Gender-specification and occupational nouns

Abstract

This article examines the representation of the sexes in the language of job advertisements in France, given legislation outlawing gender discrimination in employment and the consequent feminist language reform initiatives. Specifically, it analyses a data set collected from the employment sections of the French national newspapers Le Figaro, Le Monde and Aujourd’hui en France, focusing on linguistic strategies that reflect that the advertised position is open to both female and male applicants. The analysis shows that in most cases the gender bias has been removed by means of the minimalist strategy of adding the descriptor H/F (homme/femme = man/woman) to a masculine occupational noun. The analysis also reveals that a mere one-third of the advertisements are truly gender-inclusive, using epicene occupational nouns, or nouns in both the feminine and the masculine forms, and gender-inclusive text, or focusing on the tasks to be accomplished rather than on the job applicant.