Equal Employment Opportunity: Women Bureaucrats in Male-Dominated Professions

• NCJ Number: 255821
• Journal: Public Administration Review Volume: 80 Issue: 6 Dated: 2020
• Author(s): Sebawitt. G. Bishu; Andrea M. Headley
• Date Published: 2020
• Length: 8 pages
• Grant Number(s): 2015-R2-CX-K030
• Sponsoring Agency: Bureau of Justice Statistics (BJS)
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Research (Applied/Empirical); Report (Study/Research); Report (Grant Sponsored); Program/Project Description
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

This study used interview data from city managers and police officers to highlight the gendered internal organizational processes, arrangements, and interactions that impact women's experiences in male-dominated roles.

Abstract

The public sector prides itself on being a place where women and other marginalized groups can find shelter from workplace discrimination; however, gender inequities are evident in the public sector workforce. The current study found that despite seemingly equal opportunities to access and engagement in the examined bureaucratic roles, women constantly face gendered barriers and boundaries that directly impact their experiences on the job and their work-related outcomes. Legislative and administrative remedies are not sufficient to eliminate gendered experiences of women in male-dominated roles. Rather, a cultural change from within the workplace is vital to realize the efforts of civil rights laws established about 50 years ago. (publisher abstract modified)