Age, Gender, and Work : Small Information Technology Firms in the New Economy

This book is about whether and how gender and age structure work and influence workplace cultures within small information technology (IT) firms. This was a central research question in the Workforce Aging in the New Economy (WANE) project, the study from which the data used in this book are drawn. The book is organized into three parts, which are followed by a concluding chapter. Part 1 provides the context by introducing key concepts used throughout the book, providing an overview of the IT landscape, and detailing the methods used for the WANE project. Part 2 focuses on how gender structures work and influences workplace culture in small IT firms, and Part 3 does the same for age. Finally, a concluding chapter ties the three parts together by summarizing the key findings and commenting on how the chapters have elucidated the relationships between age, gender, and paid work. In the new knowledge-based economy, information technology (IT) has become a major field of employment. However, the fast pace of technological innovation, globalization, and the volatility of the stock market have made IT an increasingly risky business. Unfortunately, some employees bear more of the burden of that risk than others. Age, Gender, and Work: Small Information Technology Firms in the New Economy examines how women and older workers in small IT companies are disproportionately vulnerable to their industry's economic uncertainty. Drawing on original survey and interview data from Canada, the United States, Australia, and England, the authors ask how gender and age affect work and workplace culture in a field dominated by young male employees. A fresh look at how paid work intersects with age and gender, this volume brings a unique empirical and theoretical perspective to the literature on inequality. Gender, age and work in the new economy / Julie McMullin and Heather Dryburgh Methods / Emily Jovic, Julie McMullin and Tammy Duerden Comeau Firms as "gender regimes" : the experiences of women in IT workplaces / Gillian Ranson and Heather Dryburgh Variants of masculinity within masculinist IT workplace regimes / Tammy Duerden Comeau and Candace L. Kemp Negotiating work and family in the IT industry / Ingrid Arnet Connidis and Candace L. Kemp Generational and age discourse in IT firms / Julie McMullin, Emily Jovic and Tammy Duerden Comeau Aging and age discrimination in IT firms / Julie McMullin and Tammy Duerden Comeau Conclusion : inequality regimes and new economy work / Emily Jovic and Julie McMullin. "In the new knowledge-based economy, information technology (IT) is a major field of employment. However, the fast pace of technological innovation, globalization, and the volitle stock market have made IT and increasingly risky business--for some employees more than others. This volume examines how women and older workers in small IT companies are disproportionately vulnerable to economic uncertainty within their industry. Drawing on original survey and interview data, the authors explore how gender and age affect work and workplace culture to produce a fresh contribution to the literature of inequality." -- Back cover. A unique examination of how age and gender inform the workplace and its culture in the new knowledge-based economy.