'Pioneers behind our own front doors': Towards greater balance in the organisation of work in partnerships

The seemingly intransigent nature of gender inequalities in the organisation of work has led to a somewhat gloomy portrayal of what is possible. Women's increased labour market participation has led to neither parity with men in terms of earnings and status nor a corresponding re-negotiation of labour in the home. Theorising on gender and work, however, tends to assume that workers, parents and households are heterosexual. This paper extends debate by considering the role of sexual identity for shaping the experience of work. It focuses on divisions of labour between lesbian women who are parenting together, and compares their arrangements with parents more generally. It seeks to illuminate what is achievable when actors are informed by broadly similar gender ideologies and negotiate from a position of gender parity in terms of power.