Overtime pay represents the difference between having a good life and a marginal life for skilled and semiskilled workers. Industry and manufacturing provide overtime pay. These sectors hire primarily males. Service sector work, such as clerical work, does not pay overtime nearly as much as manufacturing. These sectors rely heavily on a female workforce.
Differential access highlights the institution character of gender inequality.
One can easily see the dynamics that generate inequality. Solutions are difficult to pinpoint within the institution of work. One might argue that Americans place too much emphasis on WORK as an avenue to prosperity. An analysis of Scandinavian social arrangements might be in order. The previous section, in part, explored inequities in wage-compensation associated with various kinds of work.