Today’s New York Times offers a glimpse at several Houston professionals working in teaching, nursing and dental hygienics.
While some have gravitated to the positions for financial reason and flexibility, others were inspired by a stint in military or national service (Teach for America). But all demonstrate what is happening nationally, with more men drawn to what were once were deemed female (or pink collar) positions.
“While women continue to make inroads into prestigious, high-wage professions dominated by men, more men are reaching for the dream in female-dominated occupations that their fathers might never have considered.
The trend began well before the crash, and appears to be driven by a variety of factors, including financial concerns, quality-of-life issues and a gradual erosion of gender stereotypes. An analysis of census data by The New York Times shows that from 2000 to 2010, occupations that are more than 70 percent female accounted for almost a third of all job growth for men, double the share of the previous decade.
That does not mean that men are displacing women — those same occupations accounted for almost two-thirds of women’s job growth. But in Texas, for example, the number of men who are registered nurses nearly doubled in that time period, rising from just over 9 percent of nurses to almost 12 percent. Men make up 23 percent of Texas public schoolteachers, but almost 28 percent of first-year teachers.” (Read the full story at the New York Times)