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The sting of layoffs can be sharper for men, according to this Yahoo Finance article from the New York Times.  If it sounds like the Times article is a little sexist, you’re probably right:

While gender roles are malleable, and many people are adjusting the boundaries, the roles that have been templates for many generations still linger, particularly when it comes to employment. Certainly, a financial provider for a family is going to see a job loss through a much different lens than a single person with no dependents, and more men are primary breadwinners.

You’d think that with a handle like Corporate Barbarian, I’d be some knuckle-dragging Luddite.  But I’ve worked with women throughout my career, and had several female bosses that were excellent managers.  A woman who’s advanced to a management position in the defense industry has paid her dues.  She’s had to endure a lot of crap to get where she is.  Women in high-ranking positions are in a small minority.  Many are the primary breadwinner in their households.  What about the wives of the newly laid off men?  They’ll have to pick up the slack for their families.  Tell THEM that men have it harder.

A therapist interviewed for the article observes:

“Everyone who has written about male psychology has acknowledged that men base their sense of self on the maxim that ‘I have worth because of what I do,’ ” Mr. Real said. The feeling is that “you are only as good as your last game or your last job,” he said.

Well, I hate to break the news to you buddy, but everybody has to stay on top of their games, especially during these tough economic times.  It’s called survival of the fittest, and it’s not limited to men only.  The article goes on to state:

In a 2002 study, two sociology professors at Wichita State University, Charles S. Koeber and David W. Wright, found that women who were laid off and went on to look for another job were re-employed less often than men in the same position. This was especially the case if the women were married, had previously held a part-time job or had worked in something other than a highly skilled, white-collar job.

The implication, Professor Koeber says, is that women have more of a burden than men to show their commitment to a job after a layoff.

“It looks like employers systematically apply some criteria to women that they don’t to men who are looking for jobs after being laid off,” Professor Koeber said.

I’ve seen the other criteria applied to women.  I thought, naively, when I came out of college, that the workplace would be an extension of my forward-thinking classroom experience.  It wasn’t.  A coworker of mine was passed over for a promotion because “She just got married.  She’ll get pregnant and leave in a year.  Then we’ll just have to train someone else for her job all over again.”  This wasn’t in 1954 either, but 1984.  I was floored.  Weren’t there laws preventing this?  Would they like their daughters to be treated like this?  Then you have this response:

“Gender has shaped the responsibilities my wife and I share,” said Mr. Anderson, 37. “I’d imagine, like a lot of men, I’m struggling with the shame aspect and the feeling that I have to go out and get another job immediately.”

Wah-wah-wah.  Man up, you guys! Layoffs suck, period.  I don’t want to diminish the anguish caused by layoffs with my smart-assed attitude, but to say that they’re harder for one group over another is just rationalizing.

Am I being too harsh?  Fire away in the comments.

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