|
Gender. As shown in Table 4.9, women
constituted about 19 percent of officer accessions and 14 percent of the officer corps in FY 1998. The Air Force holds its place as the most gender-integrated regarding officers, with the Army and the Navy not far
behind. Though the levels of women in the officer corps are nowhere near college graduate population proportions, sustained growth has occurred in the representation of women among officers (see Appendix Tables
D-24 and D-29
for trends among accessions and the officer corps since FY 1973).
Table 4.9. FY 1998 Active Component Female Officer Accessions and
Officer Corps (Percent) |
| |
Army |
Navy |
Marine Corps |
Air Force |
DoD |
| Active Component Accessions |
19.6 |
17.2 |
9.2 |
23.2 |
19.1 |
| Active Component Officer Corps |
14.4 |
14.5 |
4.6 |
16.7 |
14.4 |
| Also see Appendix Table B-32 (Gender by Service). |
The primary source of commission for women in FY 1998 continued to be the direct
appointment (32 percent), as shown in Table 4.6. Female officer accessions were less likely than males to have attended an academy. The majority of directly
appointed officers are in the professional groups (i.e., medical, dental, legal, and ministry). Officers from these professional groups are classified as "non-line," are
managed separately, and do not assume command responsibilities over "line" officers. Career opportunities tend to be somewhat limited for non-line officers and can result
in differences in pay grade distributions. Table 4.10 shows pay grade by gender for each of the Services and for DoD as a whole. There were pay grade differences
between the genders, though not to the same degree as among racial/ethnic groups. Across DoD, 41 percent of male officers were O-4s through O-6s, whereas the
percentage of women in these grades was 8 percentage points lower at 33 percent.
| Table 4.10. FY 1998 Pay Grade1
of Active Component Officers, by Service and Gender (Percent) |
| Pay Grade |
Army |
Navy |
Marine Corps |
Air Force |
DoD |
| MALES |
| O-1 through O-3 |
58.7 |
59.1 |
63.0 |
56.2 |
58.3 |
| O-4 through O-6 |
40.8 |
40.4 |
36.5 |
43.4 |
41.2 |
| O-7 through O-10 |
0.5 |
0.5 |
0.5 |
0.5 |
0.5 |
| Total
|
100.0 |
100.0 |
100.0 |
100.0 |
100.0 |
| FEMALES |
| O-1 through O-3 |
67.6 |
62.4 |
77.4 |
67.8 |
66.5 |
| O-4 through O-6 |
32.4 |
37.5 |
24.4 |
32.2 |
33.4 |
| O-7 through O-10 |
0.1 |
0.1 |
0.3 |
0.1 |
0.1 |
| Total
|
100.0 |
100.0 |
100.0 |
100.0 |
100.0 |
Columns may not add to total due to rounding.
1 Excludes those with unknown rank/pay grade.
Also see Appendix Table B-48 (Pay Grade by Gender and Service). |
Commissioning source differences complicate the interpretation of variations in pay
grade distributions by gender. For example, direct commissions may provide an early grade boost for women, since advanced degree requirements associated with
occupations in the professional echelons are rewarded by DoD with advanced pay grade initially for commissioned officers. However, assignment differences and
command restrictions, as well as networking obstacles, may retard retention, continuation, and hence career progression for women. Assignment qualifications,
interests, and policy also affect pay grade. In the Air Force, for example, status as a pilot would contribute to enhanced career prospects. (Assignment data are provided
later in this chapter in the discussion of occupation areas.) Go to next.
|
