Some of Us Are More Equal Than Others

This morning, we women woke up to the terrific news that we have finally achieved professional parity with our male counterparts. For those of you who missed it, today's New York Times headline read "Women Are Now Equal as Victims of Poor Economy."

The article, based on a new Congressional study, points out that "women in their prime earning years, struggling with an unfriendly economy, are retreating from the work force, either permanently or for long stretches." The story went on to say that we women are "being afflicted on a large scale by the same troubles as men: downturns, layoffs, outsourcing, stagnant wages or the discouraging prospect of an outright pay cut. And they are responding as men have, by dropping out or disappearing for a while."

Which tells us what? It's finally as bad for us as it is for them.

So what else is new? Well, not this story for starters. The Times itself ran something strikingly similar on the same subject. ("Stretched to Limit: Women Stall the March to Work") which made the point, "The decline in participation rates for most groups of women since the recession of 2001 at least partly reflects an overall slowdown in hiring, which affected men and women roughly equally."

These are hard economic times, and we are all affected, perhaps not equally, but to a greater or lesser degree. Yet if you single out women - and make the professional hardship of blue collar workers the big front page story on the plight of all professional women, you might be accused of being a little heavy-handed. The story of the declining number of women (and men) in manufacturing is a solid one, as is the story of the struggles of welfare-to-work women. But the effect of this heavy-handedness on the rest of us is disheartening, particularly those of us who have chosen to stay at home. What's the point, we wonder as we try to entertain our children on a hot summer's day. We panic, as we struggle with the dishes and fill up the car without daring to look at the price, that we are stuck here forever, unable to pay for expensive daycare, or get another job. We fear we'll never have enough money, never return to a career, never be able to try something new. And what about those of us who work? Do we dare stop? Do we even have the choice?

Tough times mean tough choices for everyone, women included. Which is not the same thing as women in particular.

In full disclosure, I should point out that when I retreated from the workforce for my own long stretch, it was the New York Times that picked up the slack via my husband, executive editor Bill Keller's paycheck. But as is often the case in a marriage, sometimes we disagree on certain subjects and today was one of those days. The truth is, women don't need more headlines like the one from this morning--we'd be much better off with some of the other (less visible) ones from the Times like: "M.B.A. Programs Pay Off for Women Seeking a Return to Wall Street" (Oct 5, 2007) and "Boss in the Corporate Jet Is Likely to Be a Woman" (July 8, 2008), or "Why Dad's Résumé Lists 'Car Pool'" (June 12, 2008). Though I suspect our overall favorite would probably be from a Sunday Business story that ran just three weeks ago, "Would You Hire Your Husband?" I know it's mine.

Comments

[Lolalabloggera]

Check this:

BREATHING WHILE FEMALE

Dolores Prida

NY Daily News

Deep in the dog days of summer, the presidential primaries seem like a galaxy away.

Yet for millions of Hillary Clinton supporters, despite endless rejoinders by hordes of sore winners to "get over it," she may be gone but she is certainly not forgotten.

The sexism and misogyny that permeated the coverage of her campaign have not just left a bad taste in our collective mouths but made many of us look back in anger at the female condition in the 21st century.

Without a doubt, women have made giant strides toward equality and human rights since the Mexican nun-scholar Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz " the first feminist of the Americas " got in trouble with the Inquisition back in the 17th century for advocating women"s right to an education.
[...]
Yet consider this: In the U.S., a woman is raped every six minutes, and one is battered every 15 seconds. Worldwide, 4 million women and girls, some as young as 10 years old, are trafficked annually for sexual slavery.

Imagine if emergency room doctors realized that day in and day out, one of every four black or Latino males they"re treating had been beaten just for being black or Latino.

The media would be all over it, there"d be riots on the streets, the ACLU would be suing somebody.
[...]
READ FULL COLUMN
http://www.nydailynews.com/latino/columnists/prida/index.html

[Cathexis]

Women NOW have parity?!?

What an incredible crock. Vulnerable segments of society have always suffered bad economic times worse than "the Mainstream."

Here's what the headline SHOULD haev read: ""We Have Now Started Noticing/Measuring the Effects of a Poor Economy on Women."

[ohmercy]

sarcasm. irony.

[frl]

did my comment get the boot? all i said was, i don't quite understand the point. are blue collar women not as important (newsworthy as to the loss of their jobs) as women who have higher paying jobs, or have the luxury of staying at home because their husbands have higher paying jobs? is this what the author is saying?

[BadgersBite]

From the famous book "Animal Farm" by George Orwell - All Pigs are equal some Pigs are more equal than others...

[Trilby]

Wife of Bill Keller says "But the effect of this heavy-handedness on the rest of us is disheartening, particularly those of us who have chosen to stay at home. What's the point, we wonder as we try to entertain our children on a hot summer's day. We panic, as we struggle with the dishes and fill up the car without daring to look at the price, that we are stuck here forever, unable to pay for expensive daycare, or get another job. We fear we'll never have enough money, never return to a career, never be able to try something new. And what about those of us who work? Do we dare stop? Do we even have the choice?" She is not speaking for herself here, because she will always have choices. She is well-off and well-connected. I guess she is projecting what she thinks someone like me might think and feel. Thanks, but don't worry on my account. If I am disheartened it is not because of what I read in this Times articles. It is a pervasive uneasiness that all we "little people" are feeling these days. You wouldn't understand, obviously.

[Peddler]

The thing about enocomic difficulties, it has no boundaries, its has no gender, and it affects all of us equally, whether directly or indirectly. It is the price we all pay for the life we choose.

[NABNYC]

Well, not exactly, and here's why. The men in my profession routinely earn twice as much as do the women. Women are excluded from the opportunity, from the networking, from the referrals, and forced into the less lucrative areas of my profession. When the hard times come, women have less in savings, less of a cushion, less put away for retirement.

I'm not slamming any men who are being crushed right alongside the women. It's not men who are the enemies -- it's the men who take 90% of the wealth and treat everyone else like dirt who are the enemies. In my field, for example, most of the professionals who are employees are paid 30% of the total amount they bring into the business, maybe 10% goes for overhead, but the rest is profit and goes right into some (white male's) pocket -- for doing absolutely nothing.

In most fields, men continue to dominate and control, and consistently exclude women or relegate them to the lowest-paying positions. So women tend to be borderline to begin with. In "good" times, women are still at the bottom of the rung. When the hard times come, they are destroyed.

[CaseyBabes]

So, women now have parity. Sorta means ya have to get accustomed to life with feet on the ground, off the pedestals, minus the manly adoration. Congratulations.......I think.

[NoSpinTruthZone]

Does this mean we should enhance affirmative action to an even greater degree to give those less qualified a job over those who are more qualified?
Manufacturing jobs require certain skills. A company should be able to hire the most qualified individual to do the job.

This article is a reflection of the Entitlement Mentality

[hippynanainblingland]

Let's see. Are you implying that men in general are more qualified "to do the job?""? Who's to say that women cannot "do the job" equally well, or better, than men? And if she gets hired over a man, it must have been affirmative action, right? Because no woman can possibly "do the job" better than a man...

It's attitudes such as yours that keep women relegated to the "last hired first fired" category of workers.

Wake up and enjoy your sisters' competence, brother!

[NoSpinTruthZone]

Wow... talk about interpretation. You need to work on comprehension.

I didn't specify male or female did I? Oh.. but.. wait.. that would mean that your argument is vacuous.

Indeed it does.

Whomever does the job best should get the job. Don't go a knee jerking on me.

[NABNYC]

"enhance affirmative action to an even greater degree?" What alter-world are you talking about? We have reverse affirmative action in this country: we acknowledge and recognize that women and minorities are consistently excluded from hiring and promotion throughout the country, and the white men who run everything refuse to do anything to stop it. Affirmative action is only for white men: they get all the jobs, all the power, all the money, and everyone else continues to be treated as slave labor.

A modestly competent white man always gets the job over an exceptionally talented, hard-working and productive female or minority. Every time. Which explains why our country is such a disaster, because they keep putting the morons in charge.

And manufacturing is among the worst. Go look at the way women are kept at the lower levels, paid less, simply because they are female. As far as the "certain skills" required, let's look at the reality: highly trained (Ph.D.s) engineers in this country are unable to find work in manufacturing because they have been replaced by third world immigrants brought in by the bosses because it's cheaper. Manufacturing is mostly taking its work to third world countries to be done by children, prison, and slave labor. Skill doesn't even make it as an item for consideration in that field.

We need 50% - Not One Less.

[MissDirection]

And your point is...?

[ohmercy]

sarcasm and irony.
duh.

we do not have economic parity in pay, but we get to be equal wiith all the rest... and in fact suffer more for it because of the inequality in the work force.
sheesh.

[liberalloons]

Men on average work about 500 more hours a year than women. A larger number of men earn degrees than women. Men are more likely to continue with a career as oppossed to stopping when starting a family. There are more jobs that appeal to men rather than women. Thats why on average men get paid more.

[Rog49Thomas]

Sisterhood is powerful.

[lisakaz2]

This is good news somehow!?!?! I don't get it. I do get how I keep losing job opportunities to me or foreign workers (a Canadian gets an academic job here w/o problem; not so the reverse).

[ohmercy]

sarcasm. irony.