globalisation and gender, trends in the global workplace and the effect on dual income working...

8/6/2019 Globalisation and Gender, trends in the global workplace and the effect on dual income working families

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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



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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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