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Women and Work in the U.S. Military

Christian Allaire Critical Inquiry and Reflective Writing Fall 2010

In this essay, I will analyze the sociology of women and work within the context of the U.S. armed forces and more narrowly within the U.S. Coast Guard (USCG). I will center the discussion from the outset by providing historical context and broadly outline oppression of women. I will discuss pertinent political events and economic forces that contributed to womens changing roles in the workplace. I will touch on the theme of women as a weaker sex, which dovetails into an analysis of womens competence relative to men. As I start to focus more on the military aspect, I will touch on the unique wage structure in the military, provide some employment statistics and discuss policies specific to women in the military. I will hone in on some history specific to women in the U.S. Coast Guard and highlight notable trailblazing women in the service, and the successes they have had in the USCG. I will also discuss issues involving pregnancy, service policies regarding pregnant women, and my personal reflections on dealing with this sensitive issue aboard a Coast Guard Cutter. I will also discuss at the length the notion of the armed forces as a bastion of masculinity and womens integration into the institution. Rounding out the discussion, I will touch on the issue of the glass ceiling and mommy track. Until recently, history has not been kind to women. Relative to men, they have had to struggle mightily to gain a semblance of parity. Ancient and early attitudes toward women were that of a sex with a natural inferiority to men. Casting back to Greek Mythology, it was Pandora, created by Athena, who opened the box that let the evils of the world loose. A look at the history of the Christian church and its theology is full of

3 views and doctrine that a woman is subservient. St. Jerome in the 4th Century noted, Woman is the gate of the devil, the path of wickedness, the sting of the serpent, in a word a perilous object (WIC.Org). St Thomas Aquinas in the 13th century held a less savage view than St. Jerome, but still posits women as inferior. He said women were Created to be mans helpmeet, but her unique role is in conception.since for other purposes men would be better assisted by other men (WIC.org). For many years women have been billed as the weaker sex. Indeed in many cultures, women are required to show obedience to men in a number of different ways. In India, the Hindu faith required women to walk behind their husbands and could not own property (WIC.org). They were also prevented from remarrying if widowed. The fundamentalist Islamic cultural view on women is simply revolting. A rational analysis of women being a weaker sex cannot stand up to scrutiny. To be sure, men fulfilling their traditional work roles work hard. However, the notion that women are not working as hard makes no sense. It seems that some think it an if that then this proposition. The assumption is if men are out working hard, then it must be women are lounging at home. An economic metaphor would be if someone is gaining wealth, someone must be descending into poverty. The reality is much different. Studies suggest that women have a higher tolerance for pain. There is plenty of anecdotal evidence, for instance the reality of childbirth and womens difficulty with the monthly menstrual cycle. Are women a weaker sex? I dont think so. Building on the weaker sex theme, men were also viewed as intellectually superior. It would seem reasonable that women appeared less smart, as they were barred from higher education. However, if men were as brilliant as they professed, they should

4 have made the connection that intelligence is innate, and is developed through training the mind. A womens place was not in the classroom. Traditionally a middle class girl in Western culture tended to learn from her mothers example that cooking, cleaning, and caring for children was the behavior expected of her when she grew up (WIC.Org). Evans McClelland further explained in The Education of Women in the United States that, A woman could not fill her preordained place in society if she was wasting her time gaining knowledge. Education was thought to make women discontented with their current status, and possibly even irritated with men (12). As with most cases of oppression, the motivator appears to be fear. In the education sphere, historically People feared that the social system would break down if women were allowed to be educated (Horany). Womens quest for gaining education equality has a long history of fits and starts. Females were not completely shut out and the record shows female educational successes peppered into most eras. However, the cumulative nature of the consistent inequality is obvious and constantly put women at a disadvantage. With womens suffrage in 1920, things began to change as the womens rights movement gained steam. By 1945 women were admitted to the Harvard Medical School, in 1972 discrimination in federal funding was eliminated, and by 1980, the number of enrolled women in college were equal to men (Horany). The aforementioned oppression of women, the issues surrounding womens traditional roles, and the suppression of educational opportunities have a cause and effect relationship to the history of women in the workplace. This history is not a black and white issue, and it parallels the history of women and education. Women were not barred from working, but the male dominated culture managed womens ability to earn a

5 living. In Colonial America, women who earned their own living usually became seamstresses or kept boardinghouses (WIC.Org). The nature of work for both genders has changed drastically. Around the time of Americas founding the medical profession was open to women. Whether to characterize medicine as a profession during the period is an open question as most anyone could enter the field. An example of the changing nature of the work place can be found at the beginning of the 19TH century where The required educational preparation, particularly for the practice of medicine, increased (WIC.Org). At the time most women bore children early on and were barred from most institutions of higher learning. The increasing number of academic institutions to train the citizenry served to filter women out of professions such as medicine and the law. The concept of the changing nature of work has always been present throughout history. In modern times sharp analysis is difficult due to the quickening pace of society. In the previous paragraph I pointed out how women had been filtered out of the medical profession in the 19th century. According to the U.S. Labor Department, in 2009, women comprised 92 percent of all Registered Nurses and 69.5 percent of all medical and health service managers. I cite this only as an example of the evolutionary nature of the workforce, without analysis of the reasons for the change. In the Handbook of Gender and Work, authors Gary Cooper and Suzan Lewis, discuss at length the modern day expansion of information technology (38) and the flexible workforce (39). They posit that womens time may have arrived in terms of employment parity with men. The authors note the work environment has shifted to the norms of mergers, downsizing, and rapidly evolving technology wiping out entire industries seemingly overnight. The key to success lies in personal flexibility. In this type of environment

6 women may become the preferred worker(39). Because of womens traditional roles and history, the authors state, Women everywhere are historically more experienced at discontinuous career patterns, flowing in and out of the labor market, working part-time and on short-term contracts (39). Again, I turn to the U.S. Labor Department employment figures. In 2009, during the worst of the current economic downturn the unemployment rate for women was 8.1 percent versus mens unemployment rate of 10.3 percent. Women have developed substantial coping skills to advance their chances for adequate employment. This skill may be a reason for success relative to men in the current environment. In other words, Women may be preferred for their flexibility rather than their exploitability (39). As more women turn to higher education, the future trend for the changing workforce I believe is weighted in favor for women. I served 20 years in the U.S. Coast Guard in a variety of positions, both shore based and at sea aboard ships. I bring the perspective of a man to the issue of women and work. Ive worked for powerful women and have had the privilege of leading women in both an office environment as well as part of a crew rescuing people in peril at sea. Ive also experienced shipboard duty with all male and mixed gendered crews. I have no formal education or training in feminist philosophy, and this essay is the first time Ive ever tussled with the topic of women and work. I joined the U.S. Coast Guard in 1988. My first assignment was aboard an all male-staffed 400-foot Polar Class Ice Breaker with a crew of 180 people. I found nothing strange about reporting to a ship without females and in fact it felt natural. At 21 years old, I simply had no frame of reference having minimal life experience. This feeling was an extension of the all male recruit company I had just graduated from in boot camp. It

7 would be incorrect to assume the pride I felt as being exclusive to my gender. In fact, much of my feelings were tied to the super-immersion into the subculture of the military experienced in boot camp, and my anticipation for exploring the full range of a newly chosen career path. However, make no mistake, it was a very masculine environment. The warrior is still a key symbol of masculinity, and masculinity has always been central to military identity and military culture (Kimmel, Aronson 546). This is a key thing I have learned, that the military is a gendered institution and that the maleness I experienced, was subconscious. Today, it comes as no surprise to me the difficulties women experienced penetrating into the military workforce. Melissa Herbert, an assistant Professor of Sociology at Hamline University, and a former soldier writes: In fact there appears to be little dispute over the tradition of soldiering as a male bastion. The complex weaving together of the achievement of manhood or masculinity with military service offers us insight into the way in which the notion of soldiering has historically been so central a part of male identity (Herbert 51). The male military culture I experienced manifested in many ways. Pornography was ubiquitous and so was the consumption of alcohol. The overriding tone was aggressive. Within the military construct, this type of behavior becomes more complex due to the rank structure. Many conflicts were solved by violence. I was a recipient of, as well as a party to many hazing incidents. I witnessed a thief being thrown down the stairs. A breach of trust, such as thievery, was considered a much worse crime than knocking someone down the stairs. I had a boss of mine strike me in the head, and in a flash I lashed backed. We ended up on the deck in a heap battling it out. Perversely, he gained

8 enormous respect for me, as he was much bigger than me. He earned my respect as he did not hide behind his rank and charge me with assault. This is an example of a tradition That persists in military culture that there is a link between male bonding and good combat performance (Kimmel, Aronson 548). It was this type of climate that I was trained and raised in during my first tour in the Coast Guard. It should come as no surprise that when it came time for me to deal with women, as they entered the service in greater numbers, my old guard attitude would need some adjustment. Old guard was a term that started to be thrown around the service frequently, coinciding with the election of President Bill Clinton in 1992. The highlighting of the archaic attitudes was a push back against sexism and the constant proclamation of sexual prowess (Herbert 56) that permeates the military. Not only does the locker room talk of high school continue, but the cadences that brag about the sexual conquering of women can still be heard in all male settings (Herbert 56). The reshaping of the old attitudes signaled a cultural shift that was taking place in the armed forces, and in society at large. This paradigm shift started to take place after I had served for five years in all male units. Thus far, old salts with views that resisted any sort of attitude adjustment had shaped my views. Old guard was not just specific to gender relations, but also to how the service presented itself to society at large. The new paradigm was heavy on humanitarianism, a desire for the service to reflect the demographics of society at large, and a touchy feely emphasis. The masculine nature of the service was incrementally being challenged and the distinct message was change or get out. The road was being paved that has allowed women to thrive in the Coast Guard today. With the benefit of hindsight, I can now see the stamp left on me from the early

9 leadership training Id received in those first formative years. Lead by example was a core trait instilled in me, so its no wonder that my mimicking of my early mentors led to conflict when dealing with women. More than a few women had burst into tears in my office leaving both of us upset and confused. My style was business like, curt, brash and lacking in small talk. This was a language I understood and had worked well for me in my dealings with men. This was the atmosphere that women were initially up against. My way of doing business was the norm and not the exception. Women have other challenges unique to the military as well. Social role theory posits that sex differences in social influence and other behaviors derive from the societal division of labor between the sexesspecifically, from the different norms and expectations associated with the social roles that men and women generally hold (Eagly). I mean specific to the military in the sense that a person joins the military instead of being hired on to do a specific job, such as electrician. The specialty comes later. In my personal dealings with women, the thought never occurred to me to leverage my authority to guide a women into a specific occupation based upon their gender. It did cross my mind that some women seemed to have something to prove. I do regret thinking that they have something to prove based on their gender, instead of the reasonable notion they simply wanted to excel. Many men have something to prove just like women, but I never linked their gender into the equation. Author Mark Maier as quoted from in the Handbook of Gender and Work said, Male managers are generally oblivious to how their gender identity as a men might be influencing their behavior and relationships in the organizations in which they spend the majority of their waking hours, whether women are present or not (83). No doubt some women did not

10 belong doing certain jobs due to lack of physical strength and assertiveness. The same can be said of men. I am a small-framed man, and I can think of numerous occasions where I was rotated to a specific task more suited to my size. However, the rub with this is most women are smaller and less powerful than me, resulting in the majority of women being directed (by self or otherwise) to jobs more suited to their size and demeanor. In my experience, the division of labor happened naturally along traditional gender roles in many instances. While the division of labor, in terms of jobs that required brute strength fell roughly along gender lines, women hold many positions that in the past were associated only with men. This brings to mind the topic of gender competence. I always found women to be competent and level headed. In The Handbook of Gender and Work, Author G.N. Powell is quoted as saying, Stereotypes extend to cognitive characteristics as well, with men perceived as more analytical, exact, and better at abstractions, reasoning, and problem solving and women as more imaginative, intuitive, perceptive, verbally skilled, and creative (209). Any assumption that women are less competent than men is plain wrong. A good leader will judge an individuals strengths and weaknesses to ascertain the best utilization for that person. To make a broad based assumption based on gender instead of an analysis of the specific individual will lead to numerous problems. The Coast Guard has a robust diversity program and has done a fair job in training the force to take a holistic view in completing the mission. This means shedding stereotypes and a conscious realization that we are all different, and to use this as an asset for team cohesion. I believe a combination of societal evolution and the Coast Guards sustained efforts in recruiting with diversity as an aim, has created an

11 organization that allows equal advancement opportunities based upon merit. The term the glass ceiling refers to the phenomenon of the lack of upward mobility or advancement. Defined as A barrier so subtle that it is transparent, yet so strong that it prevents women and minorities from moving up in the management hierarchy (Morrison,Van Glinow, 200). A common sense look at womens history would suggest that in the past the glass ceiling was real. The deck was stacked against women in terms of their access to education, the ubiquitous male dominated corporate structure, and society at large. Today more people are pushing back against the notion of the glass ceiling. If there ever was one, that ceiling is now being penetrated consistently by women. Interestingly, Many believe that men in female-dominated professions, such as education or nursing, also, face a glass ceiling. Many, also, believe that these men are actually treated worse than women are currently in male-dominated professions (Wikipedia, Women Surpassing the Glass Ceiling). A glass ceiling type comparison between the corporate and the military cultures is fraught with difficulty due to the unique nature of the military and its mission. Especially considering the military pay scale is based on rank and is absolutely gender neutral. In this sense a wage gap does not exist in the military. However, I can draw some conclusions about the Coast Guard based upon my experience. In the Coast Guard enlisted ranks, advancement opportunities are as objective as humanly possible. To advance to the next higher rank, a member must take a test based upon material available to all. Other factors included in the advancement mix are the total years of service, the number of years at current rank, number of award points and performance evaluations. Each category is assigned a numerical value, and then a computer tabulates the results.

12 Some human judgment is involved in performance evaluations, but even then the system has several people contributing to the judgment of the members performance mitigating personal bias. The member who is being evaluated is given every opportunity to submit written documentation supporting their accomplishments. The Coast Guard system for advancing enlisted personnel is rigorous and taken seriously. In my view the glass ceiling does not exist within the enlisted advancement system. I cannot speak to the advancement system at the officer level. I simply dont have the experience to analyze the system. I can pinpoint one disadvantage for women. In certain specialties there are sea duty requirements that are a necessity for gaining experience. After all, sailors are made at sea, and the USCG wants to advance experienced people. Many Coast Guard ships were built prior to mix-gendered crews, and therefore have limited space for women. In turn, limiting at sea billets for women, precluding some women from competing for advancement. As the service brings on more modern ships, built for mix-gendered crews, this issue becomes moot. However, in years past, and the near term, the Coast Guard has implemented, on a case-by-case basis, waivers to give women an equal footing. One area modern ships will not help on in is the issue of pregnant women and shipboard duty. The research material on this topic is thin and the issue is tricky. For brevity, my analysis of this topic will focus on planned pregnancy versus unplanned. However, I will touch briefly on the pregnancy prevention message. This issue is taken seriously aboard ship due its potential effect on operations. In fact, the military in my view pushes to hard on the issue of birth control, cajoling young men and women into the use of birth control, without any regard for an individuals moral stance on the issue. In an article published in the Journal Culture, Health and Sexuality

13 the authors report, Several interviews attest to the volubility and persistence of Navy prevention messages, especially during boot camp. Enlisted women emphasized the stridency of some of the clinical communication around birth control (Russ, Ames 10). Certainly in my experience, condoms were handed out and commands constantly emphasized the use of birth control during pre-port call briefings. Shipboard duty aboard a military vessel is considered arduous duty. Everything aboard a ship is made of heavy metal, ships have a plethora of chemicals aboard, and simply traversing around a rolling and pitching ship is a fatiguing experience. While men have a more natural inclination toward violence, as I detailed previously in an all male crew setting, Ive experienced the natural inclination of pregnant women to enter into a hyper-protective mode. My research found the following statement. A pregnant women may come into contact with a cancer causing (carcinogen) which, although it gets into her blood stream, does not directly affect her own health, but may cross the placenta and attack the foetus (Agenda 86). Shipboard duty may in fact be overly dangerous for pregnant women and they sense the danger. The Coast Guard considers pregnancy a medical condition and thus treats women accordingly. The policy fails to take into consideration any mental changes a woman may experience. Coast Guard policy states The need to safeguard the health of the pregnant service member and the health of her unborn child must be balanced with the maintenance of job performance for as long as possible (Pregnancy in the Coast Guard, COMDT INST 1900.9). Furthermore, women will be in a light duty status during pregnancy and will not be aboard ship after the 20th week of pregnancy. Ample accommodations are given to women who are pregnant. Including, 42 days of maternity leave post birth, exemption from meeting weight and

14 body fat standards, and physical fitness requirements for up to a year after the birth. Commanding Officers are required to provide adequate accommodations for women who decide to breast-feed. The intent is always to strive for equality and to balance the mommy track issue. Mommy track is the notion of flexibility for expectant mothers without impacting their ability to advance. When it comes to pregnancy in the shipboard realm, equality is impossible. Ive observed that the culture of the service has evolved to a point where inequalities and accommodations made for pregnant women are generally accepted. However, from the male point of view, Ive witnessed women manipulate men, most of the time successfully. On a number of occasions Ive had women who work for me simply state they feared losing their baby and wanted to do nothing but sit at a desk. Even though they met service wide policy to continue working as normal. Since the policy calls for balance based upon opinion, most men (the bulk of the decision makers) without a doubt take the more cautious road. This puts decision makers in a difficult spot, especially for men. This can create animosity and smacks of discrimination toward men. With the increasing presence of women in the workplace over the years, men have been directed to curtail their aggressive nature. Would it be fair to ask women to curtail their natural inclination to protect their unborn? Is it fair to ask men to stifle aggression, especially considering the militarys core mission of visiting violence upon an enemy? There is more to the pregnancy picture aboard a ship. Ships are staffed based upon qualified people to run each watch station. Some watch positions can take up to a year of on-the-job training to become qualified, and most ships require a member to become qualified at multiple watch stations. When a person is

15 not up to the task of a shipboard assignment, they are transferred off the ship and replaced. When a woman becomes pregnant she is not transferred off the ship, but is in a medical hold status. While the ship deploys, she will be re-assigned temporarily to shore duty, but remain attached to the ship. Meaning a replacement will not be forthcoming during the pregnancy and post pregnancy cycle. This leaves a billet gap. Someone else has to fill that position. This contributes to ships being chronically understaffed with an overstressed workforce. I dont mean to imply pregnancy is the only reason for a position gap. It merely is a contributing factor to systemic understaffing. Service policy prevents a pregnant woman from being re-assigned due to pregnancy. That would be discriminatory. In other words, if you become pregnant you will be fired is a non- starter. Considering shipboard duty is arduous, with long absences, some women who planned on having children someday, simply chose to start their family during their shipboard tour, and why not? They will be credited for sea duty toward promotion. They will be paid for shipboard duty while limiting the actual underway time. Most shipboard tours are three years or less and so a pregnancy while assigned to a ship can have a real impact on operations. A pregnancy can take up to a year to complete and a watch-station can take a up to a year to qualify for, leaving a years worth of actual work in some scenarios. Ive no easy answers for this conundrum, other than to repeat that equality is impossible when it comes to managing pregnancy while serving aboard a military ship. The impact of a pregnancy on operations is relative to the size of the ship. A larger size ship can absorb the gap easier than a smaller size ship. For the most part, all hands recognize the unique nature of the issue and deal with it accordingly. The issue requires women to do the right thing in terms of the hardships they signed up for when joining the

16 military, and for shipboard personnel to treat pregnant women as we treat everyone, as fellow shipmates. Women have a long and proud tradition in the USCG. While systemic discrimination may be a part of the service history, a survey of history shows some very notable women. The service has its origin from 1789 when Congress authorized funding for the necessary support, maintenance and repairs for all lighthouses, beacons, buoys and public piers.within any bay, inlet, harbor or port of the United States, for rendering the navigation thereof easy and safe (Tilley). However, prior to this the first woman ever to be involved with the Coast Guards mission was Hannah Thomas. She took over for her husband as lighthouse keeper in 1776 while he fought in the Revolutionary War. Perhaps the most famous lighthouse keeper of all is Ida Lewis. Lewis tended the Lime Rock Lighthouse in Newport, Rhode Island for 54 years, and is credited with saving between 18-24 people (Tilley). The Coast Guard has named a 225 Foot Buoy Tender after her. She died in October of 1911. Fast-forward 65 years when the U.S. Coast Guard Academy became the first military academy to admit women. A year later, in 1977 the first U.S. Military ships, the Cutters Gallatin and Morgenthau (on which I served) accepted mixed-gendered crews. In 2009, Captain Sandra Stosz became the first women promoted to admiral who graduated from the U.S Coast Guard academy. A recent notable trailblazing woman in the Coast Guard is Vice Admiral Vivien Crea, who recently served as the 25th Vice Commandant of the Coast Guard. Crea received her commission in 1973 after graduating from Officers Candidate School. She has several notable firsts as a pioneering woman. She is the first woman ever to attain the rank of rear admiral and the first women to have been promoted to vice admiral and hold

17 the position of Vice Commandant. As a Lieutenant Commander, she became the first woman from any service, as well as the first service member from the US Coast Guard to serve as the Presidential Military Aide, where she carried the nuclear football for President Ronald Reagan for three years (Wikipedia Career). She also was a successful pilot flying C-130s, HH-65 helicopters, the Gulf Stream Jet, and held numerous commands. Crea has paved the way for many women coming quickly upon her heels. In conclusion, the history of women in the work place early on is laden with discrimination. However, the story is not linear as many women accomplished incredible things in spite of systemic resistance to the gender. In this essay, I provided an overview of oppression of women and discussed some issues that Ive dealt with while serving in the military, from the perspective of a man transitioning from an all male environment to mixed-gendered work place. Specifically, I tried to dispel the myth that women are inferior, while at the same time acknowledging differences between the two genders. I would also stress my contention that the goal of equality is not obtainable. This is not to say striving toward the goal should be eliminated. It is to say, society should judge a person based upon merit, to remove issues of class and gender as leverage points. I noted my belief that the Coast Guard has accomplished a meritocracy with enlisted advancement system. I highlighted the thorny issue of pregnancy aboard ships as an example of a challenge that both men and women face in the service, due to the inclusion of women in the military. I also noted that in my experience, pregnancy is not controversial, and that most people deal with it maturely. I finally wrapped things up by briefly discussing some notable women from Coast Guard history. Today, I believe women are coming on strong as the traditional roles change and evolve. I am a proponent

18 of women in the workplace and think they have brought elements of strength not possessed by men, broadening overall effectiveness.

Works Cited

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Eagley, A. H. Sex Differences in Social Behavior: A Social-Role Interpretation. Hillsdale, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum, 1987. Print. Herbert, Melissa S. Camouflage Isn't Only for Combat: Gender, Sexuality and Women in the Military. New York: New York University Press, 1998. Print. Horany, Elizabeth. "Women and Education." University of Texas. 18 May, 2002.Web. 26 Sept 2010. Kimmel, Michael S., and Amy Aronson. Men and Masculinities: A Social, Cultural,and Historical Encyclopedia. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-CLIO, 2004. Print. McClelland, Evans A. The Education of Women in the United States. New York: Garland Publishing Inc, 1992. Print. Morrison, A.M., & Van Glinow, M.A. (1990). Women and Minorities in Management. American Psychologist, 45, 200-2008. Powell, Gary N. Handbook of Gender & Work. Thousand Oaks, Calif. Sage Publications, 1999. Print. Russ, Ann J., and Genevieve M. Ames. "Policy and Prevention as Competing Imperatives in US Navy Life and Medicine." Culture, Health & Sexuality 8.1

20 (2006): pp. 1-15. Print. Tilley, John A. A History of Women in the Coast Guard. U.S. Coast Guard Commandants Bulletin. Washington: GPO, March 1996. Print. Wikipedia contributors. "Glass ceiling." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 23 Sep. 2010. Web. 28 Sep. 2010. Wikipedia contributors. "Ida Lewis (lighthouse keeper)." Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia, 14 Sep. 2010. Web. 30 Sep. 2010. Womens History in America. WIC.Org. Womens International Center, 1995. Web. 29 Sept 2010. Workplace Information Group. "Health Column: Health and the Working Woman." Agenda.18, Women and the Economy (1993): pp. 84-88. Print.