This paper uses the 1 per cent household file from the Samples of Anonymised Records (SARs) for the 1991 Census and the ONS Longitudinal Study (LS) to explore variations in patterns of employment and occupational attainment among women from different ethnic groups. The analysis of the SARs focuses on the impact of lifecycle events on women's employment status and economic activity. The presence of a partner is identified as having the greatest impact on Pakinstani and Bangladeshi women's employment, while the presence of a pre-school child is most significant for White women's economic activity. White women also have a higher rate of part-time worlding than all other ethnic groups. These patterns are for malised in two models, one for economic activity and a second for full-time/part-time work. The LS is used to investigate the impact of these employment patterns on women's occupational attainment over a ten-year period. The analysis demonstrates that, while minority ethnic women in nonmanual occupations have similar longitudinal occupational profiles to White women, those in manual occupations fare worse than their White counterparts, despite the fact that a larger propotion of minority ethnic women are in fill-time employment.
Get full access to this article
View all access options for this article.
References
1.
Afshar, H. (1989) `Gender roles and the "moral economy of kin" among Pakistani women in West Yorkshire', New Community15, 211-225.
2.
Allen, S. and Wolkowitz, C. (1987) Homeworking: myths and realities, London: Macmillan.
3.
Bennett, N., Jarvis, L., Rowlands, O., Singleton, N. and Haselden, L. (1996) Living in Britain: results from the 1991 General Household Survey, London: HMSO
4.
Bhachu, P. (1993) `Identities constructed and reconstructed: representations of Asian women in Britain', in Bujis, G. (ed) Migrant Women: Crossing Boundaries and Changing Identities, Oxford: Providence, 99-118.
5.
Bhavnani, R. (1994) Black Women in the Labour Market: A Research Review, Manchester: Equal Opportunities Commission.
6.
Blackburn, R., Dale, A. and Jarman, J. (1997) `Ethnic differences in attainment in education, occupation and lifestyle', in Karn, V. (ed.) Employment, Education and Housing among Ethnic Minorities in Britain, London: HMSO.
7.
Brah, A. (1992) `Women of South Asian origin in Britain: issues and concerns', in Braham, P., Rattansi, A. and Skellington, R. (eds) Racism and Antiracism: Inequalities, Opportunities and Policies, London: Sage Publications, 64-78.
8.
Brah, A. and Shaw, S. (1992) Working Choices: South Asian Muslim Women and the Labour Market, London: Report to the Employment Department, Research Paper No 91.
9.
Brown, C. (1984) Black and White Britain, London: Policy Studies Institute.
10.
Bruegel, I. (1989) `Sex and race in the labour market', Feminist Review, 32, 49-68.
11.
CBI (1967) Employing Women: the Employers' View, London: Confederation of British Industry
12.
Census Microdata Unit, (1994) User Guide to the SARs, 2nd edition, Manchester: CMU, Manchester University
13.
Commission for Racial Equality (1991) Annual Report, 1993, London: CRE.
14.
Community Relations Commission (1975) Who Minds? A Study of Working Mothers and Childminding in Ethnic Minority Communities, London: CRC
15.
Dale, A. (1991) `Women in the labour market: policy in perspective', in Manning, N. (ed.) Social Policy Review 1990-1, London: Longman Group, 204-222.
16.
Dale, A. and Holdsworth, C. (1997) `Issues in the analysis of ethnicity in the 1991 Census'Racial and Ethnic Studies, 20.
17.
Dale, A. and Joshi, H. (1992) `The social and economic status of women in Britain', in Buttler, G., Heileg, G. and Schmitt-Rink, G. Acta Demographica, Heidelberg: Physica-Verlag, 27-46.
18.
Duncan, A., Giles, C. and Webb, S. (1995) The Impact of Subsidising Care, Manchester: Equal Opportunities Commission.
19.
Fabian Society (1966) Womanpower, Young Fabian Pamphlet No. 11, London.
20.
Gardner, K. and Shukur, A (1994) "'I'm Bengali, I'm Asian and I'm living here": The changing identity of British Bengalis', in Ballard R. (ed.) Desk Pardesh: the South Asian Presence in Britain, London: Hurst & Company, 142-164.
21.
Hakim, C. (1993) `The myth of rising female employment', Work, Employment and Society, 7, 1, 97-120.
22.
Hantrais, L. and Letablier, M-T. (1996), Families and Family Policies in Europe, London: Longman
23.
Hattersley, L. and Creeser, R. (1995) Longitudinal Study 1971-1991: History, organisation and quality of data, London: HMSO.
24.
Heath, A.F. and McMahon, D. (1997) `Education and Occupational attainment: the impact of ethnic origins', in Karn, V. (ed.) Employment, Education and Housing among Ethnic Minorities in Britain:London, HMSO.
25.
Holdsworth, C. and Dale, A. (1995) Ethnic Homogeneity and Family Formation: Evidence from the 1991 Household SAR, CCSR Occasional Paper No 7, Manchester University.
26.
Holdsworth, C. and Dale, A. (1997) Ethnic Variation in the impact of child-birth on women's employment and occupational attainment, CCSR Occasional Paper No 13, Manchester University.
27.
Jones, T. (1993) Britain's Ethnic Minorities, London: Policy Studies Institute.
28.
Joshi, H. (1989) `The changing form of women's economic dependency', in Joshi, H. (ed.) The Changing Population of Britain, Oxford: Basil Blackwell, 157-176
29.
Joshi, H., A. Dale, H. Davies, and C. Ward (1995), Dependence and Independence in the Finances of Women aged 33, London: Family Policy Studies Centre and the Joseph Rowntree Foundation.
30.
Karn, V. (1997) `Ethnic penalties and racial discrimination in education, employment and housing: Conclusions and policy implications', in Karn, V. (ed.) Employment, Education and Housing among Ethnic Minorities in Britain:London, HMSO.
31.
Martin, J. and Roberts, C. (1984) Women and Employment: A Lifetime Perspective, London: HMSO.
32.
McRae, S. (1993) Returning to work after childbirth: opportunities and inequalities', European Sociological Review, 9, 125-138
33.
Ohri, S. and Faruqi, S. (1988) `Racism, employment and unemployment', in Bhat, A., Carr-Hill, R. and Ohri, S. (eds) Britain's Black Population: A New Perspective, Aldershot: Gower, 61-102.
34.
OPCS/GRO (S) (1994) `Undercoverage in Great Britain', Census Users Guide No. 58, London: OPCS.
35.
Owen, D. (1994) Ethnic Minority Women and the Labour Market: Analysis of the 1991 Census. Manchester; Equal Opportunities Commission.
36.
Phizacklea, A. and Wolkowitz, C. (1993) Homeworking Women: gender, racism and class at work, London: Sage Publications
37.
Prandy. K. (1992) Cambridge Scale Scores for CASOC Groupings, Cambridge: Sociological Research Group, University of Cambridge.
38.
Rubery, J., Fagan, C. and Smith, M. (1995) Changing Patterns of Work and Working Time in the European Union and the Impact of Gender Divisions, Brussels: Report to the European Commission Equal Opportunities Unit.
39.
Simpson. S. (1996) `Non-response in the 1991 Census: the effect on ethnic group enumeration', in Coleman, D. and Salt, J. (eds) General Characteristic of the Ethnic Minority Populations, London: HMSO.
40.
Sly, F. (1994) `Economic activity results from the 1991 Labour Force Survey and Census of Population', Employment Gazette, March, 87-96.
41.
Sly, F. (1996) `Ethnic Minority participation in the labour market: Trends from the Labour Force Survey 1984-1995', Labour Market Trends, June, 259-270.
42.
Stone, K. (1983) `Motherhood and waged work: West Indian, Asian and White mothers compared' in Phizacklea, A. (ed.) One Way Ticket: Migration and Female Labour, London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 33-52.
43.
Warrier, S. (1988) `Marriage, maternity and female economic activity: Gujarati mothers in Britain', in Westwood, S. and Bhachu, P. (eds) Enterprising Women: ethnicity, economy and gender relations, London: Routledge, 132-151.
44.
West, J. and Pilgrim, S. (1995) `South Asian women: migration, ethnic origin and the local economy', New Community, 21, 357-378.
45.
Westwood, S. (1988) `Workers and wives: continuities and discontinuities in the lives of Gujarati women', in Westwood, S. and Bhachu, P. (eds) Enterprising Women: Ethnicity, Economy and Gender Relations, London: Routledge, 103-131.
