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OCR for page 136
Integrated Circuits/Segregated Labor
Women in Computer-Related
Occupations and High-Tech Industries
MYRA H. STROBER and CAROLYN L. ARNOLD
.
.
We are just beginning to see the. repercussions in all of our
lives of the technological feat of fitting the electronic wiring and
switches of what was a room-sized computer in 1946 onto a less
than fingernail-sized piece of silicon and metal by the end of the
1970s. This silicon chip is the core of a technological revolution,
the result of many attempts over a century to produce a "com-
puting machine" that is small, fast, and cheap. Now, as the chips
and, thus, the computers they make possible get smaller, faster,
and cheaper, their applications in both old and new products are
spawning a new high-technology industry. We see changes in a
multitude of workplaces and homes, the expansion of opportuni-
ties in existing industries and occupations, and the creation of new
The authors would like to thank Deborah Thresher for her excellent
preliminary research on this topic. An earlier version of this paper was given
at the annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association,
New Orlean~, April 25, 1984, and benefited from comments by Russell
Rumberger. We also received helpful comments from F`rancine Blau and
Philip Kraft on the version presented at the National Academy of Sciences
on February 28-March 1, 1985.
136
OCR for page 137
MYRA H. STROBER AND CAROLYN L. ARNOLD
137
industries and occupations that were not even imagined just a few
years ago.
The occupations most involved in the computer revolution
are engineers, computer scientists/systems analysts, programmers,
electronic technicians, computer operators, and data-entry work-
ers; these occupations are expanding both within the computer
industry and in other industries as well. In addition, the com-
puter industry provides new opportunities for managers, clerical
workers, and production workers. Traditionally women have been
sharply segregated into different occupations from men and have
been paid less than men (Gross, 1968; Lloyd and Neimi, 1979;
Blau and Hendricks, 1979; O'Neill, 1983; Bielby and Baron, 1984;
Strober, 1984; Neiman and Hartmann, 1981~. This study poses
several questions. Are there better opportunities for gender in-
tegration and earnings equity in these new occupations that are
growing rapidly, are exhibiting labor shortages, and are suppos-
edly not locked into past traditions and stereotypes? Are there
better opportunities for gender integration and pay equity in high-
technology (high-tech) industries? What does the growth of these
occupations imply for women's employment?
This paper is divided into four sections. The first discusses
the details of the occupations we analyze. The second section uses
published data as well as the 1/1000 Public Use Samples (P.U.S.)
from the 1970 and 1980 U.S. Censuses to look at how women are
faring in the six major computer-related occupations and in high-
tech industries. In the third section, the 1980 published data and
the 1980 P.U.S. are used to examine the relative earnings of men
and women in three computer-related occupations in high-tech
and non-high-tech industries. In the fourth section, we discuss our
findings and their implications.
In brief, we found that although high tech in general and
computer occupations in particular are often seen as the great
equalizers, especially for those with higher education, in fact, there
is considerable gender segregation in both high-tech industries
and computer-related occupations in all industries; there is also
considerable male-female earnings differentiation. We suggest that
one possible cause of the earnings differentiation is that men and
women in computer occupations are not employed equally across
OCR for page 138
138
COMPUTER-RELATED OCCUPATIONS
industries; women tend to be employed more frequently in the
lower-paying end-user industries.)
COMPUTER-RELATED OCCUPATIONS
DESCRIPTIONS OF OCCUPATIONS
The development of semiconductors, computers, and com-
puter languages spawned several new occupations and expanded
several others. There are six major computer-related occupation
groups—engineers, computer specialists, engineering and science
technicians, production workers, computer operators, and data-
entry operators. For three of these groups (engineers, engineering
and science technicians, and production workers), we have re-
stricted the analysis to those employed in the computer industry.
For the other three groups (computer specialists, computer oper-
ators, and data-entry operators), we have examined employment
in all industries. The following descriptions of the occupations
in these groups are based on definitions in the Standard Occu-
pational Classification Manual, 1980 (U.S. Department of Com-
merce, 1980), California Employment Development Department
publications (ABAG, 1981), and interviews with workers and em-
ployment counselors.
Engineers
Engineers design hardware for computers, including the elec-
tronic circuits. The largest group of engineers is electrical engi-
neers, but mechanical and industrial engineers also work in the
computer industry. Sometimes they incorporate software designs
into the circuits. Engineering is the highest-status and highest-
paid computer-related occupation, with engineers generally having
at least a B.S. degree in engineering; many have advanced degrees.
~ We define End-user industries as those that use the products of the
computer industry and make only minor changes to the products to accom-
modate their needs, rather than making basic new developments in these
products. The companies developing computers and/or their software are
part of the computer industry. The companies in all other industries, which
will use these computers and/or software, are part of end-user industries.
It is true that even within the computer industry the administrative divi-
sions of the companies are end-users of computers. However, census data do
not permit us to make such fine distinctions within industries, and we are
interested here mainly in any broad differences between industries.
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MYRA N. STROBER AND CAROlYN L. ARNOLD
Computer Specialists
139
As we look beyond designing hardware to designing software,
the sets of instructions that tell the computer which operations to
perform, we encounter the computer specialist occupations. While
computer engineers tend to be employed largely by computer com-
panies, computer specialists are employed in virtually every major
industry group. These jobs involve a hierarchy of tasks that used
to be done by one person with the title of computer programmer.
When the first computer was unveiled in 1946 (it was room-
sized because the circuits were made with glass vacuum tubes),
the engineers who designed it thought that the main task of ar-
ranging the circuits had been done, and that giving instructions
to the computer to perform calculations would be a simple clerical
task. So they hired people who usually do clerical tasks women.
In this case the women were recent college graduates with math
backgrounds. However, these women found that in order to get
the computer to do calculations, they (the programmers) had
to know all about the design of the circuits and the way those
circuits worked in the computer; they had to tell the computer
not only what to do, but how to do it. The simple operation of
performing calculations (in this case for Navy shell trajectories)
became a high-level task that involved a knowledge of logic, math-
ematics, and electronic circuits. These women programmed the
necessary calculations and went on to do others. However, those
who watched the programming process began to realize that pro-
gramming was a high-level, challenging, and creative occupation.
As the occupation grew, it became largely male (Kraft, 1979~.
Ironically, some programming today is akin to the type of cler-
ical job that computer designers (mistakenly) thought it would be
in the late 1940s. Over time, with the development of higher-level
languages (closer to human languages)2 and more routine appli-
cations, programming tasks that were previously highly skilled,
highly paid, and concentrated among highly educated workers
have been broken down into more routine tasks and distributed
among less-skilled workers. Kraft (1977) has suggested that, as
this ~deskilling" has occurred, it Is women who have moved into
2 Note that higher-level languages are closer to human languages and
hence are easier to use in programming. Thus, paradoxically, ~higher"-level
languages require lower skill and have lower prestige associated with their
use.
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140
COMP UTER-RELA TED O CCUPA TIONS
the less-skilled jobs.3 Greenbaum (1979) found that the lowest-
leve} programming jobs were disproportionately occupied by racial
and ethnic minorities.
This history of the developing hierarchy in computer program-
ming is reflected in the designations given by the Bureau of the
Census to the computer specialist occupations. In 1960 and 1970,
computer specialists, including programmers, were included in the
professional category. By 1980, the Census put the three-digit
occupational category of computer scientists/systems analysts in
the professional category and the three-digit category of computer
programmers in the technical category.
The following descriptions attempt to capture the current hi-
erarchy and educational requirements among computer specialists.
Some workers In these occupations do not have formal credentials,
having been trained or self-taught on the job. These job titles and
descriptions continue to change and overlap.
Computer scientists and some systems analysts work with
engineers to design the overall hardware and software systems
and sometimes know just as much about the hardware, although
their training is more concentrated in the logic and mathematical
models of computer systems, rather than on electronic principles.
They also develop new languages to be used by other programmers.
Generally, they have an M.S. or Ph.D. in computer science (CS)
or electrical engineering (EE) or both (CS/EE).
Computer systems analysts conceptualize and plan how a busi-
ness or industrial task, such as automating a payroll or an assembly
line, will be solved by computerization. Systems analysts do not
write the programs but make flow charts to show the subtasks that
need to be done by people and computers and their sequence and
. · ~
riming.
Computer programmers are often promoted into systems ana-
lysts positions because these positions represent higher-level skills,
responsibility, and pay than do programming positions. If systems
analysts were not previously programmers, their education is ei-
ther in business or data processing. There is a debate in this field
about whether systems analysts need programming skills or not.
3 Braverman (1974) originally identified and labeled this process as the
"degradation of work.n It soon became known as `'deskilling.n
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MYRA H. STROBER AND CAROLYN L. ARNOLD
141
Systems programmers maintain and modify operating sys-
tems systems of programs that coordinate all the hardware in
a particular computer so it will run according to certain high-level
languages. They are also responsible for updating the high-level
software on the system in their particular company. They gener-
ally require a B.S., M.S., or Ph.D. in CS, EE, or math.
Programmer/analysts update operating systems and write
programs that tailor the computer's uses to each individual work-
place. Although ready-made software is available for many pur-
poses, most firms need programmers to modify or write programs
that reflect their own computing needs. These programmers need
to know both operating systems and high-level languages. Ed-
ucation requirements are a B.A. in related subjects with some
programming experience, a B.S. in CS, or an M.B.A.
Software engineers, as some programmers are increasingly
called, design and write programs in high-level languages specif-
ically for certain computers. These programs, often called pack-
ages, are sold with the computer to make it easier for nonprogram-
mers to use. Packages can include such items as games, accounting
programs, and instructional programs. Producing these programs
requires the creativity to conceptualize and design new ways to
use the computer. People writing these software packages require
a good knowledge of the language used to program the software
and good ideas about marketable packages. Acquiring knowledge
of programming and having creative ideas are more important for
job success than are educational degrees. Consequently, a range
of people, from high school students to Ph.D.s, are designing and
writing software.
Programmers, sometimes called coders or applications pro-
grammers, are mainly translators. They translate instructions
for a certain application in one language into the programming
language that their particular computer anti use to produce the
same results. The job category itself encompasses a range of skill
and creativity from routine coding of sections of an application
program to a task more like a programmer/analyst, depending
on their industry or firm. These jobs can be done with less than
a B.S. in CS. However, if those with a B.S. degree are available,
employers often prefer to hire them.
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142
COMPUTER-RELATED OCCUPATIONS
Engineering and Science Technicians
A third major group of computer-related workers is engineer-
ing and science technicians. This group is found in the com-
puter industry and is mainly made up of engineering technicians
trained in electronics, although there are also some science techni-
cians working within the industry. The electronic technicians have
enough specialized knowledge of electronics to be able to construct,
test, and repair the circuitry and components of computers that
the engineers design and to understand engineering specifications
and problems. Although they do not do original design work, they
operationalize designs, test them, and then advise engineers on
possible modifications. They work both in research design and in
production to test and troubleshoot both new and existing prod-
ucts. Also included in the engineering technician category are
drafters, who, using both manual and computer-assisted drafting
tools, make drawings of the circuit boards and components that
the engineers design. The standard degrees are the 2-year assm
ciate of arts (A.A.) or associate of science (A.S.) for an engineering
or science technician and an A.A. in drafting for a drafter.
Computer Operators
The fourth computer-related occupational group is computer
operators. They are employed in all industries. Computer opera-
tors run the external operation of the computer; ensure that the
computer receives the programs and data; and coordinate disks,
tapes, and printing connections to the computer, either manu-
ally or by supervising automated systems. This occupation ranges
from active high-level interactions with the programs to routinized
supervision of automated systems. It is sometimes an entry-level
job leading to low-level programming. Education needed is simple
knowledge of the equipment from a short training course and/or
from experience. The occupation is rapidly being deskilled as more
of its functions become automated.
Data-Entry Operators
Data-entry operators, the fifth computer-related occupation,
put information into a form that can be read by a computer. This
information used to be keypunched onto cards but is now almost
always put onto tapes or disks from terminals. The operators,
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MYRA H. STROBER AND CAROLYN L. ARNOLD
143
who basically type numbers and letters into a terminal, require
training in typing. They are also employed in all industries.
Production Workers
The sixth major computer-related occupation is production
worker. While many of the production jobs are similar to those in
other industries, the following jobs are unique to semiconductor
and computer production. There are generally no specific edu-
cational requirements for these jobs, although people with some
knowledge of electronics are generally preferred. Often hazardous
chemicals are used in the production process.
Semiconductor processors put materials through chemical and
mechanical processes to create semiconductor integrated circuits
on chips. They work either manually or, as these tasks become
mechanized, with processing machines.
Semicond?tctor assemblers assemble chips into wired devices
which become the complete integrated circuit. This includes bond-
ing wires to circuits, a task which is done under a microscope, and
cleaning the circuits with chemicals.
Electronic assemblers assemble the integrated circuits and
other electronic components into a frame that becomes the fin-
ished product (e.g., a computer). Electronic assemblers can be
promoted to electronic testers, who test chips, boards, and com-
ponents as they go through assembly, or electronic inspectors, who
examine the components for errors and specification requirements.
A skilled occupation that is sometimes part of production
and sometimes part of customer service is data-processing repair,
which involves installing and repairing data-processing machinery
in offices and on production lines. This job category includes a
range of workers from electronic mechanics to assembly and wiring
technicians.
There are also, of course, managerial, professional/technical,
sales, clerical, and service occupations within the computer indus-
try. These jobs tend to be similar to such jobs in other industries.
GENDER SEGREGATION
COMPUTER-RELATED OCCUPATIONS
In this section we begin the analysis of gender segregation by
examining trends in total employment and women's employment
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144
COMPUTER-RELATED OCCUPATIONS
in computer-related occupations. Table 1 presents data both for
occupations that are computer related regardless of their industry
(computer specialists, computer operators, data-entry operators,
and data-processing repairers) and for occupations that are com-
puter related only when found in computer industries (engineers,
engineering and science technicians, and most production work-
ers). As Table ~ shows, between 1970 and 1980, employment in
computer-relatec} occupations grew about 80 percent from about
1.5 million to 2.4 million. However, although the growth of these
occupations is widely heralded, it is important to note that they
represented only 2.0 percent of all employment in 1970j and 2.5
percent in 1980. (Among aD women workers, those in computer
occupations represented 2.3 percent of employment in 1970 and
2.9 percent in 1980. The corresponding percentages among men
workers were I.8 percent in 1970 and 2.2 percent in 1980.)
This growth took place in the context of increasing participa-
tion in the labor force by women. In 1970, women were 38 percent
of the U.S. labor force; by 1980, they were 43 percent. However,
in both those years, women's representation in computer-related
occupations was either considerably below or considerably above
their representation in the labor force as a whole, depending on
the specific occupation.
Despite the fact that the computer-related occupations are of
relatively recent origin, they are already remarkably segregated
by gender. In 1970, women were 2 percent of all engineers in
the computer industry; in 1980, that figure had risen to only
5 percent. Thus, in the highest-paid, highest-prestige computer-
related occupation, women are virtually absent.
Among computer specialists in all industries, the situation is
somewhat better, although women are still below their proportion
in the overall work force. In 1970, women were 15 percent of
all computer scientists/systems analysts. This occupation more
than doubled from 1970 to 1980 (from 93,000 to 201,000), but
by 1980, women were still only 22 percent. Among programmers,
the proportion of women also increased, but they were also still
underrepresented. The number of programmers almost doubled
(from 16t,000 to 313,000), and the proportion of women grew
from 23 percent in 1970 to 31 percent in 1980.
Women were better represented among engineering and sci-
ence technicians in the computer industry than among engineers,
but were less well represented than among computer specialists.
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MYRA H. STROBER AND CAROLYN L. ARNOLD
TABLE 1 Total and Women's Employment in Computer-Related Occupations,
1970 and 1980
145
Occupation
1970
Percent
Number Women
1980
Number
Percent
Women
Total employed in labor force
Total employed in computer-
related occupations
Engineersa
Electr~cal/electronic engineers
Computer specialists
Computer scientiste/eysteme analysts
Computer programmers
Engineering and science technicianea
Electronic technicians
Drafters
Computer operators
Data-entry operators
Production workersa
Operatives, fabricators,
transporters, and laborers
Assemblers
Electronic assemblers
Data-processing repairers—
Percent of total employed labor force
in computer-related occupations
76,553,599
38
1,497,683
90,626 2
47,004 2
254,537 20
93,200 15
161,337 23
58,292 11
31,454 11
16,963 7
117,222 29
272,570 90
680,299 46
519,221 58
158,191 74
24,137 3
1970
2.0
97,639,355
2,424,240
125,055
67,320
513,863
200,684
313,179
90,990
60,299
16,726
408,475
378,094
872,345
43
5
4
28
22
31
17
15
16
59
92
49
591,091 58
208,284
55,879
35,418
1980
2.5
72
77
88
NOTE: Computer-related occupations are defined in Appendix B.
aEmployment data for these occupations are only for the computer industry defined as
two three-digit industries: Electronic Computing Equipment (SIC Codes 1970:189;
1980:322) and Electrical Machinery, Equipment, and Supplies, not elsewhere classified,
including semiconductors (SIC Codes 1970:208; 1980:342). Data for all other occupations
are for all industries.
bWorkere not in the computer industry; data-processing repairers in the computer
industry are included in "Production workers" above: 6,707 in 1970 and 11,208 in 1980.
Women also accounted for 3 and 8 percent, respectively in 1970 and 1980, for these
repairers.
SOURCE: 1970 data, Bureau of the Census (1972:Table 8); 1980 data, Bureau of the Census
(1984:Tables 1 and 4).
In 1970 in the computer industry, women were 11 percent of engi-
neering and science technicians; in 1980 they represented 17 per-
cent. They were similarly represented among electronic/electrical
technicians t! percent in 1970 and 15 percent in 1980. As
drafters, women did less well in 1970 than other technicians-
only 7 percent were women but did better in 1980, when 16
percent were women.
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146
COMPUTER-RELATED OCCUPATIONS
Initially, there was no clear indication as to which gender
would be assigned to the occupation of computer operator. In
1960, when there were only 2,000 computer operators, women held
65 percent of the jobs (Dicesare, 1975~. Between 1960 and 1970,
the jobs in this occupation increased more than sixfold, to 117,000.
More of these new jobs were filled by men than by women so that
in 1970, women were only 29 percent of all computer operators.
In the period from 1970 to 1980, however, while the occupation
increased fourfold, to 408,000, more of the new additions to the
occupation were women, so that in 1980, women were 59 percent
of all computer operators.
Like most clerical occupations, data entry is preponderantly
female. In 1970 women were 90 percent of data-entry operators.
Between 1970 and 1980 the occupation became even more seg-
regated so that by 1980 women represented 92 percent of such
operators.
Of all production workers in the computer industry, women
were only slightly over their representation in the labor force as
a whole: 46 percent in 1970 and 49 percent in 1980. However,
when we look more closely at the less-skilled production occupa-
tions, women's representation is much higher. Of all the operators,
fabricators, laborers, and transportation workers, a group which
includes the semiconductor processors and assemblers and all other
lower-level production workers in the computer industry, women
represented 58 percent in both 1970 and 1980. Among assemblers,
a subset of operatives, women were about 73 percent in 1970 and
1980. Of electronic assemblers, a group identified only in 1980,
women were an even higher proportion: 77 percent.4 However,
in the occupation "data-processing machine repairers," we find
again the extraordinary gender segregation we often see in techni-
cal occupations: women held 3 percent of these jobs in 1970 and 8
percent in 1980.
In Table 2 we present the difference between the percentage
of women in the total labor force and the percentage of women
in each computer-related occupation listed in Table 1. This dif-
ference represents a rough measure of occupational segregation. If
we compare the data for 1970 and 1980 we find that except for
4 In Silicon Valley in 1981, 40 percent of women assemblers were ethnic
minorities (Rogers and Larsen, 1984~. This production occupation is even
more segregated abroad (Grossman, 1980~.
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172
COMPUTER-RELATED OCCUPATIONS
4. Within high-tech industries, most men were in produc-
tion, professional/technical, or managerial occupations, while
most women were in production or clerical occupations. Women
and men were equally likely to be in production occupations.
However, men were more likely to be in managerial and pro-
fessional/technical occupations in high-tech industries than in
non-high-tech industries; women fared worse in these occupations
in high-tech industries than in other industries (see Table 6~.
5. Within the occupations of computer scientists/systems an-
alysts, computer programmers, and computer operators, women's
mean annual earnings and women's median hourly earnings were
less than those of men. In addition, the ratios of women's to men's
earnings generally remained constant between 1970 and 1980 (see
Tables 7 and 83.
6. Within the three occupations analyzed, women's hourly
earnings were generally less than those of men, even after age,
level of education, and high-tech versus non-high-tech industry
were held constant (see Table 10~.
7. Women employed as systems analysts, programmers, and
computer operators were more likely to be found in end-user
industries than in the computer manufacturing industry itself.
Within the three computer-related occupations, women were paid
less than men no matter in what industry they were employed (see
Table 11~. We found some evidence that in several occupations,
particularly computer scientists/systems analysts, women may be
more likely to be found in industries where men are lower paid.
However, this hypothesis has not been tested definitively here and
requires further investigation.
These findings dispel the myth that high tech is automatically
a great equalizer. High tech may produce integrated circuits,
but it does not necessarily produce an integrated work force or
eliminate the female/male earnings differential.
DISCUSSION
Although a detailed explanation of the implications of these
findings is beyond the scope of this paper, it is likely that the
explanations can be found in the discussions of gender segregation
and earnings differentials commonly found in the literature (see
Blau and Jusenius, 1976; Cain, 1976; Amsden, 1980; Sokoloff,
OCR for page 173
MYRA H. STROBER AND CAROLYN L. ARNOLD
173
1980; Strober, 1984; Reskin, 1984; and Reskin and Hartmann,
1986~. These theories focus on women's own behavior, on em-
ployer discrimination, and on the interactions of labor markets
and gender relations in society. However, to devise the various
types of policies that are required to change existing patterns
of gender segregation and earnings differentials for the computer
industry and computer-related occupations reported here, more
research on the dynamics of each aspect of gender segregation is
needed. More detailed research on the differences in women's em-
ployment between and within industries and between and within
firms would identify the bottlenecks preventing the gender integra-
tion of occupations. Attention needs to be given to the processes
by which women are allocated and/or allocate themselves into the
lower-paid occupations and industries. This involves investigating
how employers structure and define occupations and career lad-
ders and distribute skilled job applicants and workers in ways that
result in gender-segregated occupations and industries. Research
also needs to be done on the degree to which technologically
trained women (and some men) self-select out of certain occupa-
tions or industries because a certain definition or culture for the
occupation or industry precludes respect for the participation of
people with different work styles or cultures.
Some explanations have been advanced for women's low rem
resentation among the specialized computer-related occupations.
For example, DeBoer (1984) argues that women are still more
likely than men to exclude themselves from advanced math and
science training: even when women in high school and college
science perform at a higher level than their male classmates,
they have a higher drop-out rate. He proposes that teachers in
secondary and postsecondary education make special efforts to
acknowledge the skills of talented women.
Hacker's work (1981), however, suggests that merely encour-
aging women may not be sufficient to change their educational
decisions, since women's decisions to exclude themselves from
technical fields may be related in part to a dislike of the fields'
"culture. Hacker, based on research at a technical institute,
argues that there is a "culture of engineering" that includes an
extension of the profession's formal objectification and control of
the natural world to an informal objectification of women.
It may be that a distaste for being part of the "engineering cul-
ture~ also leads technically trained women to exclude themselves
OCR for page 174
174
COMPUTER-RELATED OCCUPATIONS
from certain sectors of the computer industry. If an engineering
culture appears most strongly in those sectors and industries of
the computer field that are at the technological forefront and most
competitive technologically, then it may be that those sectors and
industries are the least appealing to women. However, it may not
be accidental that these sectors have the strongest engineering
culture. In terms of Strober's theory (1984), men who work in
these intellectually challenging and highly lucrative sectors may
acquire the habits of the "engineering culture" in part precisely
to keep women out.
The work style and work pressures in the most technologically
competitive sectors of the computer industry may also keep many
women out. While firms in all industries must remain compet-
itive with similar firms, the computer industry, a new industry
with a steady stream of technological breakthroughs, has some
unique pressures: to make and increase profits in a competitive
nonoligopolistic environment, stay on the technological forefront,
and stay ahead of not only young ant! old domestic companies
but their Japanese counterparts as well. These financial and tech-
nological pressures are intensified as each firm tries to survive
and succeed before the industry "shakes down." There is much
pressure on workers in the computer industry to maintain high
levels of productivity, including overtime work and other forms
of commitment to the success of the firm. Women who want to
succeed have to put in long, hard hours of work, and this may be
a barrier for women (and men) who are trying to balance their
home and work lives.
We have presented evidence of gender segregation of the high-
tech industries and highly technical computer occupations. At the
same time we have called for research-assisted strategies to end
these observed patterns of occupational inequity. While we en-
courage women to enter these computer-related fields, we need
to disseminate the findings of studies such as this one. This
will make women aware of the channeling that leads them into
less-prestigious, lower-paying occupations or "end-user" indus-
tries within high-tech fields and help them develop strategies to
counteract this channeling. At the same time this research can
be user] to assist in developing policies to make occupations and
workplaces more welcoming to both genders and more compatible
with satisfying personal and family lives.
OCR for page 175
MYRA N. STROBER AND CAROLYN L. ARNOLD
REFERENCES
175
ABAG (Association of Bay Area Governments)
1981 Silicon Valley and beyond: high technology growth for the San
E`rancisco Bay Area. Working Papers on the Region' Economy, 2.
Berkeley, Calif.
Amsden, Alice H.
1980 Introduction. Pp. 11-38 in Alice H. Amsden, ea., The Econornic~
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Bielby, William T., and James N. Baron
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OCR for page 177
MYRA N. STROBER AND CAROLYN L. ARNOLD
177
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APPENDIX A: INDUSTRIES WITHIN MAJOR INDUSTRY
GROUPS, BY HIGH-TECH AND NON-HIGH-TECH
CATEGORIES
Industrial categories that comprise the high-tech sector defi-
nition used here are based on those designated Group III in Riche
et al., 1983. This is a moderately inclusive definition containing
27 three-digit SIC industries and 1 four-digit SIC industry. Cen-
sus Industry Codes which most closely matched these SIC codes
were used to designate high-tech industries in the 1970 and 1980
Census Public Use Sample tapes. The Census Codes each include
from one to several SIC industries, and some Riche-designated
high-tech SIC industries are grouped with non-high-tech SIC in-
dustries, so it is not possible to perfectly match the Riche Group
III list using census data. Below are listed the census industrial
categories that were designated for this study as high tech and
non-high tech. For the high-tech industries, 1970 and 1980 Census
Industrial Codes are shown in parentheses, with the 1970 code
first followed by the 1980 code (Bureau of the Census, 1971, 1982~.
HIGH-TECHNOLOGY INDUSTRY GROUPS
(HIGH TECH)
DURABLE MANUFACTURING
Ordnance (258;248~; engines and turbines (177;310~; office and
accounting machines (188;321~; electronic computing equipment
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178
COMPUTER-RELATED OCCUPATIONS
(189;322~; radio, television, and communication equipment (207;
341~; electrical machinery, equipment, and supplies, n.e.c. (208;
342~; aircraft and parts (227;352~; scientific and controlling instru-
ments (239;371~; optical and health services supplies (247;3723;
photographic equipment and supplies (248;380~.
NONDURABLE MANUFACTURING
Industrial and miscellaneous chemicals (281 and 368;192~; plas-
tics, synthetics, and resins (348 and 349;180~; drugs and medicines
(357;181~; soaps and cosmetics (358;182~; paints, varnishes, and
related products (359;190~; agricultural chemicals (367;191~; not
specified chemicals and allied products (1970;369~; petroleum
refining (377;200~; miscellaneous petroleum and coal products
(1970;378~.
BUSINESS AND REPAIR S ERVICES
Commercial research, development, and testing labs (729;7303;
computer programming or computer and data-processing services
(739;740~.
NON-HIGH-TECHNOLOGY INDUSTRY GROUPS
(NON-HIGH-TECH)
DURABLE MANUFACTURING
Lumber, furniture, stone, clay, and glass products, other metal
industries, cutlery, handtools, hardware, other machinery, house-
hold appliances, transportation equipment, clocks, toys, sporting
goods.
NoNDuRABLE MANUFACTURING
Food, tobacco, textile, apparel, paper, printing, rubber, leather
products.
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MYRA H. STROBER AND CAROLYN L. ARNOLD
BUSINESS AND REPAIR S ERVICES
179
Advertising, buildings services, personnel supply, business man-
agement and consulting, detective and protective services, busi-
ness services, automotive services and repair, electrical repair,
miscellaneous repair.
AGRICULTURE, FORESTRY, AND FISHERIES
Agricultural production, crops; agricultural production, livestock;
agricultural services; horticultural services; forestry; fisheries; fish-
ing, hunting, and trapping.
MINING
Metal mining; coal mining; crude petroleum- and natural gas
extractions; nonmetallic mining and quarrying, except fuel.
.
CONSTRUCTION
General building contractors; general contractors, except building;
special trade contractors; nonspecified construction.
TRANSPORTATION, COMMUNICATION, AND PUBLIC UTILITIES
Rail, bus, taxi, truck services, warehouses, U.S. Postal Service,
water and air transportation, pipelines, miscellaneous transporta-
tion services, radio, television, telephone, telegraph, electricity,
gas, steam, water supplies, and sanitary services.
WHOLESALE TRADE
All wholesale trade of durable and nondurable goods
sale of high-tech products.
RETAIL TRADE
, including
All ret se} outlets for clurable and nondurable goods, including sale
of high-tech products.
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180
COMPUTER-RELATED OCCUPATIONS
F INANCE, INSURANCE, AND REAL ESTATE
Banking, savings and loans, credit agencies, securities and invest-
ment, insurance, real estate and real estate insurance and law
offices.
PROFESSIONAL AND OTHER SERVICES
Offices of doctors, dentists, chiropractors, optometrists, and other
health practitioners and services; hospitals, nursing, and personal
care services; legal services; elementary and secondary schools;
colleges and universities; business, trade, and vocational schools;
libraries; educational services; job training and vocational rehabil-
itation; child care services; residential care; social services; muse-
ums; art galleries; zoos; religious and membership organizations;
engineering, architectural, and surveying services; accounting, au-
diting, and bookkeeping services; and noncommercial educational
and scientific research.
PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION
Offices of chief executive and legislative bodies and their advisory
and interdepartmental committees and commissions; government
civil rights and civil service commissions; offices providing support
services for government such as accounting, personnel, purchasing
and supply; courts; police protection; correctional institutions;
fire protection; government legal counsel; public finance; tax and
monetary policy; administration of educational programs; public
health, social, manpower, and income maintenance programs;
veterans' affairs; environmental protection; housing and urban
development programs; regulatory agencies; national security;
and international agencies.
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MYRA H. S TR OBER A ND CA R OL YN L . A RNOLD
APPENDIX B: COMPUTER-RELATED OCCUPATIONS
181
We define computer-related occupations using the following
detailed occupation categories and codes from the 1970 and 1980
U.S. censuses:
Census Occupation Categories
Census Occupation Codes
1970 1980
Engineers 006-023 044-059
Electrical/electronic engineer 012 055
Computer specialists 003-005 064,229
Computer scientist/systems
analyst 004-005 064
Computer programmers 003 229
Engineers and science technicians 15~162
Elect ric al/elect ronic
engineering technicians
Drafters
153
152
213-217,
223-225
213
217-
Computer operators
(includes computer and peripheral
equipment operators) 343 308,309
Data-entry operators 345 385
Production workersa
(includes crafts, precision
production, operatives,
transportation, laborers,
and farm occupations) 401-824 473-889
Electronic assemblers
(a category in 1980 only)
within precision production
Data-processing repairers
Within precision production
475
683
525
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182
Operatives, fabricators,
transportation, and laborersa
Within production (excludes
farm, crafts, and precision
production. Not precisely
the same occupations in each
year.)
Assemblers
Within operatives
or
COMPUTER-RELATED OCCUPATIONS
601-785
602
703-889
785
a There were changes in occupational coding and categorizing between
the 1970 and 1980 Censuses (Bureau of the Census, 1983), which affected the
occupations included in large occupational categories such as "Production
Workers" and `'Operatives, Fabricators, Transportation, and Laborers.
The category of Production Workers as defined here is so large that the
occupations included are identical except for three which are included in
1970 and not in 1980: decorators and window dressers (1970 code 425~;
inspectors, n.e.c. (1970 code 4523; and conductors and motormen, urban
rail transit (1970 code 704~. Since few of these workers would be in the
computer industry, we do not feel that this affects the results. However, the
category of "Operatives, Fabricators, Transportation, and Laborers does
differ significantly between the years, and therefore the data presented for
1970 and 1980 are not strictly comparable.
Representative terms from entire chapter:
computer operators
