Gender at Work

Three themes are drawn together in this book: gender and sexuality, the organisation of work, and the impact of technological change. Their inter-relationship is explored in six area studies: manufacturing, banking, retailing, computing, nursing and housework. Gender at Work presents an account of how each area has changed since the Second World War; sets out ways in which the notion of what constitutes 'proper' work for men and women changes with new work processes; and analyses the prospects for, and limits of, sexual 'equality' in the workplace. Based on the first-hand observations of workers, reflecting on their work experience, this book allows workers to speak for themselves: they reveal the centrality of gender to the way capitalism is organised. 'A notable contribution, both to feminist and labour studies in Australia and further afield. Every woman, whether at home or in the paid workforce, should read this book. It will help her assess exactly what she is - and should be - worth to the community, and how she can help to ensure her true evaluation.' - Newcastle Herald 'A very readable book which makes a major theoretical and descriptive contribution to the analysis of gender in Australian Society.' - Journal of Industrial Relations 'A convincing demonstration of the central place of gender in the work relationships between men and women. The insights it provides, into the underlying causes of the sex division of tasks and the way in which new jobs in any individual setting quickly become sex-typed, are important for any manager of a mixed workplace.' - Practising Manager

ANN GAME teaches sociology at the University of New South Wales. ROSEMARY PRINGLE teaches sociology at Macquarie University. Both are active in the women's movement and have worked closely with trade unions on the impact of technological change and on the position of women in the workforce. They have written extensively on aspects of feminism, sociology and the labour process.

Foreword by Edna Ryan Acknowledgements Introduction 1 Masculinity and machines: automation in manufacturing industry 2 Kentucky-fried money: the banks 3 Working at a discount: retailing 4 Roaming around computer-land: sex-typing in a new industry 5 Sex and power in hospitals: the division of labour in the 'health' industry 6 The labour process of consumption: housework A new feminist politics Bibliography Index