Class and Gender: A Note on Class Structure in Norway and USA

Abstract

This paper employs Wright's class-scheme and data from Nonvegian and American level of living surveys (1973/1980) to investigate the question of class and gender It is found that women to a larger degree than men occupy class positions with limited control over resources and little supervision A comparison with US data confirms the well-established finding that such inequality seems to be a general feature of Western capitalist societies. The most significant developments over time (1973-1980) in Norway are: a shrinking petty-bourgeoisie and an increase in the manager/ supervisor group. These structural changes are stronger in Norway than in the US It is found that the possibility of reaching a managerial/supervisory position cannot be reduced to individual characteristics such as age or education Being a woman is in itself a disadvantage for those striving for upper positions in the capitalist hierarchy of control. This has not changed throughout the 1970s.

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