005 (has links)
Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Toronto, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 187-202).
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An investigation into strategies which enable South African women to break through the glass ceilingPeens, Maritha January 2003 (has links)
The objective of this study was to identify the strategies (personal and organisational) that would enable South African women to break through the glass ceiling. A questionaire was designed based on the strategies found in a literature study on the topic and used to gather inputs from executive women in South Africa. A combination of snowball and self-selection sampling was used. The questionaire was sent to 138 potential respondents, mostly by means of electronic mail. Of the 47 completed questionairs returned, 44 could be used. These were processed and anaylsed using Microsoft Excel spreadsheets and the STATISTICA Version 6 software. In generaL, support was found for personal strategies pertaining to career management, networking (especially the relationship building activities), the reconciliation of home and work responsibilities with the emphasis on building a support system, education, business and organisational insught, skills development and increased input, but not for the assimilation of masculine attributes. Networking opportunities and education, training and development activities were regarded as the organisational strategies with the strongest impact on career progress. The literature was confirmed regarding top management support, an organisational culture conducive to women's advancement, mentorship programmes and a few career development initiatives. Although more than half of the respondents had been exposed to employment equity and affirmative action programmes, they were perceived to have only little to moderate impact on career progress. This was also the case with diversity management programmes. Flexible work arrangements, career adaptation schemes and childcare facilities and programmes were seen as having had little impact on the respondents' career advancement. Only a few of the organisational practices to support women balancing family and work responsibilities were utilised by the respondents' employers. Respondents perceived personal strategies as having greater value than organisational strategies in their progress to executive levels.
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Striving for holistic integration : how lesbians come out on topRostad, Faith 11 1900 (has links)
Little has been written about women's career development that specifically addresses
the process of women becoming successful in their occupations. As well, the literature has
neglected to include the experiences of lesbians. Yet there is reason to believe that lesbians,
by virtue of their lesbian identity, may have unique work experiences that are different from
heterosexual women, leading to different paths to occupational success. The purpose of this
study was to investigate the process of lesbians becoming successful in their occupations by
utilizing a grounded theory approach. Fifteen women (age range 35 to 69 years) who were
identified as successful in their occupations (i.e., they were perceived as leaders in their
fields) and who represented a variety of occupational fields, were interviewed about their
experience of becoming successful in their careers.
The grounded theory analysis of the data led to conceptual development, ordering,
and a description of a psychological process "striving for holistic integration." The central
process begins by these women "managing their lesbian identities in the workplace." The
process involved women "taking risks and being out" at work along a continuum that
represented women "working 'in' silence," "working quietly," and being "boldly 'out'
spoken." Other salient categories in this central process included: facing ongoing fear,
handling homophobia, and fighting for social change. Holistic integration involved
participants integrating their lesbian and work "worlds." This integration facilitated
enhanced working relationships based on honesty, and, for many participants, holistic
integration became transformational as they became empowered by being open and
disclosing their lesbian identities in the workplace. This process involved a dynamic,
synergistic interaction between the influencing conditions (i.e., changing social times,
personal background, serendipitous conditions, love and support, and a gay friendly work
environment) and the unfolding of the process of striving for holistic integration.
This research contributes to our understanding of lesbians' occupational success and
is an important first step for further research. The women in this sample were primarily out in
their respective fields and experienced benefits from doing so, despite the barriers many of
them encountered along the way. The findings of this study provide guidance for future
research in the area of lesbian career development and success. / Education, Faculty of / Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department of / Graduate
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’The bob-shingle regime that rules the feminine world’ : consumerism, women and work in 1920s British ColumbiaMoore, Magdalena Dorothy Kean 11 1900 (has links)
This project is a case study of the hairdressing industry in British Columbia in the 1920s.
It argues that gender divisions persisted as consumerism became increasingly important to
British Columbians, and that despite British Columbia's sometimes challenging engagement
with international consumerism, the province's economy remained remarkably synchronized
with international trends. It tells the story of the rapid expansion and feminization of hair
services markets and businesses; examines the public and legislative debates about the
importance of consumer services such as hairdressing and its customers; and reveals the
persistence of gendered divisions in the early transition to a consumer services society. Using
British Columbian newspaper reports, American and Canadian women's and union periodicals,
city directories, national censuses, and government reports, the project looks first at the
increasing pressures in the 1920s from business owners, advertisers, and magazine editors to
adopt new, fashionable hairstyles and the sources of ambivalence among women about the new
styles. It then turns to hairdressing as a business and source of employment, and after briefly
reviewing the history of hairdressing in North America looks at the rapid expansion of
hairdressing businesses in British Columbia during the 1920s; the demographic characteristics of
hairdressing workers and entrepreneurs; and the feminization of the hair services industry. It also
explores the connection between feminist ideals and women's entrepreneurship in the hair
services field. Finally, the hairdressers' attempt to gain regulation from the provincial
government is examined at the end of the decade, with a particular focus on how consumerism
and hairdressing, its workers and customers, are characterized. The legislative and public debates
about hairdressing regulation reveal anxiety about consumerism and persistent gender divisions
as British Columbia began to shift toward a consumer-oriented society. It concludes that British
Columbia, despite its primary resource economic base, remained remarkably in step with
international trends, from feminization of services to regulation of those services, of which
hairdressing was just a beginning. / Arts, Faculty of / History, Department of / Graduate
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When work empowers : women in Mexico's City's labour forceLee, Rebecca Anne January 2004 (has links)
No description available.
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Is EPZ employment a stepping stone or a stumbling block for the empoerment of women? Evidence from MauritiusPeedoly, Aveeraj Sharma 06 1900 (has links)
This study critically assesses how far the Mauritian EPZ, which consists of a
predominantly female workforce, is conducive to women’s empowerment, particularly in
a context of rife global competition. Focus Group Discussions with actual female
workers and semi-directive interviews of those who have been laid off reveal that there
have effectively been some benefits which may be construed as empowerment.
However, low wages and harsh treatment of workers at the workplace, compounded with
rising costs of living and pervasive patriarchal values impede the extent of empowerment.
Yet, when contrasted with the experiences of laid off women, the centrality of
employment becomes more palpable. The experiences of job loss are in many cases
destructive of not only the laid-off worker’s self-image and aspirations, but also on their
ability to juggle with poverty and its associated outcomes. Despite being a relatively
difficult sector to work in, its benefits outweigh its limitations. / Sociology / MA (Social Science)
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