SOC118 Work and Family

Faculty of Social Studies
Spring 2004
Extent and Intensity
1/1/0. 6 credit(s). Recommended Type of Completion: z (credit). Other types of completion: zk (examination).
Teacher(s)
Beatrice Elena Chromková Manea, M.A., Ph.D. (lecturer)
Guaranteed by
doc. PhDr. Ing. Radim Marada, Ph.D.
Department of Sociology – Faculty of Social Studies
Contact Person: Veronika Šenkýřová, DiS.
Timetable
Wed 14:00–15:40 J.516
Prerequisites
The working language is English.
Course Enrolment Limitations
The course is only offered to the students of the study fields the course is directly associated with.
fields of study / plans the course is directly associated with
Course objectives
This course aims to integrate gender relations into the analysis of work, employment and social policies in order to comprehend why gender inequalities occur and how they are maintained and reproduced; to examine women's situation in the labor market; the reconciliation of work and family for women, with special emphasis on children rearing. One important component of the course is the family formation and the impact of work on family life especially for women. While the majority of women work for pay, they also act as primary caregivers for their young children and their elderly parents/relatives. The course will question the specific workplace-related policies through a gendered lens, including welfare policy, affirmative action, parental leave policy, childcare policy and working time policies. This course also looks at gender biases in economic relations, with special emphasis on work and its consequences on men and women's access to the labor market and their working conditions. Women continue to earn, on average, less than men, and occupational segregation persists. Women predominate in some professions or in lower status positions within their professions.
Syllabus
  • Week 1: Introduction. Economical, social, demographical and political context Week 2: Women, post-industrialism, and new technologies Week 3: Women and transition to market economy - Central and Easter European countries Week 4: Gender and welfare state regimes - different typologies. Which model is closer to Czech Republic? Week 5: The formation of gendered divisions of labor - paid-work (public sphere) and housework (private sphere) Week 6: Inequities in the labor force: sex segregation, waged work, sex inequality in pay, promotions, and authority Week 7: Theory of family. Family roles and responsibilities. New family forms Week 8: Gender and parenthood ideology Week 9: Balancing and reconciling work and family life. Solution to work - family conflict Week 10: Workplace-related policies, parental leave policy, childcare policy and working time policies - gender inequalities addressed by these policies Week 11: Work-family policies. Who is responsible: the government, the private sector or individuals? Week 12: Employment Equity and Family friendly work polices legislation in EU and Czech Republic
Assessment methods (in Czech)
FINAL PAPER (10-12 PAGES) AND PRESENTATION: WORK AND FAMILY IN CZECH REPUBLIC - CONFLICTS AND SOLUTIONS What are the conflicts between work and family you find in the Czech Republic? Do you see any solutions? What would be the strategy for improving the lives of women and men both within their family and at their workplaces? Should the government provide better policies addressed to all? Should the market (e.g., the private sector) be responsible for these policies? What should the role of individuals be? Please express your own opinion but provide convincing arguments covered by the material throughout the semester. You can use materials other than those included in the reader as well, if you have access to them. You can work either alone or in pairs. If you choose to work in pairs, the length of the paper should be 20 pages.
Language of instruction
English
Further Comments
Study Materials
The course is taught annually.
The course is also listed under the following terms Spring 2005, Spring 2006, Spring 2007, Spring 2008, Spring 2009, Spring 2010.
  • Enrolment Statistics (Spring 2004, recent)
  • Permalink: https://is.muni.cz/course/fss/spring2004/SOC118