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2009:4 The Gender Segregation of the Czech Labour Market. A Quantitative and Qualitative Image |
Alena Křížková (ed.) |
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This publication presents a quantitative look at the issue of gender segregation – a statistical image – and a qualitative image of the social reality of women’s labour as portrayed in contemporary Czech television drama series. The authors identify the scope of this issue, its context, and its media depiction. They examined gender segregation in the Czech labour market through an analysis of statistical data on the labour market with the aid of segregation indexes, which are commonly used abroad. The analysis showed that the Czech labour market continues to be and has long been heavily segregated and the degree of segregation is only decreasing very slowly. Almost one-half of all working women are concentrated within just ten occupational categories (out of a total number of 107), while the occupational concentration of men is somewhat weaker. The fact that the problem of segregation lies in the very strong stereotypes that continue to operate in Czech society is clearly revealed by the most commonly held occupations among women – administrative employees, nurses, elementary school teachers, cleaning women and shop assistants – and the most commonly held occupations among men – technicians, manual labourers like fitters, machine workers, repairmen, drivers, and police officers. Women are still regarded mainly as mothers, caregivers, and as those best able to keep things tidy, while men are viewed as technically and manually skilled and as natural protectors. The associated gender system of prestige, segregation, wage differences between men and women, and the aspects and conditions of work that apply in each individual occupation form the foundation of gender inequalities. The creators of contemporary Czech television serials depict social reality as strongly patriarchal, while the working roles of women are portrayed as marginal, self-evident, but also of little interest to women, and the success of women at work is depicted more in negative terms.
Keywords
gender segregation of the labour market, segregation index, gender stereotypes, media content analysis
Summary
This publication, ‘Gender Segregation of the Czech Labour Market: A Quantitative and Qualitative Image’, is the outcome of a 2008–2010 research project titled ‘The Processes and Sources of Gender Inequalities in Women’s Careers in Relation to the Transformation of Czech Society since 1989 and the Czech Republic’s Membership in the EU’, which was supported by the Grant Agency of the Academy of Science of the Czech Republic. The goal of this study was to examine gender segregation of the labour market both from the perspective of the scope of this negative labour market phenomenon in the Czech Republic and in a European context and from the perspective of the breadth of issues that segregation is connected with, and to propose new methodological approaches for the study of this issue. The publication combines a ‘traditional’ quantitative approach to the study of segregation and the relatively unusual approach of a qualitative analysis of media contents. The authors believe that this combination provides a more comprehensive overview of the scope of the problem of gender segregation than would be possible using just one of these approaches.
In the introductory chapter, Alena Křížková outlines the goals of this publication and the innovative approach of the research combining quantitative and qualitative analyses. At the same time, she explains the use of the term ‘gender segregation’ in relation to the position of the authors of this publication in the field of gender and feminist studies.
In the second chapter, ‘Gender Segregation of the Labour Market – A Statistical Picture’, Alena Křížková defines the phenomenon of segregation and draws on foreign studies to answer the question of how segregation is usually measured in sociology. In the third part of the chapter she uses the results of statistical data analyses to provide readers with a picture of the situation in the Czech Republic. For this purpose she uses commonly used mathematically estimated indicators of segregation and descriptive indicators of employment segregation and integration. By using this approach it was possible to situate the Czech labour market from a segregation perspective within a European context, to identify the developmental trend in gender segregation in recent years, and to describe specific types of integrated and segregated occupations and the degree of concentration of women and men in certain types of occupations.
Gender segregation in the Czech labour market is strong, and desegregation is proceeding only very slowly. In a European comparison, the Czech Republic ranks among the countries with a strongly segregated labour market. The relatively high level of gender segregation in the Czech labour market may have its historical roots in the long tradition of high employment of both men and women (full time) and in the persistent division of labour into male and female, not just at home in the private sphere, but also in the public sphere, in the sphere of employment, and this despite the ideology of emancipation and equality that existed even in the state-socialist period. It was found that 45.7% of working women are concentrated in 10 types of occupation out of a total of 107 occupational categories. Every sixth Czech woman works as an administrative employee, every eleventh is a nurse, and every thirteenth works as a shop assistant or cashier. While in the past several years there has been a further increase in the concentration of women in several occupational categories, the concentration of men in the most common occupational categories is 40.8% of working men. Every seventh Czech man works in a manual job, like a metalworker, fitter, mechanic, tool fitter, or machinist. Every twelfth man is a technician, and every twentieth is a driver.
In the third chapter, Alena Křížková focuses on the ‘Causes and Effects of Segregation’. In the first part she presents the basic theories of gender segregation of the labour market and in the second part informs readers about the broad scale of effects of segregation in the form of gender inequalities. Using an analysis of statistical data and data from an occupational prestige survey, she shows how in the Czech labour market there is a gendered system in which there are links between the degree of employment segregation, wage levels, job prestige, and the quality of work. In the third part of this chapter she proposes other directions that sociological research on gender segregation could pursue and possible policy directions that could help to reduce segregation.
Theories of labour market segregation essentially concur that the observed segregation is primarily the result of the way in which women and men are allocated to different occupational roles, whether by their own choice or by coercion. Economic and sociological theories of segregation – the theory of human capital, neo-liberal and institutional theories – are incapable of fully explaining the causes of the persistent existence of strong labour market segregation. Gender theories of labour market segregation, unlike other theoretical streams, take into account the fact that labour market is not an isolated system and note the strong connection between the gender segregation of paid work in the labour market and the gender division of unpaid work and care in the household.
Segregation is one of the direct causes of gender inequalities, the most visible examples of which are wage inequalities. In the Czech labour market there is a gendered system, in which there are links between the degree of employment segregation, wage levels, job prestige, and the quality of work there are links between the degree of employment segregation, wage levels, job prestige, and the quality of work, and that system creates gendered types of occupation. This system functions not just in the labour market as a whole but above all in individual occupational fields and occupations. Examining the mechanisms and links involved in how this interlinked system of segregation, wages, prestige, and work quality functions within individual occupations is a matter for further research.
The fourth chapter, by Zdeněk Sloboda, presents ‘Images of Working Women in Contemporary Czech Television Series’. The media on the one hand depict and on the other hand co-construct reality, and for this reason an analysis of media contents is an important tool with which to examine this reality. Zdeněk Sloboda presents the results of a qualitative content analysis conducted on selected contemporary Czech drama series from the perspective of women’s employment. Given that this involves an unorthodox perspective on the segregated labour market in the Czech Republic, his analysis is framed in the cultural and media studies theory and the theory of gendering of the media contents. The media work with elements of reality, the reality of people’s lives, in the way that corresponds to the symbolic structure of society. The media are omnipresent, they structure our time and space, and they give us information; they are an important socialisation tool that transmit values and behavioural patterns and norms, which are primarily gendered. Given the fact that Czech television series are usually situated in the workplace and not in the home, a content analysis of them is one of the best instruments for examining the reality of gender segregation in the Czech labour market. The use of a qualitative approach enabled Zdeněk Sloboda to find an answer to the question of what working women in Czech television series are like (and how they are depicted). Contemporary Czech television drama series symbolically re-produce the gender segregation of the labour market and they present the social reality of work as patriarchal. Although the series tend to be situated in workplaces, women’s roles in the workplace are portrayed as secondary and women’s job success is depicted as a negative value.
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2009:5 Social Capital in the Czech Republic and in an International Comparison |
2009:4 The Gender Segregation of the Czech Labour Market. A Quantitative and Qualitative Image |
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2006:13 The Representation of Parenthood and Childlessness in Selected Women’s and Men’s Magazines |
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2005:06 Civil Society in the Regions of the Czech Republic |
2005:05 Civil Society and Civic Participation in the Czech Republic |
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2005:03 Regional Elites 2004 |
2005:02 Political Behavior in Metropolitan Areas in the Czech Republic between 1990 and 2002 – Patterns, Trends and the Relation to Suburbanization and Its Socio-Spatial Patterns |
2005:01 Measuring Value Orientations with the Use of S.H. Schwartz’s Value Portraits |
2004:11 The Formation of Group Mentalities in the Czech Republic after 1989 |
2004:10 Hierarchy as the Strength and the Weakness of Communist Rule. The Legacy of Communist Rule IV: A Volume of Papers from the Seminar Held in Prague on September 11-12, 2003 |
2004:9 Czech National Identity after the Break Up Czechoslovakia and before Accession to the European Union |
2004:8 Life Strategies of Businesswomen and Businessmen at the Turn of the Millennium |
2004:7 Attitudes towards Marriage, Parenthood and Family Roles in the Czech Republic and in Europe |
2004:6 Life Satisfaction: Family,Work, and Other Factors |
2004:5 What Faith? Contemporary Czech Religiosity/Spirituality in the Perspective of Qualitative Sociology of Religion |
2004:4 Structural Tensions in the Interface between the Labour Market and Social Policy in the Czech Republic |
2004:3 Metropolitan Areas in the Czech Republic – Definitions, Basic Characteristics, Patterns of Suburbanisation and Their Impact on Political Behaviour |
2004:2 International Violence Against Women Survey – Czech Republic/2003: Sociological Research on Domestic Violence |
2004:1 Elections to the European Parliament in 2004 – An Analysis of Electoral Participation and Party Support in the Czech Republic |
2003:12 Hierarchy as a Strength and Weakness of Communist Rule |
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2003:10 The Reconstruction of Communist Rule at the End of the 1980s |
2003:9 Women’s Civic and Political Participation in the Czech Republic and the Role of European Union Gender Equality and Accession Policies |
2003:8 Pre-election polls, election results, and validity of measurement before the 2002 elections |
2003:7 Party Preference Surveys, Their Application in Society and the Issue of Quality |
2003:6 The Transformations of Czech Socio-economic Values at the Turn of the Century |
2003:5 Objective and Subjective Assessments of the Financial Accessibility of Housing in the Czech Republic during the 1990s |
2003:4 Entry into Marriage and Unmarried Cohabitation in the Czech Republic since 1989 in Connection with Education |
2003:3 Work and Job Values in CEE and EU countries |
2003:2 Intergenerational Biographic Configurations of the Inhabitants of the NISA Euroregion |
2003:1 Structurally Generated Growth of Inequality |
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2002:12 Group Mentalities |
2002:11 The World of Hierarchies and Real Socialism. The legacy of communist rule II: volume of contributions investigating of social hierarchies |
2002:10 Social Context of the Lives of Women Working in Management Positions |
2002:09 Parties in the Parliament. Why, When and How do Parties act in Unity? |
2002:08 Life strategies of women managers: case study |
2002:07 Region and Politics |
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2002:05 Housing Careers in the Czech Republic 1960 - 2001 |
2002:04 Re-emigrants and Socially Shared Values |
2002:03 Satisfaction with Housing among the Czech Population |
2002:02 The Family Origin on the Evolution of Educational Inequalities in the Czech Republic after 1989 |
2002:01 The Rise and Evolution of the New Elites in the Czech Republic (from the end of the 1980´s to the spring of 2002) |
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2001:11 11th September. International On-line Communication Research |
2001:10 Fertility and Family Differentiation in Europe |
2001:09 The rise or decline of political regionalism? Changes of voting patterns in period 1992 to 1998 - the comparison of the Czech Republic and Slovakia |
2001:08 Cross-cutting Cleavages in the Czech Republic. A Comparison of the National Level with a Specific Regional Example |
2001:07 Roma Issues: An Obstacle to Entry of the Czech Republic into the European Union? |
2001:06 ISSP- The Environment |
2001:05 Distribution of Earnings and Income in Transitional Czech Republic |
2001:04 The Bearers of Development of the Cross-Border Community on Czech-German Border |
2001:03 Rent Subsidies in the Czech Republic: A Comparison of Selected Models |
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2001:01 Income maintenance policies, houshold characteristics and work incentives in the Czech republic |
2000:07 Work and Family Experience of Young Female Doctors |
2000:06 Development of the Czech Social Structure in the Years 1988-1999 |
2000:05 Party identifikation in the Czech republic |
2000:04 What makes inequalities legitimate? An International Comparison |
2000:03 Religion and Supernature in Society |
2000:02 Transformation and Modernization of Society on Examples of Selected Institutions |
2000:01 The Housing Policy Changes and Housing Expenditures in the Czech Republic |
1999:11 Geografic Analysis of the Czech Republic Borderland. |
1999:10 Rise and Decline of Right-Wing Extremism in the Czech Republic in the 1990s. |
1999:09 Perceived and fair inequalities: development in the nineties and further coherences |
1999:08 The Czechoslovak citizens' attitudes towards democracy in 1968 |
1999:07 The Czech Middletown Citizens |
1999:06 A Man in a Family – Democratisation of Private Sphere |
1999:05 Development of the Policy of Equal Opportunities of Men and Women in the Czech Republic within the European Integration Context |
1999:04 Actors of Over-frontier Community Development in the Czech - German Borderland |
1999:03 Acquaintances of Local Political Leaders |
1999:02 Housing Market, its Regional Differences and Relations to Social Structure |
1999:01 The Fluctuation of Public Opinion between Years 1990 and 1998 |
1998:06 Modernizační kontext transformace, strukturní a institucionální aspekty |
1998:05 Deputies of the First Czech Parliament (1992-1996) |
1998:04 |
1998:03 Transformation of Czech Family |
1998:02 Results of a Czech-Slovak Comparison: Actors of Social Transformation and Modernisation. Attitudes of Individuals an Institutions to Social Transformation |
1998:01 Trh s bydlením a jeho sociální souvislosti - situace v Praze a Brně |
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1997:06 Czech Women in the Labor Market Work and Family in a Transition Economy |
1997:05 |
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1997:02 |
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1996:09 Národní identita |
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1996:06 Zpráva o vývoji sociální struktury české a slovenské společnosti 1945-1993 |
1996:05 Tripartita jako model prostředkování zájmů v politickém systému České republiky |
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1996:03 The Making of Post-Communist Elites in Eastern Europe. A comparison of political and economic elites in the Czech Republic, Hungary and Poland |
1996:02 Sudetoněmecká otázka v názorech a postojích obyvatel českého pohraničí |
1996:01 Demografické chování obyvatelstva České republiky během přeměny společnosti po roce 1989 |
1995:08 Česká republika v roce 1994. Politická ročenka |
1995:07 Problém normativity a policejní represe v předlistopadovém Československu |
1995:06 Industriální vztahy a sociálně politické orientace českých dělníků a manažerů |
1995:05 Rozdíly v chování regionálních populací a jejich příčiny |
1995:04 Women, Work and Society |
1995:03 Trh práce a jeho potenciál |
1995:02 Etnické a národnostní vztahy v pánevní oblasti severních Čech (s důrazem na romskou problematiku) |
1995:01 In Search of Explanations for Recent Left-Turns in Post-Communist Coutries |
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1994:08 Large-Scale Privatization: Social Conflict and Consensus |
1994:07 Economic Inequalities Old and New: The Czech Case |
1994:06 Prostředky kauzálního modelování v sociologii. Shrnující pojednání o postupech a přehled základních pojmů |
1994:05 Regionální diferenciace sociálních problémů v České republice |
1994:04 A Historical Comparison of Social Structures in the Czech Republic in 1984 and 1993 |
1994:03 Přeshraniční souvislosti sociálních změn v oblasti české části euroregionu Chebsko |
1994:02 Social and Political Transformation in the Czech Republic |
1994:01 Lotus Organizátor. Uživatelská příručka |
1993:09 Sociální a mzdové problémy zaměstnanců malých a středních soukromých podniků |
1993:08 Sociální postavení rodiny jako základního činitele a adresáta sociální pomoci |
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1993:06 Perceptions of Justice. Principles of Distributive Justice in Comparative Perspective |
1993:04 Revolution for Whom? Analysis of selected patterns of intragenerational mobility in the Czech Republic |
1993:04 Revolution for Whom? Analysis of selected patterns of intragenerational mobility in the Czech Republic |
1993:03 RODINA ´89. Determinanty ekonomického úspěchu v první fázi postkomunistické transformace. Česká republika 1989-1992 |
1993:02 RODINA '89. Determinanty ekonomického úspěchu v první fázi post-komunistické transformace. Česká republika 1989-1992 |
1993:01 Microsoft Word verze 5.5. Uživatelská příručka |
1992:09 Historical Comparison of Social Stratification Types in Czechoslovakia 1967-1991 |
1992:08 Rodina '89. Úloha mentálních schopností a sociálního původu ve formování vzdělanostních aspirací |
1992:07 The Zero Generation of Small Business Owners in Czechoslovakia |
1992:06 Time Use of Small Business Owners. Results and Methodological Comments |
1992:05 Perception of Changing Inequality in Czechoslovakia |
1992:04 Vybrané kapitoly z uživatelské příručky Microsoft Word verze 5.0 |
1992:03 Politické strany a hnutí v Československu |
1992:02 Politische Partien und Bewegungen in der Tschechoslowakei |
Prague in the New Central Europe. International conference 2-4 June 1990 |
1991:09 Vybrané kapitoly z uživatelské příručky Microsoft Word verze 5.0 |
1991:08 Nultá podnikatelská generace |
1991:07 Rodina '89. Zdroje vzdělanostních nerovností |
1991:06 Hodnotové orientace československé mužské mládeže a jejich vztah k obraně vlasti |
1991:05 Gender and the Employment of Higher Education Graduates in Czechoslovakia |
1991:04 Územní vztahy, územní a státoprávní uspořádání České republiky v názorech obyvatel |
1991:03 Social Problems of Participation in the Changing Czechoslovak Economy |
1991:02 K postavení žen v československé společnosti |
1991:01 Socialist Czechoslovakia - System Error and Premises for Change |
1990:06 Názory na rozvoj soukromého podnikání |
1990:05 Growing interest in informal work - consequences for time use research. XIIth World Congress of Sociology, Madrid 1990, Thematic Group 1, Time Use Research |
1990:04 Value-satisfaction Model and the Value of Innovation |
1990:03 Who Gains and Who Loses in a Socialist Redistribution |
1990:02 Ženy a volby '90 |
1990:01 Beyond Educational Inequality in Czechoslovakia |
1989:02 Československá varianta Mezinárodní standardní klasifikace zaměstnání (ISCO) |
1989:01 Family Effect on Educational Attainment in Czechoslovakia, Hungary and the Netherlands |
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