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Nathan Hutchings 2011
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Globalisation and Gender, trends in the global workplace and
the effect on dual income working families
Nathan Hutchings 2011
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Nathan Hutchings 2011
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The world of work stretches and interconnects with global flows of capital,
labour and information communication technology networks (Hutton & Giddens,
2000; Limerick, Cunnington & Crowther, 2002; xplanevisualthinking, 2007). The
ability to transverse the globe via international flights is within the reach of more
people than ever before and the cost relative to other forms of international transport
have decreased over the past forty years (Burton & Pels, 2010; Hummel, 1999; Lee,
2003). The exponential development of information communication technologies
have according to Limerick, Cunnington and Crowther (2002) changed the shape
and form of organisations, types of employment, and what it means to be an
employee in the 21st Century (De-Botton, 2009). In particular, Colteryahn and Davis
(2004) report that technological advances are affecting the way that work is done
and how, when, and where learning occurs (p.32). Additionally, Bell (2009) reports
that jobs are increasingly advertised online, viewable on a global scale and
consequently in a global labor market, pay levels will equilibrate. (Colvin, 2004,
p.26). Furthermore, in the Western world previously secure jobs such as
manufacturing and more recently IT help desk support and service jobs, have been
outsourced and exported overseas and if they have not already they will be in the
near future (Hutton & Giddens, 2000, Colvin, 2004; Colteryahn & Davis, 2004;
Helyar, 2005). Finally, recent global financial uncertainty and crisis have added to
the maelstrom of change and uncertainty, especially in America the European Union
and Britain (Pendery, 2009; Wolf, 2009). Globalisation, change and uncertainty are
now a fact of life not just a concept talked about by sociologist and cultural theorists.
Global trends such as transnational markets in capital, labour and knowledge
create tensions and disadvantage not only for poor migrant and third world workers
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but also for dual income working families. Klien (2001) has highlighted the plight of
third world sweat shop workers employed by multinational brands that clothe the
urban middle class. Lytoard (1984) detailed the comodification effect of computer
networks on knowledge and heralded the death of the grand narrative, paradoxically
at the time of the emergence of Globalisation which Raina (2003) and Linklater
(2009) argued is a grand narrative and far from dead. Hutton & Giddens (2000)
discussed the interconnection of global markets in labour, finance, information and
knowledge and Colvin (2004) reported that it is only a matter of time before many
white collar professional jobs performed in industrial Western nations are performed
by increasingly well educated Chinese or Indians graduates (xplanevisualthinking,
2007). Dual income working families do not suffer the levels of economic deprivation
of Kliens (2001) sweat shop workers or the emotional pain of Hochschilds (2000)
Pilipino mothers working as domestic servants. However, the domestic sphere like
the world of work is also effected by issues such as economic uncertainty, work
intensification, demands of continual professional studies and the difficulties of
balancing all these pressures while raising a family (Duxbury, Lyons & Higgins,
2007; Elloy & Smith, 2003; Emslie & Hunt, 2009).
In addition to Globalisation the other key trend that has affected dual income
working families is the dramatic change in the characteristics of labour force. Elloy
and Smith (2003) report that the increase in womens participation in the work force
has occurred in tandem with the decrease in mens participation; however, the
increased participation by women in the work place has not occurred with an equal
reduction in societies expectations of women as mothers. Furthermore, Maume,
Sebastian and Bardo (2010) more recently recount that men have only marginally
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increased their participation in housework and childcare duties and Emslie and
Hunts (2009) report that many contemporary studies of work and home life either
ignore gender or take it for granted (p. 152). The multifarious issues and trends that
result from Globalisation and the changing characteristics of the workforce have
blurred the lines between the domestic and work sphere. The traditional family
consisting of one usually male full time worker is no longer the norm and dual
income families are working harder and longer hours (Colteryahn & Davis, 2004;
Elloy & Smith, 2003; Emslie & Hunts, 2009).
The disadvantage suffered by individuals and families in third world countries in
addition to the unemployed, socially and economically marginalized within the
wealthier Western nations is starkly obvious when compared to dual income working
families. However, such comparisons do not bring to light the lived experience of the
nexus between work and home for dual income working families which Emslie and
Hunt (2009) report have been subjected to relatively few qualitative studies. Despite
the gains working women have made for equal pay and opportunities in the work
place true pay parity is still yet to be achieved. As recently as 2007 Blau and Kahn
(2007) reported that the gender pay gap has not closed fully and appears to have
stalled for reasons of residual discrimination in the work place. Economic
disadvantage is still gendered; hegemonic beliefs that women are a familys primary
care giver and domestic worker prevail;
gender inequality is embedded not only in personal identities but also in
interpersonal interactions, being accountable to others, and institutional practices means
that in most of social life, men and women do gender in conforming to hegemonic
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beliefs about the proper display of gender, perhaps even when as individuals they
identify with gender egalitarianism. (Maume, Sebastian, & Bardo, 2010, p. 748)
So despite an individuals belief about gender equality and the division of work in the
domestic sphere they are expected to enact social roles and norms that work against
their gender egalitarian ideals. The father who leaves work early to look after a sick
child is seen as the good father in contrast the professional woman is asked whether
their husband can care for the child, women are in a double bind as conflicting
messages of motherhood and work place equality negate displays of gender within
dominant gendered hegemonic discourses.
However, these inequalities are not experienced equally across socio-economic
strata. The experience for working class families in contrast to middle and
professional career dual income families is significant. Working class families are
more vulnerable to the forces of globalization specifically the relocation of industrial
manufacturing overseas ; however, middle class families are no longer immune to
these trends according to Colvin (2004), Helyar (2005), Richman and Schiff (1995).
In addition, Maume, Sebastian, and Bardo (2010) reported that working class
couples had a higher rate of one partner working night or split shifts in order to share
childcare duties. But the reasons for one partner to undertake shift work were largely
economic rather than an egalitarian view of domestic and childcare duties. Despite
the economic differences between working and middle class dual income families
Maume, Sebastian, and Bardo (2010) found that the previously held belief that
middle class males are more egalitarian is fallacious. Maume, Sebastian, and Bardo
(2010) found that mens sleep patterns where privileged over womens especially in
cases of waking in the night to attend to children or sick family members. However,
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womens marital power increases with their ability to earn higher wages than their
partner, but this power is more effective at negotiating the sharing of domestic duties
rather than sleep patterns (Maume, Sebastian & Bardo, 2010).
The work of Maume, Sebastian & Bardo, (2010) provides insight into the
interplay of economic status and gender in the allocation of domestic and childcare
duties. Furthermore, these insights provide a precursor to the work of Duxbury,
Lyons and Higgins (2007) which argues that the idea that the existing topology of
dual income working families is not adequate enough to describe the diversity of dual
income families. By expanding the topology greater insight can be gained into the
lived experience of the nexus between work and home for dual income working
families. Duxbury, Lyons and Higgins (2007) postulated that dual income working
families can be categorized by taking into account three factors; gender, the
occupational status of the male and the occupational status of the female. These
three factors yield four main dual income family formations; (1) dual career couples,
both work in a professional or managerial capacity; (2) dual earner couples, both
work in semi- skilled or skilled service industries; (3) status-reversal couples, where
the male is working in a semi-skilled or service industry and the female is employed
in a professional or managerial capacity (Duxbury, Lyons & Higgins, 2007). This
topology provides greater descriptive power than Maume, Sebastian & Bardo, (2010)
but it does lack greater insight into how couples individually and together negotiate
their work and home identities and how this impacts on their sense of self.
Bird and Schnurman-Crook (2005) provide a perspective that highlights the
importance that individuals place on their identity as a professional, a partner and
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member of a family. In addition, De-Bottons (2009) recent book provides a variety of
vignettes about how individual identity and ones life narrative is inexorably linked to
career choice. For Bird and Schnurman-Crook (2005) stress at home and work can
be explained by how demands from the work and domestic sphere reinforce or
threaten an individuals sense of identity; unlike, Elloy & Smith (2003) who view the
origin of work place stress being divided loyalties between work and home. A
synthesis of Duxbury, Lyons and Higgins (2007) topology, Bird and Schnurman-
Crooks (2005) formulation of identity theory within the context of the workplace and
the economic reality of overwork and displays of gender within dominant gendered
hegemonic discourses provide a rich qualitative field of enquiry (Ellroy & Smith,
2003). This synthesis would provide a platform from which to answer Emslie and
Hunts (2009) criticism that there has been few qualitative studies into the lived
experience of the nexus between work and home for dual income working families.
Support for dual income working families can take the form of more flexible
work arrangements to meet the needs of parents who have to drop off and pick up
children at school and provide care to family members in times of illness. Wetlessen
(2010) reports that despite public policy that assumes that many parents both work
full time hours of work have remained unchanged for decades. While many
employers enable workers to take leave for family matters this is usually taken from
existing leave entitlements and not an additional allocation; Colteryahn and Davis
(2004) report that people are willing to exchange money for time so a solution maybe
to provide opportunities for staff to purchase in advance additional leave
entitlements. The provision of paid maternity and paternity leave will further support
working families and reduce the pressure of returning to work soon after childbirth
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and give fathers the ability to actively participate in their childs early development
(Grille, 2005). Unfortunately for career women the workplace is not sympathetic
towards married women and married women who have families; therefore, calls for
paid maternity and paternity leave have largely gone unheard (Burke, 1999; White,
2009).
The differing topologies of dual income working families place new demands on
todays organizations. Demands that if are not meet could result in placing undue
pressure on employees and their families. If workplaces do not adapt to support the
needs of dual income working families they will face increased hiring and training
costs as these employees move on to find more supportive environments. It is time
for workplaces to realize fully that the workplace and home environment are
inexorably linked and the idea that they are two separate worlds is a myth (Elloy &
Smith, 2003). Grille (2005) describes the family and parenting as the crucible in
which a society and a nations future is forged. But it is the workplace were human
labor and creativity merge to create prosperity. Therefore, employers who create
workplaces that are family friendly, flexible and supportive of employees sense of
professional identity will create an environment that is well placed to meet the
challenges of Globalisation and importantly be places that people feel happy,
productive and valued.
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