Gender in the Workplace

This New York Times article delves a little into some of the changing gender patterns in the American workforce, highlighting the growing population of males entering into previously female-dominated positions. The NYT conducted an analysis of census data from 2000 to 2010 that shows "occupations that are more than 70 percent female accounted for almost a third of all job growth for men, double the share of the previous decade." I felt this article shows an interesting perspective, particularly in addressing the "male" aspects of gender relations like many of us voiced in class as being a piece that often gets left out of discussions about gender in general.

However, I think the article also cheapens female-oriented work in the way in which it gets compared with male jobs ("prestigious" for male positions vs. "occupations that their fathers might never have considered" for female positions but no mention of 'prestige' or anything of the sort for those). I don't know exactly how to articulate it, but I feel there is a definite notion that they are creating more of a hierarchy of importance with their word choices, even if unintentionally.. almost as if women are now vying for male jobs while men are just settling for female jobs, if that makes sense.

I think it's interesting the connection this article makes to "women's jobs" being, in the long-run, more stable and capable of growth both professionally and monetarily yet today's women are competing for the "prestigious, high-wage professions dominated by men." I feel like this connects to the ideas Professor Suarez-Toro presented in class (and the documentary she showed) about what is and is not considered 'valuable' or "productive" in terms of the work women do, be it in the domestic realm or elsewhere. It seems like this article is showing the importance of and perhaps commending the strategic moves made by women to provide long-term support for their families, yet somehow works to challenge their motives and capabilities at the same time when talking about a male assuming such roles.

Do you know of any peers that you feel have broken the normative gender roles in their professional fields? If so, what kind of backlash or support have they felt? And what might that say about inside/outside the box social constructs? How do you think NYT could have changed their story to better demonstrate the "value" or "productiveness" of the positions historically deemed female-specific? Or, do you think they do a good job and I am just being too critical?