IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/eme/ijmpps/01437720610679197.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Still a wedge in the door: women training for the construction trades in the USA

Author

Listed:
  • Günseli Berik
  • Cihan Bilginsoy

Abstract

Purpose - This paper aims to evaluate the variations in the entry and exit of women apprentices in the USA, overall and by race/ethnicity, over the 1995‐2003 period. Also aims to examine how women's representation among new apprentices and their attrition and retention rates vary with individual, training program, and occupational characteristics. Design/methodology/approach - An individual‐level dataset from the US Department of Labor is used to estimate econometrically women's representation in apprenticeship programs and women's odds of completing programs. Findings - Women's representation among new trainees is very low and deteriorating. The results confirm previous findings based on data for the early 1990s that program sponsorship has significant impact on women's representation and retention. Women have better chances of joining the high‐skill construction workforce if they enroll in union‐contractor joint programs. Joint programs feature higher shares of women in the incoming classes and higher odds of graduation in comparison with the unilateral contractor programs. While White women have higher completion rates than Latinas and Black women, the union impact on shares of enrollees is the largest for Black women and the lowest for White women. Research limitations/implications - The dataset is not nationally representative. It covers 31 states or about 65 percent of all apprentices. Practical implications - Union sponsorship is necessary but not sufficient to enhance women's integration in the trades. Increasing participation of women in apprenticeship and the trades requires major changes in policies, priorities, and behavior of contactors, unions, and the government to actively recruit women and improve working conditions at the construction site. Originality/value - This is the first systematic analysis of performance of women apprentices that utilizes the most recent data from the USA.

Suggested Citation

  • Günseli Berik & Cihan Bilginsoy, 2006. "Still a wedge in the door: women training for the construction trades in the USA," International Journal of Manpower, Emerald Group Publishing Limited, vol. 27(4), pages 321-341, June.
    • Handle: RePEc:eme:ijmpps:01437720610679197
    DOI: 10.1108/01437720610679197
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/01437720610679197/full/html?utm_source=repec&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=repec
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers
    File URL: https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/01437720610679197/full/pdf?utm_source=repec&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=repec
    Download Restriction: Access to full text is restricted to subscribers
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1108/01437720610679197?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    As the access to this document is restricted, you may want to look for a different version below or search for a different version of it.

    Other versions of this item:

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Timothy Bates & David Howell, 1998. "The Declining Status of Minorities in the New York City Construction Industry," Economic Development Quarterly, , vol. 12(1), pages 88-100, February.
    2. Polachek, Solomon William, 1981. "Occupational Self-Selection: A Human Capital Approach to Sex Differences in Occupational Structure," The Review of Economics and Statistics, MIT Press, vol. 63(1), pages 60-69, February.
    3. Daniel Immergluck, 1996. "What employers want: Job prospects for less-educated workers," The Review of Black Political Economy, Springer;National Economic Association, vol. 24(4), pages 135-143, June.
    4. Becker, Gary S., 1971. "The Economics of Discrimination," University of Chicago Press Economics Books, University of Chicago Press, edition 2, number 9780226041162, November.
    5. Vivian Price, 2002. "Race, Affirmative Action, and Women's Employment in US Highway Construction," Feminist Economics, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 8(2), pages 87-113.
    6. Günseli Berik & Cihan Bilginsoy, 2002. "Unions and women’s training for the skilled trades in the U.S," The Review of Black Political Economy, Springer;National Economic Association, vol. 29(4), pages 97-122, March.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Katie Meara & Francesco Pastore & Allan Webster, 2020. "The gender pay gap in the USA: a matching study," Journal of Population Economics, Springer;European Society for Population Economics, vol. 33(1), pages 271-305, January.
    2. Lene Kromann, 2009. "Does Employee Body Weight Affect Employers' Behavior?," Economics Working Papers 2009-04, Department of Economics and Business Economics, Aarhus University.
    3. Yu Xie & Kimberlee A. Shauman, 1997. "Modeling the Sex-Typing of Occupational Choice," Sociological Methods & Research, , vol. 26(2), pages 233-261, November.
    4. Hübler, Olaf, 2003. "Geschlechtsspezifische Lohnunterschiede (Gender-specific wage differentials)," Mitteilungen aus der Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung, Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany], vol. 36(4), pages 539-559.
    5. Ilan Tojerow, 2008. "Industry Wage Differentials Rent Sharing and Gender in Belgium," Reflets et perspectives de la vie économique, De Boeck Université, vol. 0(3), pages 55-65.
    6. Gillian Hewitson, 2001. "A Survey of Feminist Economics," Working Papers 2001.01, School of Economics, La Trobe University.
    7. David Branham, 2008. "Taking Advantage of an Untapped Pool: Assessing the Success of African American Head Coaches in the National Football League," The Review of Black Political Economy, Springer;National Economic Association, vol. 35(4), pages 129-146, December.
    8. George-Levi Gayle & Limor Golan, "undated". "Estimating a Dynamic Adverse Selection Model: Labor Force Experience and the Changing Gender Earnings Gap 1968-93," GSIA Working Papers 2006-E40, Carnegie Mellon University, Tepper School of Business.
    9. Kevin Lang & Jee-Yeon K. Lehmann, 2012. "Racial Discrimination in the Labor Market: Theory and Empirics," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 50(4), pages 959-1006, December.
    10. Harry J. Holzer, 1998. "Why Do Small Establishments Hire Fewer Blacks Than Large Ones?," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 33(4), pages 896-914.
    11. Y.Yuryk, 2019. "Professional gender segregation in the labor market of Ukraine," Economy and Forecasting, Valeriy Heyets, issue 4, pages 104-120.
    12. Laurent Gobillon & Dominique Meurs & Sébastien Roux, 2015. "Estimating Gender Differences in Access to Jobs," Journal of Labor Economics, University of Chicago Press, vol. 33(2), pages 317-363.
    13. Robertson, Raymond & Lopez-Acevedo, Gladys & Savchenko, Yevgeniya, 2018. "Globalisation and the Gender Earnings Gap: Evidence from Sri Lanka and Cambodia 1992-2015," IZA Discussion Papers 11821, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    14. Callan, Tim & Wren, Anne, 1994. "Male-Female Wage Differentials: Analysis and Policy Issues," Research Series, Economic and Social Research Institute (ESRI), number GRS163, August.
    15. Francine D. Blau & Lawrence M. Kahn, 2017. "The Gender Wage Gap: Extent, Trends, and Explanations," Journal of Economic Literature, American Economic Association, vol. 55(3), pages 789-865, September.
    16. Raphael, Steven & Stoll, Michael A. & Holzer, Harry J., 2000. "Are Suburban Firms More Likely to Discriminate against African-Americans?," Journal of Urban Economics, Elsevier, vol. 48(3), pages 485-508, November.
    17. Hübler, Olaf, 2003. "Geschlechtsspezifische Lohnunterschiede (Gender-specific wage differentials)," Mitteilungen aus der Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung, Institut für Arbeitsmarkt- und Berufsforschung (IAB), Nürnberg [Institute for Employment Research, Nuremberg, Germany], vol. 36(4), pages 539-559.
    18. Alexandra Niessen-Ruenzi & Stefan Ruenzi, 2019. "Sex Matters: Gender Bias in the Mutual Fund Industry," Management Science, INFORMS, vol. 65(7), pages 3001-3025, July.
    19. Zerrin Salikutluk & Johannes Giesecke & Martin Kroh, 2020. "The Situation of Female Immigrants on the German Labour Market: A Multi-Perspective Approach," SOEPpapers on Multidisciplinary Panel Data Research 1072, DIW Berlin, The German Socio-Economic Panel (SOEP).
    20. Michael A. Stoll & Steven Raphael & Harry J. Holzer, 2001. "Why Are Black Employers More Likely to Hire African Americans than White Employers?," JCPR Working Papers 228, Northwestern University/University of Chicago Joint Center for Poverty Research.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    Apprenticeships; Training; Construction industry; Skilled workers; Women; Trade unions;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J15 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Minorities, Races, Indigenous Peoples, and Immigrants; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination
    • J24 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demand and Supply of Labor - - - Human Capital; Skills; Occupational Choice; Labor Productivity
    • J51 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Labor-Management Relations, Trade Unions, and Collective Bargaining - - - Trade Unions: Objectives, Structure, and Effects

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:eme:ijmpps:01437720610679197. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: Emerald Support (email available below). General contact details of provider: .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.