Published online by Cambridge University Press: 02 January 2018
Women's participation in the industrial labor force seems to have followed a universal pattern across nations and across historical periods. Available evidence suggests that in the early stages of industrialization young, single women are readily employed in industries manufacturing food, clothing, and other nondurable products. As industrialization progresses and more advanced technologies are introduced, women are replaced by men as the preferred industrial workers (Baker, 1964; Boserup, 1970; Safa, 1977; Scott and Tilly, 1975).