Make Me a Cake as Fast as You can: Forces for and Against Change in the Sexual Division of Labour at an Industrial Bakery

Abstract

Jobs considered as `naturally' women's in one situation are assigned to men a few years or miles away. We ask how a sexual division of labour which is so fluid when regarded in a historical perspective appears so rigid when observed at a given time. One type of factor which is variable historically but very solid and material in a given workplace is the physical installation which represents a considerable economic investment. Ergonomists and sociologists together studied the forces acting on the sexual division of labour in an industrial bakery in Quebec. Using direct observations, videotaping, questionnaires and interviews, we examined the physical characteristics of men's and women's jobs, cultural representations, and union and management practices. We found that physical difficulties were as important as organisational and cultural barriers in maintaining the division of labour, while the age of women workers, union support and economic impetus were significant determinants of change.