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2020/2021

Economics and Gender Inequality

Code: 105804 ECTS Credits: 6
Degree Type Year Semester
2503878 Sociocultural Gender Studies OB 2 2
The proposed teaching and assessment methodology that appear in the guide may be subject to changes as a result of the restrictions to face-to-face class attendance imposed by the health authorities.

Contact

Name:
Carmen Sarasua García
Email:
Carmen.Sarasua@uab.cat

Use of Languages

Principal working language:
spanish (spa)
Some groups entirely in English:
No
Some groups entirely in Catalan:
Yes
Some groups entirely in Spanish:
Yes

Teachers

Nuria Mallorqui Ruscalleda

Prerequisites

There are no formal pre-requisites for this course but is highly recommended that students make an effort to get familiarized with basic economic analysis through accessible sources, such as for instance the economic media.

Objectives and Contextualisation

The general objective of the course is that students understand the relation between the Economy and gender inequality, and to what extent gender inequality is the result of economic inequalities between women and men.

Concrete objectives are:

  1. Understanding the mechanisms through which economic inequality is constructed and reproduced. In particular, the educative system, the labor market (occupational segregation, wage gap), unpaid domestic work, and Public expenditure.
  2.  Knowing the statistical sources that provide information on the different variables used in the course.
  3. Knowing and correctly interpreting the demographic and economic indicators and methods more commonly used to measure inequalities in living standards and wellbeing.

 

Competences

  • Formulate, argue and discuss your own and others' ideas in a respectful, critical and reasoned way.
  • Identify the basic legal concepts, legislation and jurisprudence related to the rights of the collectives affected by gender inequalities. 
  • Incorporate the non-androcentric perspective in the work carried out.
  • Participate in the preparation, implementation and dissemination of equality policies in the economic sphere (budgets, work organization, structural inequality) and in the labor market (salaries, promotion, conciliation).
  • Students can apply the knowledge to their own work or vocation in a professional manner and have the powers generally demonstrated by preparing and defending arguments and solving problems within their area of study.
  • Students must have and understand knowledge of an area of study built on the basis of general secondary education, and while it relies on some advanced textbooks it also includes some aspects coming from the forefront of its field of study.

Learning Outcomes

  1. Identify specific indicators of welfare that allow the elaboration of public policies.
  2. Incorporate the non-androcentric perspective in the work carried out.
  3. Integrate the gender perspective in the preparation of a budget.
  4. Interpret labor standards, doctrine and jurisprudence with a gender perspective.
  5. Prepare an organized and correct speech, orally and in writing, in the corresponding language.
  6. Propose solutions to the issues raised with the Equality Law.
  7. Students can apply the knowledge to their own work or vocation in a professional manner and have the powers generally demonstrated by preparing and defending arguments and solving problems within their area of study.
  8. Students must have and understand knowledge of an area of study built on the basis of general secondary education, and while it relies on some advanced textbooks it also includes some aspects coming from the forefront of its field of study.
  9. Use instruments to alleviate or reverse inequalities in the workplace.
  10. Use the specific technical vocabulary and own interpretation of the required disciplines.

Content

1. Introduction. Feminist Economics and its antecedents.

2. Quantitative and qualitative sources to understand the economic basis of Gender Inequality

a. Participation rate, employment rate, unemployment rate. 
b. Horizontal and vertical segregation: glass ceilings, sticky floors. 
c. The wage gap. 
d. 'Economic inactivity': unpaid domestic labor. Gender inequality in the organization of care. 


3. The economy, family and inter-generational transfers.

a. The evolution of the family and changes in the use of time of women and men.
b. How do economic changes affect marriage, formation of new households, and fertility?
c. Household composition, by age and gender, and poverty.
d. Gender differences in demand and supply services to the dependent populations.
e. Demographic planning and the demand of goods and services. 
f. Violence within the family and its relation to economic inequality.

4. Gender Responsive Budgeting.

a. Public Income: the fiscal system and gender inequality in taxes.
b. Public expenditure: demand and supply of public services. 
c. Mainstreaming: Gender Responsive Budgeting as an instrument to reduce gender inequality.

5. Education and labor markets

a. An historical overview until the present day.
b. Post-compulsory education: the origin of labor market segmentation.
c. Gender differences in the transition to the labor market
d. Gender differences in the development of a professional career: the problem of discontinuity.
e. Future perspectives.

6. The feminization of poverty: causes and policies to reduce it

a. Quantitative and qualitative indicators.
b. Causes of the feminization of poverty. 

7. Economic policies to reduce/eliminate gender inequality

a. Fiscal and public expenditure policies: public services.
b. Equal share of unpaid domestic work: equal and non-transferable parental leave.
c. Part-time work for women only is not the solution.

Methodology

Four complementary learning activities:

1. Lectures.

2. In-class discussion

3. Individual work by the students (reading and information search)

4. Tutorials

 

Activities

Title Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
Type: Directed      
Classes 48 1.92 5, 1, 2, 3, 8, 7, 10
Type: Supervised      
Tutorials 10 0.4 5, 1, 2, 3, 7, 10
Type: Autonomous      
A written essay based on recommended readings, to be presented in class. 43 1.72 5, 1, 2, 3, 8, 10, 9
Reading and studying 49 1.96 5, 8, 7, 10

Assessment

The assessment of the course is composed of one short essay worth 10% of the final course mark, a midterm exam and a final exam. The midterm exam weights 40% of the final mark. The final exam weights 50% of the course mark. The written essay will be based on recommended readings, and will be presented in class.

Re-sitting exam. Those students with a final mark between 4 and 4.9 can re-sit. The maximum mark for this exam will be 5.

Students will get a NO PAPER only if and when they have done no midterm exam.

In the event that tests or exams cannot be taken onsite, they will be adapted to an online format made available through the UAB’s virtual tools (the original weighing will be maintained). Homework, activities and class participation will be carried out through forums, wikis and/or discussion on Teams, etc. Instructors will ensure that students are able to access these virtual tools, or will offer them feasible alternatives.

In the event of a student committing any irregularity that may lead to a significant variation in the grade awarded to an assessment activity, the student will be given a zero for this activity, regardless of any disciplinary process that may take place. In the event of several irregularities in assessment activities, the student will receive a zero as the final grade for the class.

Assessment Activities

Title Weighting Hours ECTS Learning Outcomes
A written essay based on recommended readings, to be presented in class. 10% of the final mark 0 0 5, 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 10, 9
Exercises 20% of the final grade 0 0 5, 1, 2, 3, 6, 7, 10, 9
Final exam 40% of the final mark 0 0 5, 1, 2, 3, 10, 9
Mid-term exam 30% of the final mark 0 0 5, 1, 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 7, 10, 9

Bibliography

BECKER, G. 1987. Tratado sobre la familia. Madrid. Alianza Universidad, pp: 9-16 i 128-152.

Benería, L. y Sarasua, C.  (2010) ¿A quién afecta el recorte del gasto?, El País, 28/10/2010 

Blau, F., Ferber, M., Winkler, A. (2014), The Economics of Women, Men and Work (7ª ed.). 

Blossfeld, H-P; Skipek, J.; Triventi, M. and Buchholz, S. (Eds) (2015): Gender, Education and Employment. An International Comparison of School-to-Work Transitions. Edward Elgar: Cheltenham.

Boll, C.; Leppin, J.; Rossen, A. and Wolf, A. (2016): Magnitude and Impact Factors on the Gender Pay Gap in EU Countries. European Commission: Luxemburg.

Cook, J.; Roberts, J. and Waylen, G. (2000): Towards a Gendered Political Economy. Palgrave Macmillan: London. 

Goldin, C. (‎2006), The quiet revolution that transformed women’s employment, education and family”, NBER Working Papers, nº 11953 https://www.nber.org/papers/w11953

Lynch, K. and Feeley, M. (2009): Gender and Education (and Employment). Gendered Imperatives and their implications for Women and Men. Lessons for Research for Policy Makers: NESSE and European Commission.

LEE, R. 2003. “The demographic transition: three centuries of fundamental change” Journal of Economic Perspectives, v.17, nº4, pp: 167-190

LEE, R. y otros. 2014. "Is low fertility really a problem? Population aging, dependency, and consumption. Science 20, pp. 346, 229): http://www. Sciencemag.org

Matías Cortes, G.; Jaimovich, N. and Siu, H.E. (2016): “The End of Men and Rise of Women in the High-Skilled Labor Market.” Working Paper  http://www.econ.quensu.ca/files/other/Siu%20paper%20endofmen20160920.pdf

Nelson, J. (1995), “Feminism and Economics”, The Journal of Economic Perspectives, 9, 2, pp. 131-148. www.jstor.org/stable/2138170

Pazos, M. Roles de género y políticas públicas https://recyt.fecyt.es/index.php/sociologiatrabajo/article/view/55571

Pazos Morán, M. (2008): ‘Género, orientación del presupuesto y eficiencia económica’. En María Pazos-Morán (ed.): Economía e igualdad de género: retos de la hacienda pública en el siglo XXI. Instituto de Estudios Fiscales.

Sarasua, C. (2014), "Por un reenfoque del análisis feminista de la crisis",  http://www.carmensarasua.es/descargas/articulosprensa_pressarticles/Revista%20digital%20Con%20la%20A%20Economia%20y%20Trabajo%2031%202014.pdf