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Alternative Employment Arrangements: A Gender Perspective

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Abstract

In this study we drew on national-level data to investigate the gendered nature of two alternative employment arrangements (independent contractors and temporary agency help), preferences for such arrangements, and the extent to which such arrangements accommodate work/family career quandaries of contemporary workers. Multivariate analyses revealed the perpetuation of gender schema and gendered structures, but this varied by type of alternative employment arrangement. Greater preference for temporary agency employment by married women than by married men derived from women not having to be the primary source of family income, rather than from an effort to “balance” work and child-rearing responsibilities. There were also gender differences in the tendency of married men and women to be independent contractors; women were less likely to be contractors. However, this alternative employment arrangement offers potential for both men and women to satisfy or challenge other gendered family structures and schema.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Business, University at Albany-SUNY, Albany, New York

    Janet H. Marler

  2. University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, Minnesota

    Phyllis Moen

  3. School of Business, University at Albany, 1400 Washington Avenue, Albany, New York, 12222

    Janet H. Marler

Authors
  1. Janet H. Marler
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  2. Phyllis Moen
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Correspondence to Janet H. Marler.

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Marler, J.H., Moen, P. Alternative Employment Arrangements: A Gender Perspective. Sex Roles 52, 337–349 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-005-2677-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-005-2677-2

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