Contrasting Effects of Globalization on Women in Eastern vs. Western Europe: A Comparative Study

1. Are women in Eastern Europe and Western Europe experiencing dramatically different effects of globalization? Evidence from a 13-country comparison Prof. Dr. Heather Hofmeister, RWTH Aachen University Prof. Dr. Hans-Peter Blossfeld, University of Bamberg 2007 Spring Meeting of RC28:24-27 May 2007, Brno, CZ Social Inequality and Mobility in the Process of Social Transformation

2. Presentation Format • What do we mean by globalization? • How is globalization affecting individuals across the life course in Europe? Youth, women, men, and older workers • How do nation-specific contexts influence the effects? In particular, patterns in Eastern versus Western Europe • How does globalization influence social inequalities for each group? Heather Hofmeister

3. 1999-2005 • Leader: Prof. Dr. Hans-Peter Blossfeld • Deputy Director, 2003-‘05: Heather Hofmeister • Scientists: 64, from 16 OECD countries plus Estonia • Funding: Volkswagen Stiftung, €1,4 Million • Data: collected from individuals over time • Methods: longitudinal event history • Foci: • Life course transitions within employment (and family) for youth, women, men, and older workers • The effects of recent globalization on individuals Heather Hofmeister

4. What do we mean by globalization?

5. One recent measure of globalization • KOF Index of globalization (ETH Zurich, Dreher), measuring the degree of globalization in 123 countries • Measures: • 34% is economic: flows and restrictions of goods, capital, foreign investment • 37% is social: personal contact (phone, travel), information flows (radio, TV, internet), cultural mainstreaming (McDonalds) • 28% is political: embassies, U.N. involvement, international memberships Heather Hofmeister

6. Graph of individual countries Heather Hofmeister

7. GLOBALIZATION Figure of globalization IC Technologiesexpand networks and exchangeof knowledge Higher levels of cross-border exchange: goods, services, people Deregulation and privatization of industries creates more competition Any one market‘s fluctuations affect other markets Faster market transactions Increasing rates of innovation and economic and social change Increasingly volatile and unpredictable markets Increasing uncertaintyfor employers Employers compete by increasing their “flexibility” Heather Hofmeister

8. Increasing uncertainty for employers Figure of globalization 2 Employers compete by increasing their “flexibility” Institutionally filtered Employment systems Education systems Family systems Welfare regimes How arejob security, flexibility, and work benefits organized How is the transitionfrom education to work organized;what retraining chances exist How are families organized,who has caregiving and earnings responsibilities What domain –state, market, family – should protect people from risk (insurance, care, retirement) Increasing uncertainty for exposed individuals Dr. Heather Hofmeister

9. Welfare Regimes: bundles of policies Social-democratic Security from the state EST S DK Liberal Security from the market NL PL GB USA D-W CZ Conservative Security from a mix H Post-socialist Shared historical context I MEX Family-oriented Security from families E Dr. Heather Hofmeister

10. Female labor force participation as a percent of all women of working age (15-64), 1970-2000 Source: Hofäcker (2006) using OECD Historical Data 2001 Heather Hofmeister

11. Women’s labor market disadvantage Women are often caregivers for their families and children Employers oftenwitness or assume (statistical discrimination) less commitment or experience from women workers or job candidates Women often are hired last, fired first, paid and promoted less, and shifted to lower-prestige jobs Dr. Heather Hofmeister

12. Women‘s vulnerability for flexible work What women want from flexible work Whom employers want to hire for flexible work Flexible Work “Personal Flexibility” (persönliche Flexibilität) Secure work organized in a time-flexible way “Personnel Flexibility” (Personalflexibilität) Available, willing, capable worker who can be hired and released as needed at the lowest possible wages. Dr. Heather Hofmeister

13. How are women‘s careers unfolding compared to • earlier generations or cohorts of women? • women in other countries? • men at the same time in the same country? (Grunow 2006, Blossfeld et al 2006) Dr. Heather Hofmeister

14. Research questions • Where and why are women increasing or decreasing their overall attachment to the labor market? • Where and why do women experience better- or worse-quality job chances? • Which characteristics make women especially protected or vulnerable? (Such as education, experience, family status?) Dr. Heather Hofmeister

15. Analysis: Case studies of 13 countries Event-history models of employment transitions using longitudinal data. Cohort comparisons across models of transitions. EST S DK NL USA GB PL D-W CZ H I MEX E Dr. Heather Hofmeister

16. 1. Measuring labor market attachment • Staying in a job • Looking for a job • Returning to a job New job Job Unemployment Reentry job Caregiving, not employed Dr. Heather Hofmeister

17. 1. Results for labor market attachment State support to stay in (S, NL) • Rising attachment: 7 countries • Declining attachment: 4 countries • No change over time: 2 countries State support to exit (DK) High un-employ-ment (PL, H) Declining male wages (US, GB) Flexible work in Maquiladoras (MEX) Educational and service sector expansion (E, D, I) Dr. Heather Hofmeister

18. 2. Measuring employment quality change • Change in job prestige • Changebetween employment and unemployment New job type higher prestige same level lower prestige Job Reentry job type higher prestige same level lower prestige Unemployment Caregiving, not employed Dr. Heather Hofmeister

19. 2. Quality of employment is declining • Declining quality, rising uncertainty: 10 countries • Stability in job careers: 3 countries • Rising quality, declining uncertainty: 0 countries State support to keep jobs secure (S, NL, DK) Dr. Heather Hofmeister

20. Summary • Women in Europe (and North America) are overall increasingly likely to work for pay, with some exceptions based on institutional settings. • Women‘s job quality/stability is declining or staying stable, meaning more movement to lower-quality jobs, to unemployment, and longer job search time. • Women‘s own characteristics influence their risks.Especially protected Especially vulnerable highly educated low-educated more experienced workers frequent exitersfull-time workers part-time workers Heather Hofmeister

21. Commonalities among women under globalization • The quality of women‘s employment is declining or staying stable. Uncertainty is rising. • Disadvantages for mid-life women are similar to youth: • More precarious and lower quality jobs • More part-time work • More jobs with lower occupational standing/income • More and longer unemployment • More downward mobility • Coping strategies • Fewer and shorter exits at birth of child Heather Hofmeister

22. What is different between Eastern and Western Europe • Poland and Hungary are exceptional in their declines in women‘s labor market attachment through the 1990s. • Discouraging job market situation + alternative role possible • Denmark is also exceptional in its declines in women‘s labor market attachment. • Alternative policy for exiting instead of unemployment • Some Western European countries offer more state-organized job protection that protects women‘s career stability -- Sweden, Denmark, and the Netherlands. • Something we call the transition shock. Heather Hofmeister

23. Percent of women who agree with the statement: „A man‘s role is to earn money, a woman‘s role is to look after the house and children“(in %of birth cohort agreeing, 3 time points) Sources: ISSP, Lück 2006 Heather Hofmeister

24. Increasing uncertainty for employers Figure of globalization 2 Employers compete by increasing their “flexibility” Institutionally filtered Increasing uncertainty for minorities ... youth ... low-educated women ... low-educated men and higher-educated women ... higher-educated men Dr. Heather Hofmeister

25. Conclusions • Globalization increases uncertainty in most life course phases related to the labor market in most European countries. • Individual resources become increasingly important(e.g., education, experience, ascribed characteristics). • No strong line separates the effects of globalization on Eastern versus Western Europe. • Changes in domestic institutions (such as, but not limited to, economic transformations) can create newly vulnerable populations, particularly outsiders: often, but not limited to,youth and mid-life women. Heather Hofmeister