Wednesday focus: The workplace

As the recession grinds on, men are being laid off at a far greater clip than women, spawning a historic American emigration out of the cubicle and into the kitchen.

More than 80 percent of pink slips handed out since the recession began in December 2007 have gone to men, thanks to their disproportionate slice of jobs in hard-hit fields like construction and manufacturing, according to government data.

In November, women held more than 49 percent of jobs. And since many are with more stable employers such as schools and hospitals, U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics suggest women soon could outnumber men in the workplace for the first time in history.

“The whole structure of the American job is changing,” said Jill Ater, co-founder of the national part-time job-placement service 10 til 2. “This trend could change the way we look at traditional gender roles. Women represent a super-educated but under-utilized workforce. Now many of these women are saying, ‘He might not be able to get a job. But I can.’ ”

In Silicon Valley, where the global downturn fuels a weekly exodus from startup sites and office parks, home life for many couples is undergoing its own seismic shift – with Mommy Breadwinner, Daddy Daycare and life as they knew it now flipped upside down.

Even as they hunt for a new job, trying to get by on what is often a spouse’s more meager pay, men are learning to simultaneously polish resumes, change diapers, set up interviews and teach teenagers to drive.

“I’m beginning to feel like Mr. Mom,” said Mark Mistor, 46, laid off last month as purchasing manager for a Hayward, Calif., tech firm. “I pick up my daughter from kindergarten at noon. But if I’m out interviewing or have resumes to submit, I’ll drop her off at day care – a 6-year-old needs a lot of attention.”

Mistor, like other laid-off men interviewed for this story, says his stay-at-home status “is a mixed blessing. My job took a lot of time out of my life, so my kids have received their daddy back. I’m helping my son with driver’s training, and helping him on the computer getting ready for college, so there’s definitely a silver lining to all this.”

Women’s paychecks represent 80 cents for each dollar a male co-worker earns, according to government statistics.

San Jose Mercury News