Female empowerment and gender segregation in tourism industry

Abstract: In this paper, the author would introduce the empowerment of female workers in tourism industry, the female perspectives in job quality in tourism industry and gender pay gap in tourism employment. This paper main focus on analyzing the reason for gender pay gap in tourism employment, and analyze the reason for gender segregations. Many literature reviews show that female workers are not in a good situation as an employee especially in tourism industry. In the end of this paper, the author would like to give some strategies for promoting gender equality and give some suggestions for female staffs in tourism industry.

Key Words: Gender segregation, power, pay gap, tourism.


The characteristics of jobs in tourism industry are general low-barriers to entry and flexibility. Tourism industry could provides employment for women around all ages, so that female could get a certain amount of financial independence and family status, but Lacher and Oh (2011) mentions that employment in the tourism industry is for the most part connected with lower nature of job opportunities than different commercial enterprises. Low pay rates, brief contracts and part-time working environment and the need to cover every minute of everyday working hours (Lu and Adler, 2009). This might be the reason why numerous specialists choose to leave the working place after their underlying work encounters.

According to Eurostat (2007) released data show that in the 26 EU member states, the hotel and restaurant industry employs 56 percent of women employees. Based on the incomplete statistics, China’s hotel industry accounted for more than 60% of female employees in the total number of hotel employees, and in some areas even up to 80%. Even though, through reading some academic papers, females are still packed in low situation, low paid and unstable employments in the tourism industry. Gender stereotyping and separation imply that females essentially have a tendency to perform employments, for example, cooking, neighborliness and cleaning. In the hospitality industry, because of the “ housewification of work”; actual missions are connected with females’ conventional part (Gentry, 2007). The harmonization of job and family keeps on being a molding element that recognizes females from males on the working environment. So that females often hold bar and restaurant employments yet are under-spoken in sales-related exercises, with lower capabilities necessities and poorer working environment (Santos and Varejão, 2007). This imbalance is reflected in conventional components, for example, wage, kind of agreement, wage and unemployment. The wage gap between males and females might be the most obvious sign of the disparity, which is a general element of female work. Pratiwi (1995) set up the applied system for dissecting sexual orientation issues in tourism industry. He take note of the rare writing on gender wage contrasts in the 1990s, notwithstanding the way that tourism is an essential wellspring of occupation in a few nations. Gender wage contrasts in tourism vocation have been broke down in various settings at the global level in the 2000s.

UNWTO (2015) noted that one of the perspectives in which sex (disparities) issues can assume a critical part in tourism improvement. So that gender equality at workplace should be an important part of the work of equality. The premise of the work to achieve gender equality is the elimination of fender discrimination. It has a solid foundation of practice. First of all, because of discrimination at work is not going to go away. Second, if deprived of equal opportunities at work, dignified treatment and often also received discrimination in other areas. As a result of the acts of discrimination and has a strong hidden feature so management practices are difficult to make accurately defined.

The enthusiasm for employment quality has expanded around the world, for part of the occupations made in the most recent 10 years are portrayed by decreasing work adaptability, shakiness, low maintenance hours, absence of social insurance and low-pay. Recently years, occupation quality has come to be viewed as a main device for cultivating efficiency and monetary development, goals that bear the cost of an offset to social attachment. The significance of employment character is not only in a socially capable administration, as well as in the way that high standard raises profitability and with it organization intensity (Royuela and Suriñach, 2012). Empowerment is characterized as a basic part of sexual equality infers a general public in which female and male appreciate the same chances, results, commitments and rights in the circles of environment. Female’s strengthening is imperative to maintainable advancement and the acknowledgment of human a good fit for all. Tourism is a facility to engage females from different viewpoints. Tourism could help female to control of the common assets, monetary empowerment and also could help female to build ability.

Although women employees accounted for a high proportion of tourism industry, they are mostly engaged in low positions, the lack of development opportunities, low- paid and temporary jobs. According to the literature review and analyze of it, Occupational segregation affects females’ job quality and empowerment. Male and female should have the same chances, results, commitments and rights for the company improvement.









Lacher, R. and Oh, C. (2011). Is Tourism a Low-Income Industry?Evidence from Three Coastal Regions. Journal of Travel Research,51(4), pp.464-472.

Lu, T. and Adler, H. (2009). Career Goals and Expectations of Hospitality and Tourism Students in China. Journal of Teaching in Travel & Tourism, 9(1-2), pp.63-80.

Gentry, K.(2007). Belizean women and tourism work. Annals of Tourism Research, 34(2), pp.477-496.

Santos, L. and Varejão, J. (2007).Employment, pay and discrimination in the tourism industry. Tourism Economics, 13(2), pp.225-240.

Royuela, V. and Suriñach, J. (2012).Quality of Work and Aggregate Productivity. Soc Indic Res, 113(1), pp.37-66.

I chose to comment this particular conference paper because I find the topic very interesting and important. Gender inequality and empowerment in tourism industry is also an issue that also personally concerns me. `Female empowerment and gender segregation in tourism industry` paper presented very good points on the matter but I noticed a couple of things that I would like to add and comment on.

Skalpe (2007) studied gender pay gap in Norway and concluded that female workers in tourism industry encounter gender based wage discrimination in the employer hierarchy all the way to the top. In Norway, it is easier for female employees to become CEOs in tourism industry than in many other industries as over 20% of tourism CEOs are women. However, these female CEOs work in smaller companies that offer less in wages. Only 6% of larger tourism manufacturing firms have female CEOs. These results could be repeated in many other countries and they tell us that the opportunities for female employees are increased a little in smaller firms as opposed to bigger tourism organizations.

I would also like to add that there are benefits to the companies in tourism industry as well if they allow equal opportunities for female workers. According to Women 1st (2010), firms with at least 3 women in their board have advantages over companies with all male boards. Results show that they have over “73% higher return on sales”, “83 % higher return in equity” and “112% higher return in investment capital”. Poor working conditions and inequality in work places also result in a high portion of female employees quitting their jobs in order to find better ones. These short term employments cost the companies huge amounts of money in replacement recruitment and training. Women 1st (2010) also mentions that women are paid less than men in all tourism occupations except travel and tour guides as well as exhibition and conference managers.

It would also be interesting to know how heterosexual, white Western women are treated in work places compared to other women. Are some women appreciated more than others? The conference paper summary mentions sexual orientation but does not elaborate on it. Overall, the paper was interesting and covered nearly every aspect of gender segregation in tourism work places but I would have liked to read a bit more about empowerment and ways to improve the situation.

References:

Skalpe O. (2007). The CEO gender pay gap in the tourism industry—Evidence from Norway. Tourism Management. 28 (3), 845–853.

Women 1st. (2010). The case for change: Women working in hospitality, leisure, travel and tourism. Available: http://www.women1st.co.uk/system/assets/files/000/000/004/original/Women_1st_Case_For_Change_Executive_Summary_November_2010.pdf?1342707875. Last accessed 13th May 2016.