The question raised in the last post was, "How can it be that societies like Sweden, where gender equity is relentlessly pursued and enforced, have fewer female managers, executives, professionals, and business owners than the laissez-faire United States?"
Swedish economists Magnus Henrekson and Mikael Stenkula suggest this answer: “Broad-based welfare-state policies impede women’s representation in elite competitive positions.”
In Sweden, a parent has the right to work just six hours per day when (s)he returns to work following the 16-month parental leave. Extended leave and part-time hours allow more time to parent those children -and they diminish the likelihood of upper level responsibility. Move-up opportunity tends to come to those who give more to the job, understandably.
Author Christina Hoff Sommers says, "Generous parental leave policies and readily available part-time options have unintended consequences: instead of strengthening women’s attachment to the workplace, they appear to weaken it." Read her article here.
One more observation should be made in connection with this story.
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