User:UrkeI Grue/Pink-collar worker

A pink-collar worker is someone working in the care-oriented career field or in fields historically considered to be women’s work. This may include jobs in the beauty industry, nursing, social work, teaching, secretarial work, or child care. While these jobs may also be filled by men, they have historically been female-dominated (a tendency that continues today, though to a somewhat lesser extent) and may pay significantly less than white-collar or blue-collar jobs.

Women’s work, and defining women to particular fields within the workplace began to rise in the 1940s, around World War II. Today, the economy in the United Kingdom still shows a prominent divide in a workforce with many occupations still labeled as “pink-collar”. 28% of women worked jobs labeled under “pink-collar” in Rotherham, a town in northern England. This study was conducted in 2010. In the United Kingdom, careers within nursing and teaching are not considered pink-collar jobs anymore, but instead are labeled as white-collar. This shift is also occurring in many other countries. Studies show that white-collar workers are less likely to face health disparities.

Pink-collar occupations tend to be personal-service-oriented worker working in retail, nursing, and teaching (depending on the level), are part of the service sector, and are among the most common occupations in the United States. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that, as of May 2008, there were over 2.2 million persons employed as servers in the United States. Furthermore, the World Health Organization's 2011 World Health Statistics Report states that there are 19.3 million nurses in the world today. In the United States, women comprise 92.1% of the registered nurses that are currently employed.

According to the 2016 United States Census analyzed in Barnes, et. al’s research paper, more than 95% of the construction workforce is comprised of men. Due to the low population of women outside of the childcare or social workforce, state governments are miscalculating economic budgets by not accounting for most female pink-collar workers. Generally, less government funding is allocated to professions and work environments that traditionally employ and retain a greater percentage of women, for example, education. From the research conducted by Tiffany Barnes, Victoria Beall, and Mirya Holman, discrepancies for government representation of pink-collar jobs could primarily be due to legislatures and government employees having the perspective for only white-collar jobs. A white collar-job is typically administrative.

It was found as well that men going into traditionally claimed pink collar jobs are felt discriminated and threatened in their jobs. Men going into positions such as teaching, nursing and childcare faced many negative stereotypes in these lines of work, as men have traditionally been viewed as stern, strong and holding dominant attitudes. This stereotype about men negatively impacts men in these lines of work, as it is expected that a woman with the same position would be more nurturing, caring and well suited for the work.

According to the 2016 United States Census analyzed in Barnes, et. al’s research paper, approximately 78% of men were employed in cleaning and maintenance, engineering and science, production and transportation, protective services, and construction. Only 25% were in healthcare support, personal care, education, office administration support, and social services.

A pink-collar worker is someone working in the care-oriented career field or in fields historically considered to be women’s work. This may include jobs in the beauty industry, nursing, social work, teaching, secretarial work, or child care. While these jobs may also be filled by men, they have historically been female-dominated (a tendency that continues today, though to a somewhat lesser extent) and may pay significantly less than white-collar or blue-collar jobs.

As mentioned in the research article by Patrice Buzzanell, Robyn Remke, Rebecca Meisenbach, Meina Liu, Venessa Bowers, and Cindy Conn, as of 2016, pink-collar jobs are quickly growing in demand by both men and women. Professions within pink-collar jobs are more likely to be consistent with job security and the need for employment, but salary and advancements seem to be much more slow-growing factors.

Pink-collar occupations tend to be personal-service-oriented worker working in retail, nursing, and teaching (depending on the level), are part of the service sector, and are among the most common occupations in the United States. The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that, as of May 2008, there were over 2.2 million persons employed as servers in the United States. Furthermore, the World Health Organization's 2011 World Health Statistics Report states that there are 19.3 million nurses in the world today. In the United States, women comprise 92.1% of the registered nurses that are currently employed.

As explained in Buzzanell et. al’s research article, maternity leave is the time off from work a mother takes after having a child, either through childbirth or adoption. In 2010, the International Labour Office explained that maternity leave is usually compensated by the employer’s company, but several countries do not follow that mandate, including the United States. Results from “Standpoints of Maternity Leave: Discourses of Temporality and Ability” state that many new mothers employed in pink-collar work have keyed disability or sick leave instead of time off for maternity leave.

Men in Pink-Collar Jobs
Men who are employed as educators or social work are susceptible to greater workplace hostility and stereotyping than women. Steele’s research concludes that ongoing hostility will result in lower workplace performance and employment retention of men in traditional pink-collar occupations. Although men in a woman-dominated professional environment face stereotyping, they are still likely to receive higher praise, a higher salary, more opportunities, and more promotions. Men who have worked in pink-collar jobs for longer periods of time are less likely to quit their profession or notice stereotyping, while recently hired men have a smaller retention rate. The Australian Bureau of Statistics determined that less than 20% of elementary school teachers were men.