Two Tales of Cities: Revisiting Sex-Based Occupational Segregation in U.S. Municipal Bureaucracies, 1991-2015

Abstract

Drawing upon 24 years (1991-2015) of U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission data, we ask whether sex-based occupational segregation among professional and administrative employees in municipal bureaucracies is related to agency policy missions. We evaluate occupational segregation using two different benchmarks, 30% women and 50% women. At the 30% threshold in distributive and regulatory agencies, our findings suggest erosion of glass walls among professional workforces, but widespread occupational segregation among administrative workforces. At the 50% benchmark, we find a different story. Most cities reach or exceed gender parity in redistributive agencies; however, we observe widespread occupational segregation among administrative and professional workforces in distributive and regulatory agencies. Patterns of sex-based occupational segregation are related to agency policy missions. Analyses of glass walls should not be based on a single benchmark. One option is to supplement evaluations using the customary 30% threshold with evaluations employing a threshold of 50%, or true gender parity.