面对衰退 男女平等

       Facing the recession ，equality between men and women

Women with M.B.As have fared during the recession as well as their male counterparts, according to a new study by New York nonprofit research group Catalyst.

The study, scheduled to be released Tuesday, analyzed data from 873 M.B.A.s who graduated between 1996 and 2007 from top business schools in Asia, Canada, Europe and the U.S. The respondents were surveyed about their experiences between November 2007 and June 2009, as the economic downturn intensified.

The study, being published in the Harvard Business Review, found men and women were roughly equally likely to be promoted or laid off. Among men, 36% were promoted and 10% lost jobs; among women, 31% were promoted and 12% lost jobs. The authors said the differences weren't statistically significant. Catalyst focuses on issues involving women in the workplace. This is the first time the group studied the impact of a recession on high-potential talent.

The findings are consistent with other studies and government statistics. The Labor Department says 5.4% of men and 5.2% of women age 25 and older with college degrees were unemployed in July. At the start of the recession, unemployment among college-educated women was higher than for men, but as the slump wore on, men saw higher unemployment. Harvard University economist Lawrence Katz says men overall have been harder hit by the downturn, partly because predominantly male sectors like construction and manufacturing are suffering the most. Female-dominated industries, such as health care and, until recently, education, have remained relatively stable.

In a separate study, Mr. Katz says he and his colleagues found little difference in the career paths of young men and women M.B.A.s who had graduated between 1990 and 2006. 'They pretty much go on the same trajectories except when women have kids,' he says. 'The M.B.A. labor market seems to be one that puts very large penalties on career interruptions.'

In Catalyst's study, more women than men took voluntary leaves of absence, 9% vs. 3%, respectively. But 10% of women came to work from voluntary leaves, compared with 2% of men who returned.

In some instances, female M.B.A.s are having a harder time than men, according to the Catalyst study. In Europe, 44% of male respondents have been promoted compared with 26% of women. Eleanor Tabi Haller-Jorden, general manager of Catalyst Europe AG, said the disparity 'doesn't seem to be related to the crisis but magnifies an ongoing issue in Europe -- the challenge of recruitment, retention and development of women.'

Catalyst found women fared less well near the top of organizations. The study found 19% of women classified as executives had lost jobs, compared with 6% of male executives. The results reflect small samples -- 27 women and 131 men, which Catalyst says reflects the few women in those posts. 'Women and men are lockstep except at the top,' says Ilene H. Lang, Catalyst's president and CEO. 'Our research has shown for a long time that women hold their own in the middle levels, it's the senior levels where there's a drop-off.'

Ms. Lang says gender-based stereotypes about leadership during tough times and limited access to informal networks and mentors may be partly responsible for the disparity.

The study found little support for one stereotype -- that women are less likely to relocate than men. Catalyst said a roughly equal proportion of men and women relocated domestically or internationally.

纽约非营利研究机构Catalyst的一项新研究显示，拥有工商管理硕士(MBA)学位的女性在经济衰退期间的境况跟同等资历的男性一样。
周二发表的研究论文分析了1996-2007年毕业于亚洲、加拿大和欧美顶级商学院的873名MBA的资料。研究对受调查者2007年11月至2009年6月期间的经历进行了调查，这段时间正是经济低迷加剧的时期。

就职于瑞士信贷投行部门的兰金(Robin Rankin)今年早些时候获得了晋升发表在《哈佛商业评论》(Harvard Business Review)上的这项研究发现，男性和女性得到提升或遭遇裁员的机率大致相当。有36%的男性升职，10%失业；女性则有31%升职，12%失业。论文作者说，从统计学的角度来讲，这样的差异并不显著。Catalyst重点关注职场中涉及女性的问题。这是该机构首次研究经济衰退对高级人才的影响。

研究结果与其他一些研究和政府数据一致。美国劳工部(Labor Department)公布，7月份年龄25岁以上、拥有大学学历的人中，男性和女性失业的比例分别为5.4%和5.2%。衰退开始时，大学学历的女性失业率高于男性，但随着经济滑坡持续，男性失业率加剧。哈佛大学经济学家卡兹(Lawrence Katz)说，总体上，男性受经济低迷冲击更严重，部分原因是建筑和制造等以男性为主的行业受影响最大。医疗卫生和教育等以女性为主的行业相对来说较为稳定。

卡兹说，他和同事们在另一项研究中发现，1990-2006年期间毕业的男女MBA的职业道路没什么差别。他说，除了女性生孩子期间而外，他们的职业轨迹几乎是一样的。MBA就业市场似乎会对职业生涯中断的情况实施很严重的惩罚。

Catalyst的研究显示，休无薪假的女性多于男性，二者比例分别为9%和3%。但有10%的女性休完无薪假又回去上班，而男性这一比例为2%。

Catalyst的研究显示，在一些情况下，女性MBA过得比男性艰难。在欧洲，44%的男性受调查者得到提升，而女性仅有26%。Catalyst Europe AG的总经理哈勒尔-乔登(Eleanor Tabi Haller-Jorden)说，这一差异似乎与经济危机无关，但加剧了欧洲当前的一个问题──女性在招聘、保留职位以及职业发展方面遇到的挑战。

Catalyst发现，身处高层的女性境况没那么好。研究发现，被归为管理层的女性有19%曾经失业，男性这一比例为6%。研究结果反映的样本数较小──27名女性和131名男性，Catalyst认为这些样本反映出身居此类职位的少数女性的情况。Catalyst总裁兼首席执行长Ilene H.Lang说，除了顶级职位而外，男性和女性不分上下。我们的研究显示，长期以来女性在中层都坚持住了，只是在高层出现了下滑。

Lang说，从性别角度看待艰难时期的领导能力以及进入关系网络和得到指点的机会受限可能是造成这种差异的一部分原因。