Engineering and some of the sciences have also been male occupations traditionally. A recent study of U.S. women who entered the science and engineering fields showed that they were less likely than their male colleagues to strive for advanced degrees. They were more likely to work for the government, to be out of the labor force at times, and to work part-time or part-year. Where woi)4en are paid less than men, they are just as likely to remain with their employers as men are; but in the sciences they are less likely than men to have written something for publication.
Women college graduates have been inclined to think that careers in medicine and engineering are too demanding and too likely to require full-time commitment. Up to now, women have considered engineering unfeminine and requiring abilities that women do not usually possess. Also, they have tended toward higher degrees in areas where they felt they could contribute most, rather than in the scientific and engineering fields. On the whole women have preferred part-time schedules and flexible hours.
Today, the picture is rapidly changing, as women acquire a broader understanding of the opportunities open to them in the sciences and in engineering. They have been receiving better guidance as to job opportunities, and are finding that they fit very well into these professions.
Our technological and industrial society needs men and women who possess the necessary specialized knowledge and skill. Heretofore, the exclusion of women whether through custom, role stereotyping or discrimination from the scientific and technical fields has seriously affected their aspirations toward equality.
Women who aspire to become doctors make the decision to study medicine rather early in life. They generally come from elite or profession families, and are most often graduates of private colleges, relying on parents for their financial support. Single women are subject to certain stresses, not so much for financial reasons, but rather because of academic demands. For those who marry, child-bearing may intermittently interfere with their studies or careers. On the whole, the strain between career and family is somewhat resolved when they begin to practice as doctors.
Except in times of crisis, very little effort has been made in the United States to interest women in the medical field. To accommodate women in medical schools, the schedule of studies should be made more flexible to allow for part-time attendance, and more attention should be given to the establishment of day care facilities for the care of the children of women medical students who are mothers.
Careers in management and administration are also open to women today. The stereotype of the submissive woman's role is fest disappearing as more and more women are undertaking jobs that require leadership and executive ability. The phenomenon of women in upper management positions is bound to have a salutary effect on hiring and upgrading women employees at all levels, and in eliminating discrimination. Intramural and extramural training programs for women should be established to implement the new attitude toward the role of women in business and the professions.
In the areas of community and government, volunteer organizations should use women in more meaningful roles. Counseling and placement services for women should be expanded.
On a national side, women with less educational background are more likely to work in atypical jobs than women who are better educated. This is particularly true of white women. Attitudes and other non-educational factors have been found to have relatively little effect on the matter of atypical jobs for women who are less equipped.
During the Second World War, close to three million women undertook blue-collar jobs. With the end of the war, most women were gradually phased out of these jobs. During the 1960s, however, the number of women in such jobs increased by about 80 percent; and vocational and trade school enrollments among women also expanded.
National Apprenticeship Information officers have indicated that women are very able to pass the tests for apprenticeships. Advocates of employment opportunities for women are giving increasing attention to job structuring, grading and classification in the hiring and promotion of women employees.
Expanding Opportunities for Women in the Labor Force
The hours of work for women are expected to remain stable, with the average working week likely to drop by less than 0.1 percent a year; that is, from 38.1 to 37.8 hours for non farm workers. The decrease in working hours would be negligible were it not for an expected influx of part-time workers eager to supplement the family income.
Among those young people who are likely to have "copped-out" of work during the late 1970s, it is not likely to have been the women.
Dislocations. About 34 million young workers will have entered the labor force during the 1980s. They are the result of the upsurge in the birthrate that occurred following the Second World War, However, the current decline in the birthrate will have its effect relating to specific groups as follows:
Teenagers. The slowdown in their rate of growth in the labor force may improve job opportunities for those who will compete in an anticipated expanding economy.
Young workers. Projected changes may mean keen competition among workers in their twenties for entry level jobs, but will offer better opportunities for advancement to higher levels, especially where the number of competent older workers may be lessening.
Older workers. The surge of young workers may increase the pressure on older workers to retire sooner than otherwise planned. In any case, the trend toward earlier retirement is expected to continue. It will very likely lead to greater emphasis on preretirement planning and the development of community-service projects for which retired workers could contribute paid or volunteer part-time work,
Black workers. The 33 percent increase expected in the black labor force between 1968 and 1985 will raise the total number of black workers to 12 million by the latter date. Since an upward occupational trend is dependent, in part, upon improved job qualifications, the current educational progress among blacks promises to bring about better occupational opportunities.
