Gender Stratification Of Income Inequality Among Lawyers Summary

In both the society and the economy, there is a hierarchical structure at play in terms of occupation. Lawyers and attorneys are included in this tiered arrangement, which is then utilized within their own profession, with gender being the foundation. It has been tradition for women’s “role” to be domestic- centered while men are portrayed as breadwinners. Even more, according to some, gender roles are being considered “mixed up;” more women are becoming doctors and lawyers, branching out from behind their aprons. While these powerful women are viewed as the head of the household, they are not viewed as capable of serving as the head of a work-field. Gender bias misconstrues women’s ability to hold positions of power, thus creating tensions amongst the sexes, blocking women from achievement, while placing men on a pedestal for unmerited feat. This impeding of women’s attainment mostly occurs in male-dominated occupations.

With this in mind, there are gender gaps in career outcomes amongst young lawyers, in addition to injustice. In John Hagan’s article The Gender Stratification of Income Inequality Among Lawyers, he asserts that “gender stratification within this profession produces income differences many times those observed in the larger labor force” (Hagan 1990). As will be shown later, my findings will derive from the following questions and more, as I explore this disparity: What are some of the factors that contribute to why there is a lack of female representation in “male-dominated” fields such as law? What role do these factors play in male and female workplace relations? How do these factors deter and impede female attorneys’ success within this field? And how do these same factors push male attorneys to