Saint Louis
Job News & Opportunities
St. Louis Front Page is a weekly news publication, with daily updates, spotlighting attractions, events, business and hospitality in St. Louis, Missouri and Southwest Illinois.
How To Reach Us:
St. Louis Front Page
P.O. Box 1354
St. Louis, MO 63188
Voice: 314-771-0200
Fax: 314-771-0300
To submit news, contact:
editor@slfp.com
To advertise, contact:
advertising@slfp.com
|


Significant and Surprising Changes Among Men and Women At Work and At Home
ST. LOUIS (PRNewswire), March 29, 2009 - For the first time, young women want just as much to advance to jobs with more responsibility as young men. Moreover, being a mother does not significantly change young women's career ambitions.
The gradual increase of women in the labor force over the past half century, combined with various work life trends and economic pressures, has resulted in a shrinking gap between how men and women view their careers, family roles, and the fit between their lives on and off the job.
From the desire to take on greater responsibility at work, to how men and women share responsibilities at home, the differences between the genders are in many cases narrowing according to a newly released report entitled "Times Are Changing: Gender and Generation at Work and At Home," which examines the evolution of work-related gender roles over the past three decades.
The report was produced by the Families and Work Institute and funded by IBM. It is the first report issued based on data from FWI's 2008 National Study of the Changing Workforce (NSCW), the only study of its kind to provide 30+ year comparisons (from 1977 to 2008), of life on and off the job.(2) The report is also supplemented by other public data to provide as broad and current a picture as possible.
"Our findings are striking and surprising," said Ellen Galinsky, president and co-founder of Families and Work Institute and lead author of the study. "There are many firsts in this study -- the first time that younger men and women feel the same about job advancement and the first time that there is no statistically significant difference between men and women in their views of appropriate gender roles."
"The results of this study highlight the need to understand what motivates different generations and ensure your programs meet their needs," according to Ron Glover, Vice President, Diversity & Workforce Programs, IBM. "IBM has conducted Work/Life Surveys since 1986 and we have seen a steady increase in work/life challenges for men. Work/Life difficulty is no longer a women's issue -- it's a people issue."
Some of the very notable trends identified in the report include:
-- Women in dual-earner couples are contributing more to family income.
In 1997 women contributed an average of 39% of annual family income.
That figure rose to 44% in 2008. In 2008, 26% of women living in
dual-earner couples had annual earnings at least 10 percentage points
higher than that of spouses/partners, up from 15% in 1997.
-- Among Millennials (under 29 years old), women are just as likely as
men to want jobs with greater responsibility. In 1992, 80% of men and
72% of women under the age of 29 wanted jobs with greater
responsibility. Today the figure is 67% of men and 66% of women.
-- Today, there is no difference between young women with and without
children in their desire to move to jobs with more responsibility.
Whereas 60% of women under 29 with children and 78% of women without
children wanted jobs with more responsibility in 1992, today the
percentages are 69% (with children) and 66% (without children).
-- Men and women are both less likely to embrace traditional gender
roles. Only 41% of employees in 2008 believe it is better "if the man
earns the money and the woman takes care of the home and children,"
down from 64% in 1977. The drop is even more pronounced among men
(74% to 42% versus 52% to 39% of women). Now there is no statistical
difference between men and women in their views.
Continued Next Column
|
|
Continued
-- Employed fathers, especially Millennials, are spending more time with
children today than their age counterparts did three decades ago,
where as employed mothers' time has not changed. On average employed
fathers of all ages spend 3.0 hours per workday with children under 13
today compared with 2.0 hours in 1977. For employed mothers of all
ages, time spent with children has remained at 3.8 hours. Today's
Millennial fathers spend 4.3 hours per workday compared with the 2.4
hours spent by their age counterparts in 1977. Mothers under 29 today
average 5.0 hours compared with 4.5 hours in 1977.
-- Men are taking more overall responsibility for the care of their
children. In 1992, 21% of women said that their spouses or partners
were taking as much or more responsibility for the care of their
children as they were. By 2008, that percentage has risen to 31%.
-- Changing gender roles appear to have increased the level of work life
conflict experienced by men. Men's work-life conflict has increased
significantly from 34% in 1977 to 45% in 2008, while women's work-life
conflict has risen less dramatically and not significantly from 34% to
39%.
Archived Stories:
Career Expert Offers Tips for Mature Workers to Navigate Tough Economy
Seven Ways to Keep Health Coverage If You Lose Your Job
Out-of-Work Executives Expect Lengthy Job Searches in Today's Economy
Take the 10-Question Economic Sensitivity Survey to Find Out How Your Staff Is Holding Up During This Economy
Scholarships Available to Eligible Applicants for Computer Training
Clients in Health Care, Food Service, Financial Services Are Adding Jobs
School Bus Workers in Missouri and Tennessee Join Teamsters Union
St. Louis Unemployment Center Reopens to Provide Service for Unemployed Missourians
Labor Dept to Assist Missouri Auto Industry Workers
Downsizing and Reorganization Most Acutely Felt at Bottom of Corporate Ladder
Women Say Cosmetic Surgery Gives Them Competitive Edge in the Workplace
Expert Offers Tips for Managing Online Reputation
Recession-Wary Employers Seek Better Ways to Find Star Job Performers
Project Work Attractive Option in Competitive Job Market
Private Capital Available to Create Nearly 2 Million Jobs When Coupled with Stimulus Plan
|

|
The Saint Louis Front Page is owned and maintained by the Moore Design Group for the sole purpose of disseminating news and information about the Metropolitan Saint Louis area. Text or graphics may not be copied, rewritten or distributed in any manner whatsoever without written permission. For more information, contact editor@slfp.com
All rights reserved world wide
© 1996 - 2009 Moore Design Group.
|