Week 2

With the recession always making news I have wondered lately whether or not more men or women were affected by the job loss. There have been a few stories on the news or in news papers lately that addressed my question. As it turns out, it seems like more men are vulnerable to the recession for a number of reasons. First of all, more men work in labor intensive fields such as construction, landscaping, fishing, and general manufacturing. These jobs cannot afford to employ large numbers of workers when demand goes down. They are also extremely flexible and can still stay in business even with lay offs and firings. However, on the flip side, most women are employed in sectors like health care and education. Compared to most job sectors these are the most recession resistant.

But there are other factors at play as well. Women may also be more recession proof because their salaries are less compared to their male counterparts. Women also work more part-time jobs that do not have health insurance, making them easier to keep on the payroll. For these reasons, more men may be getting laid off than women. Most employers are looking to cut high salaries that come with health insurance and other benefits.

This recession begs us to think about how gender roles may change. With more men being laid off and having the opportunity to stay home, what will they do with their time? Will they start taking a more active role in domestic duties like doing the laundry, making dinner, as well as the typical male duties like mowing the lawn? Will more women enter the workplace because their husbands have been laid off? If given the opportunity to raise children instead of work, will men accept the role they have and make the Mr. Mom stereotype more commonplace? For the first time in history the workplace may see more women than men employed.

Most of these questions are far from being answered. But personally I think, if the right situation presented itself and my wife had a good job and we had children, I would gladly stay home and help with childcare and domestic duties.