The Changing Face of the Professions? Gender and Explanations of Women's Entry to Pharmacy

Abstract

Discussions of women in the professions have stressed the gendered nature of employment in such positions, and increasing female entry has been seen as an extension of gender segregation and disadvantage to new areas. It has also been suggested by some authors that women have entered with the growth of secondary professional labour markets. This paper questions whether it is helpful to see women's position in the professions in terms of gender divisions. By examining patterns of entry and employment in the case of pharmacy it will be argued that both `de-skilling' and `feminisation' are inadequate descriptions of processes occurring in the professions, and that a concentration on gender divisions has led to the neglect of other important variation. A re-examination of theoretical categories is necessary for further analysis.