Local labor markets and occupational sex segregation in an American metropolis

This study analyzes the reciprocal relationships between place and labor ma rket segmentation by focusing on occupational sex segregation in Minneapoli s-St. Paul. On the one hand employment maps confirm that segmentation produ ces distinctive places: The slotting of women and men into different lines of work inscribes fine-grained spatial labor submarkets in different parts of the metropolis. On the other hand, logistic regression analyses confirm that place matters in segmentation processes: Workplace location significan tly influences the likelihood of occupational sex segregation even after co ntrolling for human capital and residential location factors. Occupational desegregation has advanced most rapidly with the emergence of new opportuni ties in suburban growth corridors. Continued suburban expansion and industr ial restructuring promise increasing complexity of spatial mismatch and spa tial segmentation and demand that employment policy incorporate issues of s pace, place, and scale.