This collection of papers on comparable worth written by political scientists contains the best annotated bibliography on comparable worth that this reviewer has yet seen. One notable paper categorizes the 50 states as to whether they have conducted a comparable worth legislation, and have implemented comparable worth. Other contributors explain how job evaluation can be performed to implement comparable worth, describe the difficulties and possible bias in job evaluation methods, and present US case studies. . . . It has an outstanding bibliography and overview of many important issues. Choice Legislation outlawing sexual discrimination and mandating policies of equal pay for equal work has clearly failed to produce the intended results. Women workers continue to be paid substantially less than men, and more and more families headed by women have sunk below the poverty level. This volume of essays focuses on major issues that must be faced before a public policy promoting pay equity can become a reality. Combining the contributions of specialists from several disciplines, it offers statistical comparisons and analyses of wage inequities in various occupations, industries, and regions; case studies of comparable worth programs; and a conceptual framework for approaching the problem on a policy level.

This groundbreaking collection introduces the concept of gender power as a pervasive but overlooked force within institutions, particularly U.S. politics. It examines the ideological dimensions of masculinity--masculinism--and its pervasive and reinforcing effects. The essays examine gender as a property of institutions, something with deep symbolic meaning, as well as an analytic category importantly distinctive from sex. Theoretically rich, Gender Power, Leadership and Governance contributes to understandings of power and leadership as it provides a new perspective on men, women, and their relationships to governance. Essays reveal the multiplicity of ways ""compulsory masculinity"" is imposed upon female leaders who wish to succeed in a man's world, and analyzes the use of interpersonal means to ensure masculine advantage. For example, only one woman in Congress was able to have a direct effect on any reproductive policy; other women experienced sexual harassment by offensive men, which resulted in their being distracted from performing as leaders. Until now, studies of gender within the field of political science have focused centrally on women. Men have been studied as gendered beings whose thinking has shaped politics in ways advantageous to them, but this volume is unique in crossing multiple levels of analysis and demonstrating the interactive and reinforcing effects of gender power. The book is required reading for political scientists who have frequently been blind to masculinist assumptions and cultural belief systems when gender roles collide with leadership demands for women. It will also appeal to those in public administration and policy, sociology, and business studies. ""An important book that challenges the ways empirical research is done and the ways social scientists think about gender.""--Nancy Hartsock, University of Washington ""A very useful book on gender and political leadership that weaves together scholarly research with practical applications and suggestions for change.""--Virginia Sapiro, University of Wisconsin, Madison ""A very ambitious book, attempting no less than a paradigm shift in social science thinking.""--Marcia Lynn Whicker, Rutgers University Georgia Duerst-Lahti is Associate Dean and Associate Professor of Government, Beloit College. Rita Mae Kelly is Director and Chair of the School of Justice Studies, and Professor of Justice Studies, Political Science, and Women's Studies, Arizona State University.