Occupational Segregation in Post-Apartheid South Africa: The Interplay of Gender, Race, and Place

Sangeeta Parashar, University of Maryland

In South Africa, apartheid has exacerbated inequities in labor force outcomes, not just between the various races (Black Africans, Whites, Coloureds, and Asian-Indians), but also between the sexes. However, empirical knowledge of the interplay between these two systems of social oppression in determining occupational segregation remains somewhat scant. Using the 2001 Census, I will analyze occupational segregation in South Africa. The main objectives of the study are: 1) to describe the separate, and then interacting, roles of gender and race in determining an individual’s placement in gender segregated occupations; and 2) to analyze how micro-level determinants such as human capital and family structure interact with race and gender to influence an individual’s placement in gender segregated occupations across different geographical provinces.