Page 422 - Discrimination at Work The Psychological and Organizational Bases

16. INTERNATIONAL EMPLOYMENT DISCRIMINATION
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officials practically endorse the ideology of females staying home and do­
ing housework; the government also refrains from encouraging female
participation in the paid labor force (Riphenburg, 1999). However, being
born to an elite social class and/or possessing great wealth can alleviate
a woman's sociocultural constraints in some Muslim countries, such as
Indonesia or Yemen (Riphenburg, 1999; Wright & Tellei, 1993).
A national economic crisis or the emergence of a capitalistic labor market
often enhances the magnitude of gender-based employment discrimina­
tion. Lachaud (1996) studied gender inequality and labor market insti­
tutions in five sub-Saharan African countries that had undergone some
economic reform (Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Guinea, and
Mali). He found that women in these nations disproportionately partic­
ipated in the labor markets in the form of marginal self-employment or
unprotected wage employment, resulting in low income and low living
standards for households headed by single women. This fact was the re­
sult of employers' actions and women's self-exclusion from the labor mar­
ket: Organizations were less likely to offer a first job to female job-seekers
and more likely to dismiss women workers than men; women were ap­
proximately four times more likely than men to be discouraged in seeking
protected wage employment. Lachaud concluded that the economic crisis
and drastic reforms increased competition for scarce jobs and restricted
productive resources, making women more vulnerable in gaining access
to employment opportunities.
Lowered trade barriers, more consumer goods, and international agen­
das can jeopardize women's employment rights as in the case of central
and eastern European countries (Power, 2001). Mertus (1998) conducted a
comparative analysis of women's employment status in 10 former social­
ist nations in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE; e.g., Bulgaria, Hungary,
Russia, Ukraine). Under socialism and in centrally planned economies,
theoretically, women did not experience discrimination in the workplace;
further, they enjoyed certain protection legislation (e.g., women prohib­
ited from holding dangerous jobs), compensatory legislation (e.g., mater­
nity benefits, childcare), and some affirmative action practices favoring
women (e.g., quotas in political participation). In spite of these legislative
measures, women still had unequal access to power and resources com­
pared with men. With the collapse of socialist regimes and the promotion
of market economies in the late 1980s, gender discrimination in employ­
ment had intensified. In the transitional period of economic crises, not only
did CEE women lose their job security and benefits previously guaranteed
by the state, but also they were systematically excluded from new, high-
paid jobs in private sector or foreign-owned companies. Organizations,
including foreign ones, overtly preferred hiring, training, and promoting