Occupational Discriminations Against Women.
[Labor]. Peters, Iva Lowther. Occupational Discriminations Against Women. An inquiry into the economic security of American business and professional women. Studies on the employability of women. Conducted by or for the National Federation of Business and Professional Women’s Clubs, Inc. New York: (National Federation of Business and Professional Women’s Clubs, Inc.), 1935.
8vo.; stapled wrappers; gently creased vertically where folded.
First edition of this inquiry commissioned by the National Federation of Business and Professional Women’s Clubs, Inc. Dr. Peters examines such issues as the relative accessibility of certain occupations to men and women; the current ideas regarding education and training need to be revised; and whether or not age and sex narrow employment opportunities. She also seeks to remedy such discrepancies. As women seek out their place in what Peters terms “the occupational world,” many questions have been raised and various studies have been conducted. Peters begins by tracing the historical roots of women in the workplace, starting with their struggle to gain education in the 19th century, leading up to the present situation in 1935: the economy was still reeling from the stock market crash of 1929, unemployment was high and standards of living much lower than during the booming WWI years. The American woman in the past decades has become “a participant and sufferer in new ways” (p. 6), finding liberation through wage-earning, but also for the first time sharing with men the burdens of financial hardship in less prosperous times. After this summary of the changes in attitudes towards women and employment over time, Peters concludes with this rousing sentiment:
We are citizens of a young country. We have, in spite of the depression, the buoyancy and vigor of youth. The speed and soundness of our recovery depend on cooperation and thought. In our solutions all must share. Sectionalism, race distinctions, and sex distinctions must be recognized as the least healthy part of our social heritage. (pp. 10-11)
With appendices of “standard vocational interviews,” and a selection of thought-provoking discussion questions involving the problems of the “employability of women.”
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