ABSTRACT
At the end of World War II, Germany was divided into four occupied zones: The western zones, occupied by the United States, France, and England, became the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG); the eastern zone, occupied by the Soviet Union, became the German Democratic Republic (GDR). During its forty years of existence (1949-1989), the communist regime of the GDR brought nearly all women into the workforce. Despite remaining gender inequalities at work and in the division of labor at home (Gysi and Speigner 1983), women experienced extraordinary changes in their social position and in their self-understanding. These gains were real, though compromised by other features of the regime. They are now threatened by the unification of the two Germanies. Women have been especially affected by unemployment; by 1993, they constituted 64 percent of the unemployed. Subsidies for childcare centers as well as other supports for dual-career families and families headed by women have also been reduced (Rueschemeyer 1994).
