Women Workers And Technological Change In Europe In The Nineteenth And twentieth century

from The Traditional Stereotyped Viewpoint, Femininity And Technology Clash. This Negative Association Between Women And Technology Is One Of The Features Of The Sex-typing Of Jobs. Men Are Seen As Technically Competent And Creative; Women Are Seen As Incompetent, Suited Only To Work With Machines That Have Been Made And Maintained By Men. Men Identify Themselves With Technology, And Technology Is Identified With Masculinity. The Relationship Between Technology, Technological Change And Women's Work Is, However, Very Complex.; Through Studies Examining Technological Change And The Sexual Division Of Labour, This Book Traces The Origins Of The Segregation Between Women's Work And Men's Work And Sheds Light On The Complicated Relationship Between Work And Technology. Drawing On Research From A Number Of European Countries England, Sweden, Denmark And The Netherlands, International Contributors Present Detailed Studies On Women's Work Spanning Two Centuries. The Chapters Deal With A Variety Of Work Environments - Office Work, Textiles And Pottery, Food Production, Civil Service And Cotton And Wool Industries.; This Work Rejects The Idea That Women Were Mainly Employed As Unskilled Labour In The Industrial Revolutions, Asserting That Skill Was Required From The Women, But That Both The Historical Record About Women's Work And The Social Construction Of The Concept Of Skill Have Denied This. booknews detailed Studies Spanning Two Centuries Trace The Origins Of The Segregation Between Women's Work And Men's Work--and Of The Stereotypical View Over The Years Of Women As Non-skilled Labor. Studies Encompass Office Work, Textiles, Pottery, Production Of Food And Clothing, And Women's War Work In England, Sweden, The Netherlands, And Denmark. Annotation C. Book News, Inc., Portland, Or (booknews.com) Drawing on research from a number of European countries, the contributors to this book present nine detailed studies on women's work spanning 2 centuries and dealing with a variety of work environments. "General Introduction" (Gertjan de Groot, Marlou Schrover) provides an overview of the book's content. "Frames of Reference: Skill, Gender, and New Technology in the Hosiery Industry" (Harriet Bradley) explores the processes that lie behind the devaluation of women's work. "The Creation of a Gendered Division of Labour in the Danish Textile Industry" (Marianne Rostgard) describes how the division of labor once established lived on to become an unquestioned tradition. "Foreign Technology and the Gender Division of Labour in a Dutch Cotton Spinning Mill" (Gertjan de Groot) argues that the gender division of labor was transferred from England to the Netherlands along with the technology. "'The Mysteries of the Typewriter': Technology and Gender in the British Civil Service, 1870-1914" (Meta Zimmeck) draws on the feminist critique of the literature to explore the introduction and spread of typewriting before the First World War. "'A Revolution in the Workplace'? Women's Work in Munitions Factories and Technological Change 1914-1918" (Deborah Thom) examines the theory of dilution and substitution. "Gender and Technological Change in the North Staffordshire Pottery Industry" (Jacqueline Sarsby) examines factors that influenced and altered the sexual division of labor. "Periodization and the Engendering of Technology: The Pottery of Gustavsberg, Sweden, 1880-1980" (Ulla Wikander) seeks to establish general trends and specific periods for changes. "Creating Gender: Technology and Femininity in the Swedish Dairy Industry" (Lena Sommestad) explores how women retained for so long but eventually lost their control over mechanized dairy production. "Cooking Up Women's Work: Women Workers in the Dutch Food Industries 1889-1960" (Marlou Schrover) shows technological change influenced women's work but was seldom the direct reason for the regendering of work. An index is appended. (YLB) "The traditionally negative association between women and technology is one of the features of the sex-typing of jobs. Men identify themselves with technology, and technology is identified with masculinity. The relationship between technology, technological change and women's work is, however, very complex." "Women Workers and Technological Change rejects the idea that women were mainly employed as unskilled labour, asserting that skill was required from the women, but that both the historical record about women's work and the social construction of 'skill' have denied this. Denying the existence of an objective meaning of skill has far-reaching consequences for what has, for a long time, been seen as a major outcome of technological change: de-skilling. If skill has no meaning, neither does de-skilling. Skill and technology have been widely used to describe, explain and justify the segregation of work. Through studies examining technological change and the sexual division of labour, this book traces the origins of the segregation between women's work and men's work." "Drawing on research from a number of European countries, the contributors present detailed studies on women's work spanning two centuries, and deal with a variety of work environments - office work, textiles, pottery, food production, and women's war work. This diverse collection offers a unique opportunity to explore segregative factors on the labour market, and will be of interest to all those studying women's studies and labour relations, sociologists, historians and the general reader."--Jacket Refusing to be a 'Wife'! explores how women can transform their relationships in order to minimize the inequality found in traditional families. Drawing on interviews with women and men in explicitly anti-sexist living arrangements, the book provides a new perspective on the division of domestic labour, mothering, marriage and financial allocation in the home. The author examines the relationship between home and work, and the construction of gender equality, and discusses the key roles of women in the sphere of the home: wife, mother, worker, showing how the role/identity of 'wife' dominates and affects the other two roles. The author offers a feminist sociological answer to the question 'what is an anti-sexist living arrangement?', and provides insights into how women can balance commitments to work and home whilst retaining some form of individual identity. The discussions highlight the importance of men's commitment to anti-sexist living. Written in a clear and engaging style, this book will be of interest and relevance not only to feminists but to anyone interested in the 'potential' impact of feminism on family life. Traces the origins of the segregation between women's and men's work in the 19th and 20th century. It rejects the idea that women were mainly employed as unskilled labour, asserting that women's skills were required but that historical records and social definitions of "skill" have denied this.