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Out of the frying pan, into the fire? Persistent gender barriers in Australian fire-fighting and challenges for HRM.
- Source :
- Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources; Sep2011, Vol. 49 Issue 3, p308-324, 17p
- Publication Year :
- 2011
-
Abstract
- By directly accessing women’s accounts of their active and ex-volunteer fire-fighting at the Australian Country Fire Authority (CFA), this paper seeks to understand women’s experiences in fire-fighting. The study documents the voices of women in work where they are mostly conspicuous by their absence, thus contributing to the small body of empirical studies of women in fire-fighting. Findings confirm the underrepresentation of women and provide evidence of horizontal and vertical gender segregation. Women fire-fighters are significantly challenged and discriminated against by individual and organisational behaviours. Other findings of this study are the co-existence of hostile and positive job factors for women fire-fighters; and women’s tolerance for complexity and paradox. These are scarcely documented in the literature on non-traditional occupations for women, and the paper suggests explanations based on concepts such as agency and coping strategies. Although women fire-fighters at the CFA had only a partial understanding of factors contributing to gender segregation, they voiced a desire and directions for organisational improvement to address gender issues. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]
- Subjects :
- FIREFIGHTING
GENDER
ASSOCIATIONS, institutions, etc.
WOMEN fire fighters
Subjects
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 10384111
- Volume :
- 49
- Issue :
- 3
- Database :
- Complementary Index
- Journal :
- Asia Pacific Journal of Human Resources
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- 66816933
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1177/1038411110391704