Secondary Breadwinners: Israeli Women in the Labor Force

Though living and working in a country founded on egalitarian principles, women in Israel have yet to achieve workplace parity with men. The first comprehensive account of women’s participation in the Israeli labor force, Kraus’s book analyzes the trends in the status of women in paid employment since the 1960s. Covering all aspects of labor force participation, she fully integrates, and tracks over time, the many facets of social stratification by gender in Israeli society. Though founded as an egalitarian society, Kraus’s research clearly shows that traditional attitudes toward women in the Israeli workplace have prevailed over those more progressive. Consequently, the widely held impression that the status of women in Israel differs from that of their counterparts in other liberal democratic societies, is shown to be more myth than reality. Though focusing on Israel, comparisons are made with other modern industrial societies, adding to the evidence accumulating on the changing trends in the status of women in the labor force that will interest scholars and students concerned as to how gender intersects with matters of political economy. Furthermore, the unique spectrum of communities in Israel, ranging from traditional Muslim Arab-Palestinians, through Christian Arab-Palestinians and Jews of African American origin, through to the more modernized Jews of European-American origin, enables simultaneous examinations of the various stages of women’s integration in the labor force.