Gender Equality in the United States, Netherlands and Indonesia

This paper will examine variations in gender inequality based on educational levels (and, subsequently, approximately on socioeconomic status) in case of the following three countries: America, Indonesia and the Netherlands, which are characterized by highly disparate female employment, societal welfare and family policies and circumstance. For every country, female hourly pay rates and employment rates for distinct educational levels are compared, besides work hours and employment rates for males with the same educational level. It is broadly hypothesized female employment increases with higher educational qualification; increased employment of qualified females results in improved gender equality in terms of pay, housework and job (Evertsson, England and Reci).
How is employment anticipated to differ with educational level among females? The conflicting factors of income and opportunity cost have been put forward by economic theory. Better educated females can earn more. Therefore, for such women, opportunity costs linked to unemployment (i.e., the monetary loss of staying at home) are greater. In economic terms, this is denoted as “price of time” impact; individuals with greater earning capacity forfeit more for remaining unemployed (Evertsson, England and Reci). Consequently, greater employment is anticipated in the highly-educated population cluster. But according to income effect, females with spouses enjoying higher earnings can afford to remain without a job and raise their kids at home. Considering marital homogamy (societal propensity to wed somebody with comparable earning capacity and educational level), the aforementioned two factors interfere and conflict with each other. Well-educated females are normally wed to a man who earns even more; hence, her personal qualification is incentive for her to earn, whereas his income acts as a deterrent. In case of less-qualified females, job-seeking is deterred by their low earning capacity but their spouse’s low earnings persuade them to work. What effect will be dominant remains an empirical issue (Evertsson, England and Reci).
From a sociological standpoint, post-secondary education can promote female employment through providing accessibility to stimulating identity-enhancing jobs and democratic gender philosophies promotion. Bianchi and Cohen reveal that of late, education has had progressive positive impacts on female employment in America; meanwhile, a deterioration of spousal earnings’ adverse impact on female employment has also been witnessed (Evertsson, England and Reci).
Esping-Andersen (1990), addressing the neo-Marxist de-commodification idea, perceives societal welfare policies (offering earnings continuance as protection against joblessness, retirement and disability) to be de-commodification strategies to deal with problematical reliance on capitalists (Esping-Andersen). This classification uses America as the liberal market paradigm characterized by high market reliance and scant assurance of minimum earnings. The Netherlands, meanwhile, has been used as the paradigm for a corporatist political economy.
While outreach and efficacy issues persist, the Indonesian nation has, over time, achieved improvements in important gender inequality spheres, including education, healthcare, support, opportunities and right of speech, laying down requisite gender mainstreaming laws. Nevertheless, a hybrid balance exists: the nation has been successful with its educational gender equality index, baby and child mortality rates, maternal wellbeing and other wellness related outcomes. Further, female employment is continually growing and qualified females enjoy better returns as compared to their male counterparts (Garcia, Greenley and Onraet).
In 1970s Netherlands, male wage-earners predominated (Lewis), females were scarcely seen holding jobs and the nation lacked government-financed child care initiatives. The latter part of the next decade saw a gradual destabilization of the male wage-earner trend within overt policy discussions. Lawmakers began promoting welfare state reforms and perceived child care to be a promoter of economic competitiveness as more females became employed, lowering earnings maintenance payments. The nation streamlined its male wage-earner model into a ‘one-and-a-half-earner’ one which left male time as it was but reformed female time (Lewis and Giullari; Morgan). Steep childcare service fees and substantial tax-cuts for employees having dependents to feed urged females to seek only part-time jobs or remain at home. Roughly six in ten females hold part-time posts, with the share being even greater among females with children (OECD). A majority of childcare services operate part-time with hardly any child attending for 4-5 days weekly (Morgan). Thus, with the continued prioritization of preschoolers’ maternal care, the country has adopted a secondary earner/primary caregiver approach with females’ priority being caregiving; earning holds secondary significance (Misra, Budig and Moller).
But in America, since the 70s, policies remain nearly the same, with the exception of the 1996 welfare reforms. America’s system greatly prefers private home-workplace conflict resolutions. Childcare services are costly and besides certain parental tax subsidies that ensure parents do not bear the full expense, only the poverty-ridden can avail themselves of governmental funds covering childcare services (Morgan). The FLMA (Family and Medical Leave Act) of 1993 allows parents a dozen weeks of leave that is not paid, mandatory only for organizations having over 50 individuals on their payroll. The US endeavors towards an equal universal-breadwinner/chief wage-earner model where both males and females enjoy paid work, with the latter being required to simultaneously raise their children as well. Not many workplace/home policies are on hand for alleviating the work-family conflict. Employment parity policies prohibiting gender discrimination on organizations’ part remain the chief policy approach for successful female employment and income (Misra, Budig and Moller).
In spite of this principal diversity, Indonesia-based interviews and literature on female economic opportunities and difficulties, challenges and opportunities in Indonesia reveal societal expectations of females and associated cultural rules are typically hard to alter. Early marriages (Indonesian females are married, averagely, at twenty-two years of age) and the subsequent early motherhood are key influencers of female employment accessibility and permanency. Marriage, domestic tasks and bringing up children remain the key responsibilities of a majority of females. This is grounded in historical non-religious as well as religious beliefs and principle. The issue lies more in the sort of work suited to females and its potential interference with domestic responsibilities, rather than in whether they ought to seek employment or not. Employment is given secondary status as compared to domestic duties. Consistent with this view, Jusuf Kalla, the country’s Vice President, proposed a work-hour reduction for female employees in the year 2014, to ensure they can return home sooner to tend to their children. Females as well as organizations did not think well of this idea, with the former believing the adoption of such a policy would cause them to lose important career opportunities (Garcia, Greenley and Onraet).
Researchers reveal the presence of children hampers female employment, to a certain degree, in each of the three countries under study. In America, the presence of even a single child acts as an obstacle, while Dutch women begin encountering challenges only after having their second child. After all, Dutch parents taking parental leave are regarded as part of the workforce, with each parent being entitled to a six-month-long part-time unpaid leave. On the other hand, American women are entitled to only 12-week-long unpaid leaves if they are employed in companies having over 50 employees. Consequently, American women are more inclined to leaving their organization following childbirth, but several Dutch females on leave are counted in regressions as active workforce members (Evertsson, England and Reci).
Indonesians’ gender inequity views are significantly related to their gender ideology. Indonesians’ idea of “caring” differs greatly from the Dutch or American view. The former do not consider caring, particularly for aged family members, as chiefly being a female responsibility. Starkly contradicting the general view, most Indonesian female interviewees claimed holding jobs meant less time devoted to elderly care (in particular) and domestic tasks (generally). But this is seen only in households lacking helpers/housekeepers. As most interviewees reported employing housekeepers for aiding with everyday chores, including elderly care, females can redistribute domestic tasks to these employees. This has facilitated routine elderly care irrespective of a woman’s employment status (Wulansari).
Indonesian interviewees mentioned societal structural flexibility which generates a familial domestic tasks-related support system. Urban Indonesians, in particularly, largely entrust certain household tasks to others. With increasing economic demands, males as well as females are widely seeking work for supporting the household. Domestic tasks hold just as much significance as organizational task. Superior time management ability is vital to employed individuals for handling domestic and workplace activities simultaneously. This situation has led a few Indonesian interviewees to employ domestic helps for performing babysitting and household tasks. Meanwhile others, when at work, leave the care of their children to other family members like their own parents, brothers/sisters, uncles, aunts, cousins, etc. (Wulansari).
Indonesian females generally struggle with grabbing hold of higher-level posts at the workplace since managers typically regard female employees to be less productive as compared to men, owing to perceived or actual differences like greater female nonattendance rates on account of maternity leave and other familial duties. Consequently, formally, males are preferred over females, with the latter being retained in posts requiring low skill levels. Another tactic adopted is contract jobs for evading the commitments guaranteed to permanent workers by the law. Absence of childcare services constitutes a major problem owing to factors like the cost of and access to skilled help. Despite the presence of some daycare alternatives, distance creates issues and further, certain daycare centers remain open daily for some hours only, thus not resolving working mothers’ childcare problem (Garcia, Greenley and Onraet).
Conclusion
Less-qualified females’ lower rate of workforce participation underlies the wide gender gap among the socioeconomically less privileged population. Within the Netherlands, for instance, six out of ten females belonging to the lowest educational level (not completed gymnasium or high school) are employed, whereas 82% of the university graduate cluster is employed. The figures for America are 50% (not completed high school) and 74% (completed higher education), while for Indonesia, they are 78% (not completed high school) and 94% (completed higher education) (Garcia, Greenley and Onraet). Considering the link with spousal educational levels, less-qualified females reside in households that most probably are in need of the earnings potentially generated if they join the workforce; consequently, they may be anticipated to participate more within the labor force. However, as opposed to the above expected trend, less-qualified females are less employed for paid jobs are compared to better qualified ones. With increased educational level, female employment rate nears male employment rates. Less-qualified Dutch as well as American females depict a 60% employment rate as that of males, while the figure in case of the highly-educated cluster is 80%. In Indonesia, these figures stand at 83% and 95% respectively, implying a smaller differential (Evertsson, England and Reci).
Irrespective of educational qualifications, females contribute more to domestic tasks as compared to males. However, a comparison within the female gender shows that better-qualified females, owing to their higher participation in the workforce, perform less household tasks as compared to lesser-qualified ones. The above trend may be noticed in every country studied in this paper; however, it is weakest within the Netherlands, in which a large number of females are employed for short hours on part-time jobs (Evertsson, England and Reci). Nearing this paper’s culmination, it is now prudent to deliberate the reasons behind the above trend. Firstly, what is the reason for the decreased gender gap with regard to employment as educational level increases? This question may easily be explained by education’s highly positive impact on female employment, which is much greater in case of females as compared to males. This is, perhaps, largely due to the fact that better-educated females are able to find more stimulating, meaningful and well-paid positions as compared to less-educated ones; furthermore, education instills more gender equality-supporting philosophies. These market and societal realities perhaps account for the education gradient on gender equity in employment, domestic work and paid work hours (Wulansari).
Individual households as well as the overall society indicates socioeconomic standing or class (indexed based on educational level) is related to gender, with highly-educated, high-class males and females enjoying relatively equal status, in several aspects. Thus, as one reaches the top, one will realize that males and females lead comparable lives, with the latter being more closely integrated into conventionally male rights and tasks in terms of domestic tasks, employment and job type. One may regard this as a sort of high-class neutralization of at least a few disadvantages faced by the fairer sex. However, there is one exception – hourly pay gap – which is the same for both less-educated and highly-educated employees (Evertsson, England and Reci).
An analysis of the impact of class disparities in gender inequity in terms of employment, salary and relative income on power within intimate relationships forms a key future study avenue. With the growing singlehood trend of modern times, studies carried out in the future ought to examine impact of educational qualification on gender inequity among uncoupled persons (Evertsson, England and Reci).







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