A stalled revolution? What can we learn from women's drop-out to part-time jobs: A comparative analysis of Germany and the UK. (December 2016)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Dieckhoff, Martina; Gash, Vanessa; Mertens, Antje; Romeu Gordo, Laura
• Is Part Of: Research in social stratification and mobility. Volume 46(2016)Part B
• Page Start: 129
• Page End: 140
• Publication Date: 2016-12
• Subjects: Part-time employment -- Family -- Wages -- Housework -- Cross-national comparison; Social mobility -- Periodicals; Occupational mobility -- Periodicals; Social status -- Periodicals; Social conflict -- Periodicals; Social classes -- Periodicals; Mobilité sociale -- Périodiques; Mobilité professionnelle -- Périodiques; Statut social -- Périodiques; Conflits sociaux -- Périodiques; Classes sociales -- Périodiques; 305.05
• DOI: 10.1016/j.rssm.2016.09.001
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0276-5624

Abstract

Highlights: Power inequalities within couples predict women's drop-out from full-time work. The majority of women in partnerships earn less than 40% of household earnings. Only 5–14% of couples report equal housework contributions. Trend analysis suggests an increase in household specialization in Germany over time. Cultural context structures how couples 'do gender'. Abstract: This study examines how within-couple inequalities, that is power differences between men and women in a partnership, act as predictors of transitions from full-time to part-time employment applying Heckman corrected probit models in three different institutional and cultural contexts; Eastern Germany, Western Germany and the United Kingdom. The analyses show that when women are in a weaker position within their relationships they are more likely to drop-out of full-time work, but that this propensity varies by context. The authors also find an increased tendency over time for women to leave full-time for part-time employment in both Eastern and Western Germany, but observe no such trend in the UK. This is suggestive of ongoing incompatibilities in the institutional support for equality in dual-earning in Germany. The study uses longitudinal data covering the period 1992 until 2012 from the German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP) for Germany and from the British Household Panel (BHPS) and the 'Understanding Society' data for the UK.