The Economics of Women Men and Work

In history, many cultures and communities did not allow their women to go to schools and therefore omen could spend their entire lives working for the family or in nonmarket work; this is different from role of men. In recent times, women are getting educated and enter into labor market for an income to assist their families. Although in some cases, educated and working women leave their working places to attend to their young r sick family members. There is the need to address women role in a community not only as a nonmarket laborer but as a significant key in economic growth and development. There has huge difference in women and men occupational wages and gender roles. ” Today there is no ‘men’ or ‘women’ jobs, any job can be performed by any gender as long as you meet qualifications and roles are not biologically determined.

What causes gender differences? Is it nature (genes, biology) or nurture (culture and social environment)? Some people have put emphasize on biology factors between women and men. A person’s gene determines his or her behavioral traits. Others argue that social structure and culture determines the behavior and roles of a certain gender. Simple and soft jobs like household chores and reproductive activities were meant for girls/women while hard jobs like hunting and gathering were for men due to their size and physical strengths. Today people use plow cultivation and machines. This has greatly changed the role of women in a community for the plow and machines are driven by men. In agriculture production, hard tasks are being done by men like manual digging, spraying of chemicals and planting and harvesting by use of machines.

According to Goldin 1980, women labor participation is high at initial stages of economic growth and development when women were heavily involved as workers in the farms or in family enterprises or worked for an income or produced for market in the households. There is decline in women’s’ labor participation as production shifts from household and family businesses into offices and factories. This highly affected family lives as people parents spent most of their time working in factories and less time for housework and family. Children psychology was also interfered with as many children were separated from their fathers as women moved to urban cities. In 20th Century, there were few women employed and worked in different occupational areas as men.

Women were in textile, tobacco and clothing manufacturing industries. During this period, 85% of office workers were males. Women have been affected by many factors in their communities which hinder their career development, self-satisfaction, and health at large. Family and young children are hindrances to women entry in labor markets. Government should reduce the child care and increase their participation in labor force. Demand for women workers has increased from more industries and service-based economy (Valerie, 1970). With technology and introduction of contraceptive techniques, not only do women have control over their fertility but timing births helping them reduce labor force and educational disturbances brought by childbearing (Goldin and Lawrence, 2002). Katz, “The Power of the Pill: Oral Contraceptives and Women’s Career and Marriage Decisions,” Journal of Political Economy 110, no.