Abstract:
People spend a considerable part of their life devoted to work. It is the gender, one of the
dimensions, that shapes the access to a specific profession and determines how others may
perceive you. For centuries society’s prescription on what work to go or what women should do
are constrained by discrimination. This notion of what is accessible to women must be differing
in various cultural settings. Kazakhstan is considered a post-Soviet country, such dominant
cultural ideology left a trace of structure on work dynamics: in the families, gender roles division
suggests the man’s role be a breadwinner, while women’s activity, though usually working,
prescribed to spend considerable time on house choruses. Still, this stereotypical gender division
has a heavy impact on the choice of work. Because when we look up at the gender composition
of a group who does this work, we may label it as feminine or masculine work – depending on
the prevalence of men or women. This labeling accompanies giving symbolic associations such
as power and prestige associated with a particular activity. Following that, normalizing it to be
men's or women’s work sets the norm for who can enter the job industry, which after that we
may think “this job is done only by men/women” (Gherardi 1994 cited in Johansson, Asztalos
Morell, and Lindell 2020: 4).