Women in leisure management: a survey of gender equity

Abstract

Previous research has highlighted women’s unequal status in relation to management within a range of service sector industries. Leisure services, however, has remained an under‐researched sector in spite of its growing significance to the economy and its increasing importance as an employer of women. This paper reports selected results from recent research examining gender equity in leisure management. The research, examined gender equity in leisure management and within the professional institute itself. The results demonstrate that women experience both structural and cultural constraints in attempting to secure management careers in leisure but that they remain optimistic about the future. Analysis of the results indicates that this optimism may be misplaced in an industry where women are encouraged to accept large amounts of senior management responsibility for middle management salaries, where routes to promotion remain unclear, and where organisational culture is informed by the dominant “locker room culture” of male sport.