Employment Rate Among Men and Women
Estonia has had a high level of employment for all of the postwar period. The former socialist economic system was characterized by apparent full employment. Everybody had the right to a job and participation rates were high among men as well as women. According to the 1989 Census, almost 90 per cent of working age women in Estonia were engaged in some sphere of the economy and culture or attended some type of educational institution. The official employment rate among men was close to one hundred percent. Unemployment as a social and economic problem was virtually unknown.The labor market has been one of the most dynamic spheres of the Estonian economy during the transition period. The working-age population was defined until the end of 1993 as males 16-59 years of age and females 16-54 years of age. But effective from 1994, the retirement age will increase by six months every year until 2003, when the retirement age will be 60 for women and 65 for men. According to the 1989 census of Estonia, 54% of the total population was engaged in "socially useful" work - earning a wage or a salary or receiving some other type of income. Since 1990, the number of wage-earners has decreased by almost 160 thousand, which is about a 20% reduction. This dramatic change can be related to the latest waves of emigration, but it also involves a modification of the sectoral structure of employment, activated through the operation of severe processes that excluded many from the sphere of labor. At the beginning of 1994, Estonia had 654,000 employed persons, in other words 43% of the total population and 72% of those of working age.
All of the factors above have had an influence on the employment rates among both men and women. Those rates have decreased. The employment rate among men 16-59 years of age was 76% in 1994 (not including men at educational institutions), according to EMOR data. The employment rate was lower among women. The employment of women 16-54 years old was 68%, while for women 25-54, it was 80%, a number even higher than among men.
The employment level in Estonia is nevertheless quite impressive compared to levels in many Western European countries, especially with respect to employment among women.
A more concrete picture of men's and women's employment rates is found in data from the sociological survey, "Living Conditions," conducted at the end of 1994 by the Estonian Statistical Office.
(Figure 1 here: a Bar Graph, unavailable in this medium)
Important conclusions can be made from this survey. First, the proportion of employment among the young people (16-25 years of age) is quite low - 42%. Second, men are integrated into the labor market at an earlier stage than women are in Estonia. This situation has been typical for a long time because of the somewhat better working opportunities for unskilled men than for unskilled women, and because of the differences in educational paths and length of studies between men and women. Some young women, of course, become mothers before they are integrated into the labor market and stay home taking care of children.
An interesting picture can be seen if we take a look at the employment rates between men and women with respect to age. Employment among women 16-49 years of age increases step by step with increasing age and is the highest in age group 45-49. Employment among men peaks at 30-34 and thereafter declines with increasing age. At age 45-49 a convergence of employment rates (at the level of 84%) between men and women should be mentioned. Thus, a convergence takes place when women have achieved their highest employment rate, but men's employment rate has declined already 10-15 years. One more difference between men and women is that men leave working life more slowly than do women. But the participation rate among the elderly of both genders is quite high. According to the 1989 census, 29% of Estonian pensioners were working, while in 1994 this number declined to 16%. The main reason for this decline is that after the introduction of the economic reforms, elderly workers were among the first to be dismissed. Officially, the number of Estonian workers past retirement age continues to decline. However, according to the "Living Conditions" survey, close to 40% of the pensioners work during the first five years after retirement. After that, the participation rate decreases almost by half among both men and women.
Unemployment, unknown during the Soviet period, is a big problem for the Estonian people. The first governmental resolution regulating the social protection of persons looking for work was approved in January 1991. Official registration of unemployment began in May 1991. According to official statistics, the unempolyment rate in Estonia has been relativeley modest compared to most other post-socialist countries: 2-4%, but this figure reflects the percentage of people receiving unemployment benefits. The real number of unemployed people by several estimations is about 2-3 times higher, about 7-9%.
Men constitute over half of the unemployed. This makes Estonia most comparable to Hungary among the post-socialist countries, and also to our Scandinavian neighbors (Narusk 1995). Unemployment is higher among women in many other East European countries, as it was in Estonia at the beginning of the changes. Women in Estonia lost their jobs before men and were hired after men. For example, 60% of all unemployed were women in the first quarter of 1992, but their share decreased to 52% in the second quarter of 1993 and is now under 50%.
to the beginning
The branch distribution by gender is much more interesting than this
general picture. As in most Western countries, Estonian men and women are
employed in different branches of economy.
to the beginning
There are more than twice as many men as women (7% versus 3%) in the
employer/self-employed category, according to the Estonian "Living
Conditions" survey. Thus, Estonian women will have to cross a longer
bridge than men to reach the situation in developed countries, where the
number of male and female small entrepreneurs is forecast to be equal
quite soon. Only a few Estonian women believe at present that they could
manage in the business world. Looking at the occupational distribution
of men and women in Estonia, an interesting picture appears.
Men are clearly overrepresented among skilled and unskilled manual
workers: as craftsmen and assemblers, and as plant and machine operators.
The share of men is also relatively high among legislators, officials and
managers -- about 2/3. Women dominate occupations like service workers,
shop workers and market sales workers. They are also clearly
overrepresented among the professionals and semi-professionals. The
problem is that a labor market in a new situation often needs people with
different training than what the present labor force has. For example,
there is no need for so many agricultural specialists oriented to work in
big farms as during the Soviet period. The same could be said about
various engineering specialities. Many who graduated years ago from a
university or other educational institution are now in a very complicated
situation. This is especially true for women, who have gone through
retraining more often than men. The situation becomes more complicated
when one takes into account the occupations' gender composition, which can
be very untypical for industrial societies. The most striking
observation is that in the former Soviet Union, unlike in Western
countries, women were well represented in the technical fields. In
Estonia, female engineers made up 74% of all technical specialists, and in
1985, women with a university-level technical degree made up 45% of the
engineers. In Western countries, the technical fields have
traditionally been male-dominated and exhibit a pervasive masculine
culture. Engineering is said to have the dubious distinction of being the
most male-dominated of all professions in the United States; in 1984 only
3% of engineering professionals were women (McIlwee and Robinson 1990).
Also in Scandinavia -- our neighbouring countries -- a small fraction of
engineers are women (Kauppinen et al. 1989; Haavio-Mannila 1992). Thus in
the former Soviet Union and in Estonia, the mathematical and technical
sciences were not as strongly male-labeled as in the Western world.
Because of this, it is to be hoped that "Westernization" in East European
countries (including Estonia) will not mean women's "feminization," in the
sense that they start avoiding mathematical and technical sciences.
Another unique feature of the former Soviet Union and of Estonia was that
the medical profession has been female-dominated. In Western countries, as
it is well-known, the medical profession has typically been a high-status
male occupation. For example, in the United States, 10% of the physicians
were women in 1984 (Frank-Gox and Hesse-Biber 1984), and in 1989 the
proportion had risen to 15.6% (Riska and Wegar). An interesting picture
also appears if one looks at legislators, officials and managers, where
the women's share is about 1/3. One conclusion could be that women are not
very interested in politics. Indeed, the number of women candidates in the
1990-1995 parlamentary elections was very small. However, making a
comparison with the elections to the Supreme Soviet of the USSR in 1989,
it seems that the proportion of women candidates has slightly increased:
respectively, 5.4% and 11.9% were elected. One explanation is that the
growth of interest in politics which occurred during the period of
preparation for independence in 1988-1991, did not necessarily translate
into the wish to actively participate. Besides, these numbers appear to
harmonize with the world-wide tendency toward decreased numbers of women
in higher decision-making bodies. Thus, the data show that men and
women do different work. The index of occupational segregation by gender
was for 1992, 1993 and 1994, respectively, .39, .40 and .41. As one can
see, it has slightly increased. Three years is too short a time period to
draw deeper conclusions, but again, we lack comparable data from any
previous period. Because of this, the data from the survey "Life Paths of
the Generation" will be used again to analyse what kind tendencies have
taken place among the young generation in occupational segregation by
gender, especially during the transition period.
Table 4 presents data on the occupational distribution of respondents by
gender at their first jobs and at the time of the second follow-up. There
is some variability in the distribution, but the general pattern is the
same -- young men and women in Estonia are concentrated into different
occupations. Young men predominate, particularly at the beginning of their
work careers, in two occupational groups -- semiskilled industrial workers
and skilled industrial workers. Young women are concentrated into
occupational groups like semi-professionals, professionals and clerks.
Although slightly different occupational categories were used, one can see
that the picture is quite the same compared with the whole population.
It can be also seen that the restructuring toward a market economy has
brought about some changes in the occupational distribution of young men
and women. First, the number of men occupied as managers has sharply
increased. Second, there is a decrease in groups identified as semiskilled
and skilled industrial workers. At the same time, it is interesting that
the number of women professionals has significantly increased, probably as
a result of their educational attainment between the first job and the
second follow-up. Nevertheless, it is difficult to separate the effects of
the transformation processes from those which would have "naturally"
arisen under the former conditions as cohorts of labor market entrants
progress "across and up" career ladders as they become more experienced
and qualified.
The index of segregation is quite high and has changed very little between
the two surveys. This means that, despite some changes in the occupational
distribution of young men and women, there is still remarkable segregation
of jobs by gender in Estonia and that the transition period has not
changed the situation.
to the beginning
The most important
aspect of the new wage policy in Estonia is that the level of wages has
started to rise in accordance with the increase of education and skills.
The situation had been totally different for a long time. The highest
average wages in the mid-1980s were paid to men with primary education.
The average pay of men with higher education at that time was 98% of that
of men with primary education. Another situation prevailed among women,
whose average wages rose with increasing educational level. Women with
higher education were paid 1.3 times more than women with primary
education (Roots 1986). Nevertheless, the earnings of women in all
educational groups were lower than those of men. The same situation can be
seen at the present time (although the average incomes of both men and
women have increased with increasing educational level).
Women earn less than men in all occupations. The data of the Estonian
Statistical Office show that in 1992 the total salary of women in Estonia
was 80% of that of men. By 1993 it had decreased to 73% and by 1994 to
71%, although the hours actually worked were practically equal. Moreover,
in 1992, 1993 and 1994, women earned less than men in every occupation. In
1992, the average salary per working hour for men was 5.3 Estonian kroons
while for women it was only 4.2 kroons. In 1993 these numbers were 8.5 and
6.1, and in 1994, 12.6 and 9.0, respectively. Therefore, wages per working
hour increased 2.4 times for men and 2.1 times for women. Among both
men and women, legislators and high officials had the best wages, and even
here the differences in growth rates should be noticed, especially between
1992 and 1993. This is also the only occupation in which the share of the
women's average wages to men's average wages grew from 1993 to 1994.
The biggest difference between the hourly wages of male and female
employees was found among technicians and associate professionals, where
the hourly wages of females made up only 68% of that of males in 1994.
There is a threefold difference between the occupational groups with the
highest and lowest average gross wages per hour for both men and women.
Thus, despite the fact that women are officially granted equal access to
almost all jobs and occupations and the fact that the principle is to pay
everyone according to his or her contribution, Estonian women, like women
in Western countries, have earned less than men.
Two kinds of explanations are usually used to describe job segregation by
sex and the earnings disparity: those that focus on the characteristics of
the workers themselves (human capital theory) and those that focus on the
characteristics of the jobs (gender discrimination theory) (Treiman and
Hartmann 1981). Human capital theory proposes that women plan their lives
fundamentally differently from the way men do, because women expect to
withdraw from the labor market (at least temporarily) in order to raise
their children (Mincer and Polachek 1974,1978). Women anticipate their
participation in the labor force to be discontinuous and take this into
account when they make educational and occupational decisions. Thus,
female-dominated occupations -- which young women still disproportionately
enter -- are believed to demand fewer qualifications and training, offer
relatively higher starting wages but, in the long run, give less return on
the "investment" (Becker 1975; Zellner 1975). Men, on the other hand,
expect continuous participation in the labor market and are prepared to
enter jobs that may pay less to begin with but offer higher long-term
returns.
Indeed, the life course of young men and women in Estonia diverge
considerably after the 8th grade (after the 9th grade starting from the
1989-90 academic year, because incomplete secondary education was
prolonged one year). This concerns the Soviet period especially. Schools
at the secondary level were divided into three main types: general
secondary schools, specialized secondary schools and vocational schools.
The linkage between each type of school and the future role of its
students in the economy was clearly defined. The best students were
permitted to stay in general secondary schools. This type of secondary
education gave the best quality of education and the best chances of
continuing education in higher schools. The Ministry of Higher
Education and several industrial ministries recruited young people into
specialized secondary schools, which trained them for the
semi-professions, either in the humanities (teachers, nurses, etc.) or in
engineering. The Committee of Vocational Education competed with more than
ten industrial ministries for control of vocational schools, which were
designed to produce workers for industry and peasants. Although
officially, 10% of graduates from vocational schools and specialized
secondary schools were allowed to go into higher education, in reality,
never more than 1% of the graduates of vocational schools and 5% of the
graduates of specialized secondary schools did so. Thus, at the relatively
young age of 15, young people were already placed in channels with vastly
different life-courses.
The above facts become more important if one looks at the gender
composition of these schools in late 1980s.
In general, secondary school girls formed a considerable majority,
whereas boys dominated in other types of schools. Even greater gender
disproportions emerged in the different types of secondary schools . In
speciality-biased schools and classes in Estonia (mostly
humanities-biased), girls constituted almost 4/5. Rural secondary
vocational schools were mostly literally boys' schools. The situation was
similar in secondary specialized schools. In agriculturally and
industrially-biased secondary schools -- the so-called "technicums" -- the
share of boys was from 2/3 up to 3/4. But in pedagogical, medical or
musical schools, the situation was reversed - only every 7th student was a
boy. At the present time, the situation has changed by a little, but
not very much. Thus, the educational system in Estonia favor women quite a
bit. Research attempting to demonstrate the effects of human capital
theory in practice has also been able to show little gender
differentiation in this respect. Besides, women's educational level in
Estonia is not only equal with men's, but even higher. According to Census
data, while in 1989 there were 142 male employees with higher education
and 517 with secondary (general or vocational) education per 1000 men, the
corresponding figures for women were 159 and 578. In other words, the
human capital explanation of earnings cap can not be considered valid in
Estonia, because women have made no less investment in their professional
development than men.
In consequence, key commentators in the field conclude that gender
discrimination structures and processes provide the
only plausible explanation (Treiman and Roos 1983; Sorensen 1989). This
view is supported by the fact that certain occupations are effectively
closed for women. Although few countries retain occupational exclusions
with legal force, many occupations are firmly held socially and culturally
to be 'men's work' (Bergmann 1986). Women are obliged to 'crowd' into the
occupations men do not claim for themselves -- usually less well paid and
less secure sectors with poorer advancement prospects -- and these then
become labelled as 'women's work'. The same situation seems to take place
in Estonia.
to the beginning
Despite these facts, Estonian women, like women in many Western countries,
earned and still earn less than men. The reasons go beyond the fact that
women are segregated into low-paying economic branches or into the
low-paying social strata of the branches. One can conclude that the
earnings gap between men and women in Estonia reflects the traditional
pattern of discrimination faced by working women in most countries. Bergmann, B.R. 1986. The Economic Emergence of
Women. New York: Basic Books. Estonian Human Development
Report. 1995. Tallinn: UNDP. Frank-Gox, M., and Hesse-Biber, S.
1984. Women at Work. New York: Mayfield. Grogaard, Jens B.
Ed. 1996. Estonia in the Grip of Change: The Norbalt Living
Conditions Project. Oslo: Falch Hurtigtrykk. Haavio-Mannila, E.
1992. Work, Family and Well-Being in Five North and East European
Capitals. Jyvaskyla: Academia Scientiarum Fennica. Helemäe,
Y., Saar, E., and Vöörmann, R. 1995. "Gender Inequality in
Salary in Estonia". Paper prepared for presentation on European Conference
of Sociology. Budapest, August 30 - September 2, 1995. Hourly
Wages of Male and Female. Workers by Occupation in October 1994.
Tallinn: Statistical Office of Estonia. Kauppinen, K., Haavio-Mannila,
E., and Kandolin, I. 1989. "Who Benefits from Working in Non-traditional
Work roles: Interaction Patterns and Quality of Work", Acta
Sociologica, 32 (4): 389-403. McIlwee, J., and Robinson, J.G.
1990. "Women in Engineering: A Promise Unfilled", paper presented at the
American Sociological Meeting in 1990. Mincer, J. & Polachek, S. 1974.
"Family Investments in Human Capital: Earnings of Women." Journal
of Political Economy 82, 76-108. Mincer, J. & Polachek, S. 1978.
"Women's earnings reexamined." Journal of Human Resources 13,
118-34. Narusk, A. Ed. 1995. Every-day Life and Radical Social
Changes in Estonia. Tallinn: Estonian Academy of Sciences Roots,
H. 1986. Sotsiaalprogrammist. Abiks lektorile. Tallinn:
Ühing "Teadus". Treiman, D.J. & Hartmann, H.I. 1981. Women,
Work, and Wages: Equal Pay for Jobs of Equal Value. Washington,
D.C.: National Academy Press. Treiman, D.J. & Roos, P.A. 1983. "Sex and
Earnings in Industrial Society: A Nine National Comparison."
American Journal of Sociology 89, 612-650.
Tööjoud ja palk Eesti Vabariigis. 1993.
Statistikabülletään, II osa (In Estonian), Tallinn: ESA.
Sorensen, E. 1989. "The Wage Effects of Occupational Sex Composition: A
Review and New Findings." In M.A. Hill & M.R. Killingsworth (eds.),
Comparable Worth: Analyses and Evidence. Ithaca: ILR Press,
New York State School of Industrial and Labor Relations, Cornell
University. Vöörmann, R. 1995. "Gender Segregation in the
Estonian Labour Market: Stability, not Change". In L.Chisholm,
P.Büchner, H.-H.Krüger and M.du-Bois-Reymond (eds.),
Growing up in Europe. Berlin/New York: de Gruyter. Pp.:
153-160. Vöörmann, R. 1991. Gender Disproportions in
Education. In Youth in the Changing Baltic Countries. Tartu: Tartu
University, 59-66. Zellner, H. 1975. "The Determinants of Occupational
Segregation." In C. Lloyd (ed.), Women in the Labor Market.
New York: Columbia University Press.Branch distribution
Estonia experienced major shifts in branch distribution from 1992 to 1994.
Estonia underwent a period of rapid development when it radically reformed
its economy and moved far away from the Soviet system. The number of
employees declined in manufacturing, agriculture, energy and
transportation, but increased in trade, everyday services, finance and in
the social sphere of the economy. In terms of employment level,
manufacturing is still the largest branch at present - covering close to
1/4 of total employment, followed by trade and the service industry.
Almost 1/5 of working people are engaged in education, science, health and
social care while 1/10 are employed in the primary sector of agriculture,
forestry and fishing.Occupational Distribution
The vast majority (over 90%) of Estonian workers are employees, while only
a small part of the active population are employers. However, the category
of employers has increased from year to year during the transition period,
and Estonia is becomimg more and more similar to market-based societies.Earnings Gap
The greatest changes in the work sphere during the last five years have
taken place in wages and income. After Estonia regained its independence,
incomes began a process of rapid differentiation.
Conclusions
Men and women in Estonia do different kinds of work, like in most other
countries. The employment rates for both men and women are relatively
high, although they have decreased in the last few years. They have
achieved virtual equality in years of schooling and training. There is an
almost complete convergence in the life-course patterns of men and
women.
References
Becker, G. 1975. Human Capital. New York: Columbia University
Press.