## donner-books

## Source details

**Canonical URL:** [donner-books](https://www.imf.org/-/media/files/publications/fandd/article/2022/march/donner-books.pdf)

## Other formats

- [Markdown version](/-/media/files/publications/fandd/article/2022/march/donner-books.pdf.md)
- [Structured JSON version](/-/media/files/publications/fandd/article/2022/march/donner-books.pdf.json)

---

### Main thesis
- Claudia Goldin argues in Career and Family that the structure of work—its demand for workers' time—is a central cause of persistent gender disparities in earnings and career progression.
- Work is described as "greedy": it rewards employees who can supply extensive time and immediate availability, a model that disadvantages those with caregiving responsibilities.

### Historical patterns of women's work and family choices (20th century)
- 1910s: A woman graduating in 1910 had to choose between a family and a career.
- 1920s–1930s: Many women worked for pay before going on to have children.
- 1950s: The trend flipped as the marriage age dropped and women began their families earlier, often taking jobs later if able.
- 1970s: The broad adoption of the birth control pill contributed to many women opting for a career first, sometimes at the expense of family.
- 1980s–1990s: Women increasingly pursued career and family at the same time.

### Key findings and statistics
- Women’s earnings in the United States have been stuck somewhere between 77 cents and 82 cents for every dollar a man earns for 25 years.
- The presented earnings figure "masks how much worse it is for women of color."
- Goldin emphasizes that attributing the pay gap solely to gender bias, negotiation skills, or women's occupational choices "misses the point entirely" because the time demands built into many jobs drive differential rewards.

### Mechanism: why "greedy work" disadvantages women
- Employers pay more for staffers who are "willing and able to put in endless hours" and who will "drop everything for a deadline."
- Time is finite, and caregiving obligations (for example, when "a child enters the picture") create competing demands that cannot be ignored.
- Client expectations in many white-collar professions (e.g., law, banking) reinforce the need for continuous availability—clients still expect to have "their guy" pick up the phone—making substitution difficult.

### Exceptions and possible mitigations
- Industries where professionals can be easily substituted reduce penalties for limited availability; example cited: pharmacists, where consumers do not need the same person each month to fill prescriptions.
- Goldin implies that structural changes in how work is organized and how client relationships are managed could alleviate penalties tied to time demands.

### Reviewer and publication details
- Review by FRANCESCA DONNER, an executive editor at Quartz focusing on the future of work, women, and gender.
- Book: Claudia Goldin, Career and Family: Women’s Century-Long Journey toward Equity, Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ, 2021, 344 pp., $27.95.

*Source: March 2022 | FINANCE & DEVELOPMENT — Book review excerpt*

---


_Source: https://www.imf.org/-/media/files/publications/fandd/article/2022/march/donner-books.pdf_