Occupational segregation: The Position of Women on the North Cyprus Labor Market Fatma Guven-Lisaniler*
Eastern Mediterranean University
Sevin Ugural** Eastern Mediterranean University
Abstract The study aims at evaluating the position of women and measuring occupational segregation in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) labor market and making international comparisons. In the first part of the paper, the position of women is evaluated. Consequently the labor force participation rate in terms of age and education levels, distribution by main occupations and by major industries, employment status, inactivity rate and employment and unemployment by education levels are analyzed. To measure the occupational segregation, Occupational Segregation Indices by main occupations and by major industries are calculated. In the second part of the paper, Gender Related Development Index (GDI) and Gender Empowerment Measure (GEM) are used to show TRNC's position in the international ranking. Key words: Occupational segregation, Gender Empowerment measure, Gender Related Development Index, Segregation index, North Cyprus.
* Assit.Prof.Dr. Fatma Güven-Lisaniler, Eastern Mediterranean University, Department of Economics, Faculty of Business and Economics, Gazimagusa-North Cyprus.E-mail: [email protected] ** Assit.Prof.Dr. Sevin Ugural, Eastern Mediterranean University, Department of Economics, Faculty of Business and Economics, Gazimagusa-North Cyprus.E-mail: [email protected]
118 Güven Lisaniler & Uğural Introduction It is obvious that the roles of women and men and, the social rules that prescribe appropriate behavior for each, have initially developed as a rational response to conditions that existed at one time in the course of economic development and continue their hold long after they have ceased to be functional. For example, in technologically primitive hunting and gathering societies men and women shared in providing food, clothing and shelter for their families. In agricultural societies women mainly worked in the home, taking care of large families, and also helped in the fields, looked after small animals and gardens while men owned and worked the land, in primitive hunting and gathering societies men and women tended to be considerably more equal compared to agricultural and industrial societies. With industrialization the family shifted from a production unit to a consumption unit. Much of the production previously concentrated in the household was shifted from the home to the factory and the office. This shift reduced the burden of house keeping but women continued to center their activities on the home. Men left the home to earn the income needed to support their families and a more rigid division developed between the female domestic sphere and the male public sphere. Men's work in the public sphere has usually enjoyed higher status than women's domestic work within the family circle (Blau, Ferber & Winkler, 1998:12). In recent years a number of studies around the world have explored the extent to which culture tradition and overt discrimination restrict the terms and conditions of women's participation and the position of women in the labor force. This study aims at measuring occupational segregation in the North Cyprus labor market and evaluates the position of women with regard to equal opportunities. The former focuses on Northern Cyprus labor market practices and the latter draws comparison with other countries by applying the Gender Related Development Index and Gender Empowerment Measure. This research in the social context of Northern Cyprus devoted to the position of women in the labor market is important for a number of reasons. Firstly, North Cyprus has experienced negative economic growth rates in recent years. This has had effects on Participation rate of the female labor force. Since men are regarded as the breadwinners of the family, (labor market) employers favor males in the labor force. Therefore, it is important to explore women's participation and the position of women on the labor force for further comparisons. Secondly, South Cyprus will be a full member of the European Union by 2004-5. If a resolution is found before this year, the Northern side of
Occupational segregation 119 the island will also be a member of the European Union. In this regard an overall assessment of the position of women on the labor market is appropriate at this time while, to the authors' knowledge the present analytical study is the first of its kind to be attempted in the Republic of Northern Cyprus. The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC) is a politically small-unrecognized1
Such a picture of equalitarian family situation as perceived also from personal experience of Turkish Cypriot women fostered the impression that this equality also exists in the labor market. But even from a superficial glance at specific data, it is apparent that women in North Cyprus suffer from an unfavorable occupational distribution in that they are over-represented in low paying jobs.
(2) island state situated in the East of Mediterranean Sea. The population in 1996 was 166,049 of which 77,838 were women. Most Turkish Cypriot people are Moslem except for a very small group of Maronites and Greek Cypriots living in the TRNC. The state is secular and the peoples' attitudes are very modern, while women and men are treated equally in all aspects. Especially in primary and secondary education the enrollment is equal. Women and men are equal according to laws also. Regarding the new family law passed on January 1998, this equality of women and men is stressed. According to the former "family law" the head of the family was the husband, and the wife could not work without the permission of her husband. Also the wealth acquired during the marriage would be distributed in favor of the husband after the divorce, underestimating the contribution of the wife. However these practices did not comply with the law; a woman could get a job without the permission of the husband. Family decisions were made in common by husband and wife while the husband was recognised as head of the family but not in the sense described in the law. The new law directly abolished the concept of the "head of the family," so that a wife can get a job by her own decision. Wealth acquired during the marriage is to be distributed evenly in the case of a divorce. Also, a wife can continue to use her maiden name. Consequently the new family law only legalized the accepted practices.
1. National Practices The purpose of this section is to briefly review the position of women and men in the labor market with regard to labor force participation rates considered by age and education levels, distribution by main occupations and by major industries, employment status, and employment and unemployment by education levels.
120 Güven Lisaniler & Uğural 1.1. Macroeconomic Background The TRNC economy is burdened by a potential and economic embargo that restricts international trade and has isolated the country in the Mediterranean. Its per capita GDP is $4500 (SPO, 1999-2000: 18). The public sector plays an important role in economic affairs, It is the biggest employer, as a significant number of industries are in direct public ownership, including the airline, electricity, telecommunications, and shipping industries. The government employs approximately 22% of the employed people2
In January 2000, a serious banking crisis developed in the TRNC. In response to banking difficulties in Turkey (in December 1999) the offshore subsidiaries of five Turkish banks were placed under the supervision of the government's Saving Deposit Insurance Fund. The decision provoked a run on five domestic banks,
. The service sector, which includes government services, tourism, banking, and the tertiary education system, is the largest sector offering employment. Approximately 80% of women and 67% of men work in the service sector.
3 forcing the government also to take control of them. The banking crisis and a devaluation of the Turkish Lira has exacerbated the economic problems. Six thousand (Yenidüzen, 2001:1) people lost their jobs. They were primarily working in the banking sector and in other the private sectors, such as tourism and the trade sector,4
The rest of the study is based on the Census of Population, Statistics and Research Department, State Planning Organization, December 1 996, because it is the only detailed and reliable source for such a study.
which had financial difficulties after banking crises. Besides these problems, the TRNC had also been influenced by changes in global conditions, such as the introduction of new global competition trends, the decrease in the concentration on a few exported goods, the change in the critical plant size and mobility of human and physical capital by opening windows of new opportunities for countries. However, the TRNC, because of the economic embargoes put on the Turkish Cypriots and non-recognition of their state by the rest of the world, could not use these new opportunities to become involved in the loop of economic globalization. These issues make life very difficult for many people to earn a living. That is on one hand women need to participate in the labor force in order to financially assist their families and on the other hand, because of the economic downturn, shrinking job opportunities makes it difficult for women to find a job.
1.2. Labor Force Participation Rates by Gender and Age
Occupational segregation 121 In 1996 approximately 21,750 women were available for the labor force of North Cyprus. 18,629 were employed and 3121 of them were unemployed (TRNC State Planning Organization, 1997). They made up 28 percent of the labor force, which is very low when compared with developing countries of average of 39 percent (United Nations Human Development Report 1997). The number of Turkish Cypriot women actively employed was very low with a 34 percent labor force participation rate while men's participation rate was 73 percent. According to the data available for 55 countries in 1997 (Elder & Johnson, 1999:10) the country with the lowest rank was Turkey, with a rate of 27.8.
0
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40
60
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120
Part
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atio
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Figure 1: Labor Force Participation by Age
men participation rate
Sources: Statistics and Research Department, State Planning Organization, Census of Population, (December 1996) 'Figure 1' shows the lifetime participation patterns of men and women in the North Cyprus labor market. The participation rate of women starts at low level for the younger women and increases sharply as they leave school and enter the labor market after secondary or tertiary level, and peaks in the 25-29 age group to 45 and slightly declines in the 30 - 34 age group and continue to fall
122 Güven Lisaniler & Uğural thereafter. These statistics are probably due to the law, which permitted individuals to retire at very early ages (30/40) after 10/15 years of work.5
For men the participation rate also starts at low values for young persons and increases as they enter the labor force, and peaks in the 30-34 age group with a high plateau between the ages 30 to 44 and then decreases between 45-49 years as retirement approaches from economic activity.
Besides this statistical profile, women and men's participation are also different. Women's participation rates are far from reaching male levels; they are lower than men's at each age category. Especially between the ages 25-49, women's rates are almost half the men's rates. The main reason for women's low participation rate is the effect of the traditional roles of men and women; that is, men are accepted as the breadwinners of the family and women as the homemakers.
1.3. Labor Force Participation Rate by Educational Attainment Education, as an important determinant of human capital, is highly effective regarding the participation rate of men and women. Below we analyze the educational attainment with regard to labor force participation. In general, as the education level increases the labor force participation rate increases for men and women. Having education increases labor force participation in two ways. First, it increases job opportunities and wages. Second, it decreases the importance of non-economic factors limiting women's labor force participation. Besides this, it has a more important role in the labor force participation decision of women than men. This can be seen clearly from Table 1. Table 1.Labor Force Participation Rates by Level of Education and Gender, 1996
Level of Formal Education Women Men Illiterate 8.7 34.5 Primary School 17.8 47.5 Junior High School 17.5 55.6 High School 41.4 56.58 Tertiary 77.3 84.3
Sources: State Planning Organization, Statistics and Research Department, Census of Population, (December 1996).
Occupational segregation 123 1.4. Employment by Major Industries6
Table 2.Distribution of Men and Women by Major Industries (%), 1996 Major Industries (%), Women
% Men %
Total %
1- Agriculture, hunting, forestry and fishing 5.3 8.1 7.3 2- Mining and quarrying 0.0 0.4 1.0 3- Manufacturing industry 14.5 13.3 13.6 4- Electricity, gas and water 1.0 1.5 1.2 5- Construction 0.2 9.6 7.0 6- Wholesale and retail trade, restaurants and hotels 21.5 17.3 18.4 7- Transportation and communication (storage included) 3.9 7.0 6.1 8- Financial institutions, insurance, real estate 14.4 5.0 7.5 9-Government, social and personal services 39.7 37.8 38.4 Total* 100.00 100.00 100.00 Occupational Segregation Index = 16.6 (by industries)
Sources: State Planning Organization, Statistics and Research Department, Census of Population, (December 1996). * Activities that are not adequately defined are not included. As can be seen in Table 2, men and women have similar representation in government and other personal services such as the wholesale and retail trade, restaurants and hotels, and the manufacturing industry. However, women are more heavily concentrated in the above three industries as 75 percent of women work in those industries as compared with 60 percent of men. On the other hand, men are more likely to be employed in agriculture, mining and quarrying, construction and transportation as compared with women. Twenty five percent of men work in those industries whereas women represent only 10 percent. The analysis of gender differences regarding occupational distributions for broadly defined occupational categories show that the industries men and women working do not differ significantly. But data on these major occupations do not expose the full extent of occupational segregation by gender. For example, segregation indices regarding women employment for specific sub industries such as, commercial and sales works, government services, and manufacturing, are higher than the overall occupational segregation index by major industries (16.6) (Table 3). Table 3. Segregation index by Major Industries Commercial and sales workers 28.26 Government services 28.82 Manufacturing 40.45
Sources: Statistics and Research Department, State Planning Organization, Census of Population, (December 1996).
124 Güven Lisaniler & Uğural 1.5. Employment by Main Occupations7
Table 4 shows the distribution of male and female workers across major occupations. It indicates that women are concentrated mostly in the clerical and related works (as government officials, clerical supervisors, typists, bookkeepers, cashiers, telephone operators, etc.), in professional specialty works (as medical, dental and related workers, chemists, teachers, economists, jurists, etc.), and in service work (as hotel, cafe, place for casino and restaurant administrators, cooks, waiters, bartenders, hairdressers, etc.).
Table 4: Distribution of Men and Women by Major Occupations 1996
Major Occupations Women% Men% Total% 1- Scientific, technical, professional and related workers 21.8 11.4 14.2 2- Administrative and managerial workers 2.0 3.5 3.1 3- Clerical and related workers 30.5 7.8 14.0 4- Commercial and sales workers 11.3 9.2 9.7 5- Service workers 16.2 15.6 15.8 6- Agricultural, animal husbandry, forestry workers, fishermen and hunters
5.2 8.3 7.5
7- Non-agricultural production and related workers 13.0 44.2 35.7 Total employed* 100.0 100.0 100.0 Occupational Segregation Index = 35.9 (by major occupations)
Sources: Statistics and Research Department, State Planning Organization, Census of Population, (December 1996). *Activities that are not adequately defined are not included
Men are concentrated in mostly non-agricultural production and related works as production supervisors, quarrymen, metal processors, transport equipment operators, carpenters, construction workers, unskilled workers, etc. Women are least likely to be employed in administrative and managerial work and agricultural work. Male worker concentration is very low in clerical and related works in which women are mostly occupied. Sixty-nine percent of women are occupied in groups '1' (scientific, technical, professional and related workers), '3' (clerical and related workers) and '5' (service workers). Seventy-one percent of men are occupied in groups '7' (non-agricultural production and related works), '5' (service works), and '1' (professional specialty works). Order of concentration of women and men in different occupations (classification number from the most to the least) are; '3', '1', '5', '7', '4', '6', '2' for women, and '7', '5', '1', '4', '3', '6', '2' for men.
Occupational segregation 125 Groups '6' and '2' have the same order for both. These two classifications actually constitute the smallest groups in total employment numbers. Table 4 shows that, there are considerable gender differences in occupational distribution in the North Cyprus labor market. The index of segregation by mojar occupations is 35.9, which indicates that segregation by major occupations is substantial. 1.6. Employment Status The data in Table 5 shows that paid employment is predominant in the North Cyprus labor market, as it is in most countries, for both men and women. Non-salaried men are more likely to be self-employed (employer + own account workers) than women. The difference between the shares of self-employment in men's and women's total employment is 13 percent. It is not one of the highest in relation to other countries. In Pakistan, Greece, Turkey, Thailand, it reaches over 20 percent (Elder & Johnson, 1999: 8). Table 5: Population and labor force by literacy and level of formal education completed.
Source: Statistics and Research Department, State Planning Organization, Statistical Year Book 1997
1.7. Female Employment and Unemployment Approximately 86 percent of the female labor force is employed. The maximum employment rate is in the 25-29 age group and the minimum is in the 12-14 and 65+ age groups. Figure 2 illustrates the distribution of the female labor force, female population and number of employed females by age groups.
126 Güven Lisaniler & Uğural
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Figure 2:Female population, labor force and number of employed women by age groups female population
female labor force
employed female
Sources: Statistics and Research Department, State Planning Organization, Census of Population, (December 1996) The difference between the female labor force and number of women employed is the number of women unemployed. The age groups between 15-19 and 20-24 (youth unemployment rate) have the highest unemployment rates at about 4 percent, and for the age group above 35, the unemployment rate is below 1 percent. Also the low participation rate of women can be easily seen from the figure 2. 1.8. Inactivity Rate Women's inactivity rate is inequitable. The gap between men and women's rates is 49.3. In general women choose the early retirement scheme more than men (especially between the ages of 30-35) to take care of their primary or
Occupational segregation 127 secondary school children and to provide them a comfortable home during the preparation period of the high school or university entrance exams.
Table 6. Inactivity Rate by Gender and age groups, 1996 Inactivity rates (%)
Age groups Total
Women
Men
25-54 40 66.9 17.6 25-49 59.1 9
Sources: Statistics and Research Department, State Planning Organization, Census of Population, (December 1996)
1.9. Labor Force by Education Level At all education levels, regarding the total population and total labor force, men outpace women. The gap between men and women in terms of educational attainment of the total population is not very large, but in the total labor force even the minimum gap exceeds 10 percent. On the other hand, women outpace men in the secondary and tertiary level (Table 7). Table 7: Population and labor force by literacy and level of formal education completed.
Sources: Statistics and Research Department, State Planning Organization, Statistical Year Book 1997 Women with only primary education tend to be less employed, and also men with secondary education. The data shows that as education levels increase women's employment rate increases, while men's employment rate first decreases and than increases. These fluctuations in employment rate of men are because of compulsory military service and a high rate of tertiary level education (Table 8).
128 Güven Lisaniler & Uğural Table 8. Employment by education and gender 1996
Education Level
Employment rate by relevant labor force at relevant education level
Men (%) Women (%) literate 81.5 84
- - Primary 87.3 82.5
Secondary 83.8 89.2 Tertiary 94.4 95.4
Sources: Statistics and Research Department, State Planning Organization, Statistical Year Book 1997 In both Table 7 and Table 8, women's share in the labor force and women employment rate outpaces men's in the secondary and tertiary level indicating the importance of education as a determinant factor of women participation. The evaluation of the sex-specific labor market indicators with the available data showing the position of women in the labor market show that women's position was far below men's position in 1996. 2: International Comparisons In order to compare women's position in the TRNC with other countries the two measures suggested in the United Nations Human Development Report (UNHDR) 1995, namely the Gender Related Development Index (GDI) and the Gender Empowerment Measure (GEM) were evaluated. In calculations of GDI we faced three molar problems. Firstly, the data for the ratio of female non-agricultural wage to male non-agricultural wage was not available. We used 75% (the weighted mean of the wage ratio for all countries) as it was suggested in the Human Development Report. Secondly, GDP is not calculated in PPP$ for TRNC, so we used the Real GDP in US$. Thirdly, for worldwide GDI comparisons, we used the UNHDR 1995 index. However, as was mentioned above the detailed data regarding gender for TRNC is only available for the year 1996. Without loss of generality we can assume that the underlying structure did not change from 1995 to 1996 in the TRNC and so we made the comparisons. 2.1. Gender Related Development Index Gender Related Development Index for TRNC was calculated as 0.736 for 1996.
Occupational segregation 129 The rank of TRNC's index among other countries and the composition of index are given in Table 9. As seen from the table above, the TRNC ranks 63rd in the world, in the GDI index. The countries shown in the table are all in the medium human development group except for Bahrain, which is in the high human development group, as a petroleum exporting country. Table 9: Gender Related Development Index 1995
Sources: United Nations Development Program, Human Development Report 1995, Statistics and Research Department, State Planning Organization, Census of Population, (December 1996) 2.2. Gender Empowerment Measure To measure the relative empowerment of women and men in political and economic spheres of activity we evaluated the Gender Empowerment Measure. During our calculations we again faced the two of the problems mentioned above, the income ratio problem and the PPP$ problem. The Gender Empowerment Ratio for TRNC is 0.396 for the year 1996. The details and the rank are given in Table 10. Table 10: Gender Empowerment Ratio
Sources: United Nations Development Program, Human Development Report 1995, Statistics and Research Department, State Planning Organization, Census of Population, (December 1996)
130 Güven Lisaniler & Uğural TRNC ranks 55 in the GEM rank. The GEM rank is higher than the GDI rank. This requires further research to understand how Turkish Cypriot women rank higher in their representation at decision making bodies but are unable to translate this into a high ranking in income measures such as GDI. 3. Concluding Remarks The evidence from available data shows the following main differences between women's and men's experiences in the TRNC labor market. In general, in North Cyprus women participate in the labor market to a much lesser degree than men. At younger ages, 15 to 24, the gap is narrow and widens between ages 25 to 49, and then declines after age 50. The employment and unemployment rates for men and women are not as great as their participation rates. But, as it is in most of the countries, the employment rate is lower and unemployment rate is higher than men's. Women are more likely to enter wage and salaried work (86.8 to 76.8 respectively) than men. Non-salaried men and women tend to be self-employed. Women dominate salaried work and unpaid family work, while men dominate self-employment. Women mostly work in clerical and related fields, specialized professional work and service work. Men work mainly in non-agricultural and related areas. Women predominate in government and other personal services, wholesale and retail trade, restaurants and hotels. Men are dominant in agriculture, mining and quarrying, construction and transportation. The national practices contradict with our expectations and individual experiences. Women have a very much lower position than men in TRNC labor market. Finally, in the overall performance the GDI rank for the TRNC is 63 and GEM rank is 55. This places the TRNC in a league with less developed countries. Notes 1 The Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus gained official recognition only by Turkey. 2 24% of employed women and 18% of men are working in the government services. 3 Despite its small size, the TRNC has a significant financial sector. The domestic sector has 35 banks while another 38 offshore banks have been operating.
4These are the sectors that women were concentrated. 5 Up to 1 984, 10 years of work was enough to became retired from government services and social security system. In 1987, it was increased to 15 years and now it is 25 years.
Occupational segregation 131 6 Major industries are as suggested in the System of National Accounting (SNA). In all the tables, data is referred to employees between 12-65+ years of age. 7 The classification of occupations used is the classification given in the "Census of Population, Social and Economic Characteristics of Population, 1996, TRNC." In all the tables, data are referred to employees between 12-65+ years of age.
References Blau F. D., Ferber M. A. & Winkler A. E. (1998). The Economics of Women, Men, and Work. London: Prentice Hall. Elder S. J. & Lawrence J. (1999). Sex-Specific Labour Market Indicators: What they Show? International Labour Review, 138(4): 432-447. İşsizlik Artıyor (2001, 4 July). Yenidüzen. Lefkoşa. TRNC State Planning Organization (1999-2000). Social and Economic Indicators, Lefkoşa: State Planning Organisation Publications. TRNC State Planning Organization, Statistics and Research Department (1999). Census of Population Lefkoşa: State Planning Organisation Publications. Türk Sanayicileri ve İşadamarı Derneği (TUSİAD) (2000). Kadın-Erkek Eşitliğine Doğru Yürüyüş: Eğitim, Çalışma Yaşamı ve Siyaset. İstanbul: Yayın No. TUSİAD - T/2000-12/290). UNDP (1995) (United Nations Development Program. Human Development Report 1995. New York: Oxford University Press. UNDP (United Nations Development Program) (2000). Human Development Report 2000. New York: Oxford University Press.
132 Güven Lisaniler & Uğural Mesleki Ayrımcılık: Kuzey Kıbrıs Turk Cumhuriyeti Emek Piyasasında Kadının Yeri Fatma Güven-Lisaniler Doğu Akdeniz Üniversitesi Sevin Uğural Doğu Akdeniz Üniversitesi
Öz Bu çalışma KKTC emek piyasasındaki yerini görmeyi, meslek içi ayrımcılığı ölçmeyi ve bazı uluslararası mukayeseler yapmayı amaçlamaktadır. Makalenin birinci bölümünde kadının emek piyasasındaki yeri işgücüne kaılım, mesleklere göre dağılımı, ana sektörlere göre dağılımı, istihdam durumu, istihdam ve işsizlik oranları kullanılarak tespit eilmekteir. Ayrıca ana meslek ve sektörler göre mesleki ayrımcılık endeksleri hesaplanarak emek piyasasındaki ayrımcılığın boyutları ölçülmektedir. Makalenin ikinci bölümde ise Toplumsal Cinsiyete Dayalı Gelisme Endeksi ve Toplumsal Cinsiyete Dayalı Katılımcılık Ölçütü kullanılarak uluslararası sıralamada KKTC'nin poz’syonu tespit edilmektedir. Anahtar Kelimeler: Meslek içi ayrımcılık, Toplumsal Cinsiyet Kalkınma Endeksi, Kuzey Kıbrıs, Emek Piyasası, Kadın Erkek Eşitliği
