Comparable Worth

"Riccucci presents a well-researched analysis of the public-sector relationship of women and minorities to unions as well as the influence of unions on the wage and employment opportunities of women and minorities. Separate chapters discuss female and minority membership in public-sector unions, the legal obligations of unions to females and minorites, joint labor-management cooperation, including equal-opportunity and affirmative action committees and apprenticeship programs, women in uniformed service jobs, and unions and comparable worth." Choice

Aileen McColgan's book makes an important contribution to the study of Labour Law in a number of ways. Firstly, she offers a convincing and authoritative account of the failures of the current approach adopted in the UK (even with the EC reinforcements) for the securing of more equitable arrangements on pay. Secondly, the book provides a valuable insight into the strengths and weaknesses of different approaches adopted in other parts of the world. The author spent a great deal of time in Canada studying the novel approaches there, and her analysis of the approaches adopted in Ontario, and also Australia form a good part of the book. Thirdly, the author addresses the wider issues of different forms of wage regulation and enriches our understanding by indicating that the gender pay gap may be determined to some extent by the way in which pay is regulated. This leads to the conclusion that more emphasis on wage payment structures would be a more helpful way of dealing with the problem of equal pay than the current preoccupation with an individual complaints driven model.

As women are entering the workforce in record numbers, there is an urgent need to address the specific ethical problems that working women face. Providing a conceptual framework from which practical issues can be addressed, the authors focus on sexual harassment, comparable worth, leadership, advertising, and working-class women. Theoretical concepts, applied cases, personal narratives, statistical data and charts are all included in this wide ranging treatment of ethics and working women. This is not merely a summary of others' work; it is a book that will frame debates on gender, ethics, business, and economics and serve as an exemplar for the critical treatment of basic human concerns.

Tables Figures Acknowledgments Introduction Theories of Occupational Segregation and the Wage Gap Current Legal and Legislative Issues Historical Development of the Federal Government's Job Classification System The Statistical Data Used to Review the Factor Evaluation System Examining the Process Used to Develop the Factor Evaluation System Is the New FES System More Favorable to Women Than the Old Narrative System? Does Changing the Weights for Factors Alter the Pay Relationship Between Men and Women? Examining How Job Content is Operationally Defined in Three Job Evaluation Systems Summary and Recommendations Appendices Selected Bibliography Index