MEN AND WOMEN IN THE UNEMPLOYMENT INSURANCE SYSTEM: GENDERED EFFECTS OF THE TWO-TIERED WELFARE STATE | | Posted on:2000-04-27 | Degree:PH.D | Type:Dissertation | | University:NORTHWESTERN UNIVERSITY | Candidate:WELCH, ANNE STUART | Full Text:PDF | | GTID:1469390014460654 | Subject:Sociology | | Abstract/Summary: |  PDF Full Text Request | | Many scholars claim the two-tiered structure of the welfare state has implicitly gendered effects. In this study, I examine men's and women's access to and participation in unemployment insurance (UI), the major social insurance program available to non-aged workers. Using data from the 1990 Survey of Income and Program Participation, I estimate UI eligibility rates for men and women who have recently separated from employment, according to state-specific program guidelines. I also look at the sources of income these men and women use following a separation from employment.; I examine UI eligibility in two steps. First, I look only at eligibility requirements based on past earnings and work history, or “monetary criteria.” Second, I look at eligibility using both monetary and non-monetary criteria. The non-monetary criteria I examine include working in employment covered by the UI system, reason for leaving job, availability and ability to work, and student status. Feminist discussions of the welfare state emphasize that both monetary and non-monetary criteria work to disproportionately exclude women from the unemployment insurance program.; Surprisingly, I find no significant differences in the overall eligibility of men and women who have recently separated from employment when only monetary criteria are estimated. When I include both monetary and non-monetary criteria in the eligibility estimates, however, I find that women are far less likely to qualify for UI than men. When I examine the sources of income used by men and women following an employment separation, I find that overall, men are significantly more likely than women to use social insurance and women are significantly more likely than men to use public assistance.; These findings support feminist theories that assert the effects of the two-tiered welfare state are different for men and women. Importantly, I find that the main differences in the effects of the UI system on men and women in this sample come from the non-monetary requirements of the unemployment insurance system. I conclude by offering suggestions for policy changes that would make the effects of the system more equal for men and women. | | Keywords/Search Tags: | Men and women, Effects, Welfare state, System, Two-tiered, Both monetary and non-monetary criteria, Examine | | PDF Full Text Request | Related items |
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