Managerial Masculinities in the Australian Sugar Industry

Abstract

This paper examines the gendered identity work undertaken by managerial men in the agri-political group CANEGROWERS. It is argued that the most common form of managerial masculinity practised by men in the organisation is that of paternalism. When this style of leadership is ineffective, male managers deploy a more authoritarian form of managerial masculinity. A range of illustrations of the way these gendered masculine identities manifest themselves in the practice of leadership in CANEGROWERS is provided in the paper. The final section of the paper considers why paternalism and to a lesser extent, authoritarianism, are privileged in CANEGROWERS when the literature reports these configurations of managerial masculinity have largely been replaced by other forms of managerial masculinity in contemporary organisations.