Employment segregation

Date and country of first publication

1979
United States

Definition

Employment segregation refers to the unequal distribution of job opportunities based on certain characteristics such as gender, race, ethnicity, age, or disability. It occurs when certain groups of people are disproportionately represented in specific types of jobs or industries, while others are excluded or restricted from these opportunities.

Historically, employment segregation has been prevalent in many societies, particularly in relation to gender and race. For example, women have traditionally been limited to certain occupations such as teaching, nursing, or secretarial work, while men have dominated fields like engineering, construction, or upper-level management. Similarly, racial segregation in employment has led to minorities being underrepresented in certain industries or relegated to lower-paying jobs with less growth potential.

There are various factors that contribute to employment segregation, including societal norms, stereotypes, prejudice, and discrimination. These obstacles can create barriers for individuals seeking equal access to job opportunities, fair treatment, and career advancement.

Employment segregation has negative consequences for both individuals and society as a whole. It perpetuates inequality, limits economic mobility, and hampers social progress. It also results in a lack of diversity, which can hinder innovation, creativity, and problem-solving within organizations.

Efforts to address employment segregation include implementing anti-discrimination laws, affirmative action policies, and diversity and inclusion initiatives. These aim to promote equal access, opportunity, and representation for all individuals, regardless of their gender, race, or other characteristics.

However, despite these efforts, employment segregation still persists in many parts of the world. Ongoing challenges in achieving true equality in the labor market require continued advocacy, education, and policy interventions to create inclusive and diverse workplaces.

Related segregation forms

Employment segregation is frequently discussed in the literature with the following segregation forms:

occupational segregation, social segregation, gender segregation, sex segregation, workplace segregation, residential segregation, racial segregation, industrial segregation, intraindustrial segregation, intraoccupational segregation, interfirm racial segregation, role segregation, gender employment segregation, spatial segregation

This visualization is based on the study The Multidisciplinary Landscape of Segregation Research.

For the complete network of interrelated segregation forms, please refer to:

• First year of publication

• Louvain clusters

• Betweenness centrality

• Disciplines in which segregation forms first emerged (Scopus database).

Notes

At its current state, this definition has been generated by a Large Language Model (LLM) so far without review by an independent researcher or a member of the curating team of segregation experts that keep the Segregation Wiki online. While we strive for accuracy, we cannot guarantee its reliability, completeness and timeliness. Please use this content with caution and verify information as needed. Also, feel free to improve on the definition as you see fit, including the use of references and other informational resources. We value your input in enhancing the quality and accuracy of the definitions of segregation forms collectively offered in the Segregation Wiki ©.

Employment segregation appears in the following literature

Halaby C.N. (1979). Sexual inequality in the workplace: An employer specific analysis of pay differences. Social Science Research, 8(1), 79-104. https://doi.org/10.1016/0049-089X(79)90015-2

Silber J.G. (1989). On the measurement of employment segregation. Economics Letters, 30(3), 237-243. https://doi.org/10.1016/0165-1765(89)90233-4

Taylor J. (1993). Industry Segregation among Employed Aborigines and Torres Strait Islanders. Journal of Sociology, 29(1), 3-20. https://doi.org/10.1177/144078339302900101

Taylor J. (1994). Measuring the occupational segregation of Australia's indigenous workforce: A census based analysis. Social Indicators Research, 31(2), 175-204. Kluwer Academic Publishers.https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01207054

Tzannatos Z. (1999). Women and labor market changes in the global economy: Growth helps, inequalities hurt and public policy matters. World Development, 27(3), 551-569. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0305-750X(98)00156-9

Dewar D.M. (2). Gender impacts on health insurance coverage: Findings for unmarried full time employees. Women's Health Issues, 10(5), 268-277. https://doi.org/10.1016/S1049-3867(00)00053-0

Mouw T. (2002). Are black workers missing the connection? the effect of spatial distance and employee referrals on interfirm racial segregation. Demography, 39(3), 507-528. Duke University Press.https://doi.org/10.2307/3088329

Kaufman R.L. (2002). Assessing alternative perspectives on race and sex employment segregation. American Sociological Review, 67(4), 547-572. American Sociological Association.https://doi.org/10.2307/3088945

Kaufman R.L. (2002). Assessing alternative perspectives on race and sex employment segregation. American Sociological Review, 67(4), 547-572. American Sociological Association.https://doi.org/10.2307/3088945

Jurajda Š. (2003). Gender wage gap and segregation in enterprises and the public sector in late transition countries. Journal of Comparative Economics, 31(2), 199-222. Academic Press Inc..https://doi.org/10.1016/S0147-5967(03)00040-4

Sørensen J.B. (2004). The organizational demography of racial employment segregation. American Journal of Sociology, 110(3), 626-671. https://doi.org/10.1086/426464

O'Grady B., Gaetz S. (2004). Homelessness, gender and subsistence: The case of Toronto street youth. Journal of Youth Studies, 7(4), 397-416. https://doi.org/10.1080/1367626042000315194

Robinson C.L., Taylor T., Tomaskovic-Devey D., Zimmer C., Irvin Jr. M.W. (2005). Studying race or ethnic and sex segregation at the establishment level: Methodological issues and substantive opportunities using EEO 1 reports. Work and Occupations, 32(1), 5-38. https://doi.org/10.1177/0730888404272008

Gradstein M., Schiff M. (2006). The political economy of social exclusion, with implications for immigration policy. Journal of Population Economics, 19(2), 327-344. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00148-005-0016-0

Tomaskovic-Devey D., Zimmer C., Stainback K., Robinson C., Taylor T., McTague T. (2006). Documenting desegregation: Segregation in American workplaces by race, ethnicity, and sex, 1966 2003. American Sociological Review, 71(4), 565-588. American Sociological Association.https://doi.org/10.1177/000312240607100403

Braunstein E., Brenner M. (2007). Foreign direct investment and gendered wages in urban China. Feminist Economics, 13(3-4), 213-237. https://doi.org/10.1080/13545700701439432

Dickerson N.T. (2007). Black employment, segregation, and the social organization of metropolitan labor markets. Economic Geography, 83(3), 283-307. Clark University.https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1944-8287.2007.tb00355.x

Chakravarty S.R., Silber J. (2007). A generalized index of employment segregation. Mathematical social sciences, 53(2), 185-195. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mathsocsci.2006.11.003

Gazeley I. (2008). Women's pay in British industry during the second world war. Economic History Review, 61(3), 651-671. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1468-0289.2007.00412.x

(201). Theorizing employment segregation. The Dynamics of Managing Diversity: A Critical Approach: Third Edition, 55-83. Butterworth-Heinemann.https://doi.org/10.4324/9780080966175

Chan K.W. (2011). Women and Housing Organisations. International Encyclopedia of Housing and Home, 282-288. Elsevier.https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-08-047163-1.00491-4

Stainback K., Tomaskovic-Devey D. (2012). Documenting desegregation: Racial and gender segregation in private sector employment since the civil rights act. Documenting Desegregation: Racial and Gender Segregation in Private-Sector Employment Since the Civil Rights Act, 1-378. Russell Sage Foundation.https://doi.org/

Evans A. (2012). World development report 2012: Radical redistribution or just tinkering within the template. Development, 55(1), 134-137. Palgrave Macmillan.https://doi.org/10.1057/dev.2011.115

Stainback K., Kwon S. (2012). Female leaders, organizational power, and sex segregation. Annals of the American Academy of Political and Social Science, 639(1), 217-235. https://doi.org/10.1177/0002716211421868

Kohn K., Antonczyk D. (2013). The aftermath of reunification: Sectoral transition, gender and rising wage inequality in East Germany. Economics of Transition, 21(1), 73-110. https://doi.org/10.1111/ecot.12004

Langfeldt B. (2014). The influence of career planning, career strategies and organisational conditions on gender disparities in the career of mathematicians and physicists. Paths to Career and Success for Women in Science: Findings from International Research, 221-240. Springer Fachmedien.https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-04061-1_13

Ferguson J.-P. (2015). The control of managerial discretion: Evidence from unionization’s impact on employment segregation. American Journal of Sociology, 121(3), 675-721. University of Chicago Press.https://doi.org/10.1086/683357

Razzu G., Singleton C. (2018). Segregation and Gender Gaps in the United Kingdom's Great Recession and Recovery. Feminist Economics, 24(4), 31-55. Routledge.https://doi.org/10.1080/13545701.2018.1451907

Ferguson J.-P., Koning R. (2018). Firm Turnover and the Return of Racial Establishment Segregation. American Sociological Review, 83(3), 445-474. SAGE Publications Ltd.https://doi.org/10.1177/0003122418767438

Ferguson J.-P., Koning R. (2018). Firm Turnover and the Return of Racial Establishment Segregation. American Sociological Review, 83(3), 445-474. SAGE Publications Ltd.https://doi.org/10.1177/0003122418767438

Liu J. (2019). What does in work poverty mean for women: Comparing the gender employment segregation in Belgium and China. Sustainability (Switzerland), 11(20), -. MDPI.https://doi.org/10.3390/su11205725

Liu J. (2019). What does in work poverty mean for women: Comparing the gender employment segregation in Belgium and China. Sustainability (Switzerland), 11(20), -. MDPI.https://doi.org/10.3390/su11205725

Jefferys S. (202). Labour market, work and employment segregation by race. Handbook of the Politics of Labour, Work and Employment, 375-397. Edward Elgar Publishing Ltd..https://doi.org/10.4337/9781784715694.00027

Marucco C. (202). Integration and Segregation through Leisure: The Case of Finnish Somalis in Turku. Nordic Journal of Migration Research, 10(3), 90-104. Helsinki University Press.https://doi.org/10.33134/NJMR.327

Bucciferro J.R. (2021). A lucrative end: abolition, immigration, and the new occupational hierarchy in southeast Brazil. Cliometrica, 15(2), 391-418. Springer Science and Business Media Deutschland GmbH.https://doi.org/10.1007/s11698-020-00211-4

Madia J.E., Nicodemo C., Redding S. (2022). ETHNICITY AND INEQUALITY DURING THE COVID 19 PANDEMIC IN THE UK. Contributions to Economic Analysis, 296(), 143-158. Emerald Group Holdings Ltd..https://doi.org/10.1108/S0573-855520220000296012

Aneja A., Xu G. (2022). The Costs of Employment Segregation: Evidence from the Federal Government Under Woodrow Wilson. Quarterly Journal of Economics, 137(2), 911-958. Oxford University Press.https://doi.org/10.1093/qje/qjab040

Piłatowska M., Witkowska D. (2022). Gender Segregation at Work over Business Cycle Evidence from Selected EU Countries. Sustainability (Switzerland), 14(16), -. MDPI.https://doi.org/10.3390/su141610202

Zhang Y., Wang J., Kan C. (2022). Temporal variation in activity space based segregation: A case study of Beijing using location based service data. Journal of Transport Geography, 98(), -. Elsevier Ltd.https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jtrangeo.2021.103239