Defenders of special protective labor legislation for women often main

Question

Defenders of special protective labor legislation for women often maintain that eliminating such laws would destroy the fruits of a century-long struggle for the protection of women workers. Even a brief examination of the historic practice of courts and employers would show that the fruit of such laws has been bitter: they are, in practice, more of a curse than a blessing.

Sex-defined protective laws have often been based on stereotypical assumptions concerning women’s needs and abilities, and employers have frequently used them as legal excuses for discriminating against women. After the Second World War, for example, businesses and government sought to persuade women to vacate jobs in factories, thus making room in the labor force for returning veterans. The revival or passage of state laws limiting the daily or weekly work hours of women conveniently accomplished this. Employers had only to declare that overtime hours were a necessary condition of employment or promotion in their factory, and women could be quite legally fired, refused jobs, or kept at low wage levels, all in the name of  “protecting”  their health. By validating such laws when they are challenged by lawsuits, the courts have colluded over the years in establishing different, less advantageous employment terms for women than for men, thus reducing women’s competitiveness on the job market. At the same time, even the most well-intentioned lawmakers, courts, and employers have often been blind to the real needs of women. The lawmakers and the courts continue to permit employers to offer employee health insurance plans that cover all known human medical disabilities except those relating to pregnancy and childbirth.

Finally, labor laws protecting only special groups are often ineffective at protecting the workers who are actually in the workplace. Some chemicals, for example, pose reproductive risks for women of childbearing years; manufacturers using the chemicals comply with laws protecting women against these hazards by refusing to hire them. Thus the sex-defined legislation protects the hypothetical female worker, but has no effect whatever on the safety of any actual employee. The health risks to male employees in such industries cannot be negligible, since chemicals toxic enough to cause birth defects in fetuses or sterility in women are presumably harmful to the human metabolism. Protective laws aimed at changing production materials or techniques in order to reduce such hazards would benefit all employees without discriminating against any.

In sum, protective labor laws for women are discriminatory and do not meet their intended purpose. Legislators should recognize that women are in the work force to stay, and that their needs—good health care, a decent wage, and a safe workplace—are the needs of all workers. Laws that ignore these facts violate women’s rights for equal protection in employment.     1 
 1. According to the author, which of the following resulted from the passage or revival of state laws limiting the work hours of women workers?

(A) Women workers were compelled to leave their jobs in factories.
(B) Many employers had difficulty in providing jobs for returning veterans.
(C) Many employers found it hard to attract women workers.
(D) The health of most women factory workers improved.
(E) Employment practices that addressed the real needs of women workers became common.

2 
 2. The author places the word “protecting” ( Highlighted ) most likely in order to suggest that

(A) she is quoting the actual wording of the laws in question
(B) the protective nature of the laws in question should not be overlooked
(C) protecting the health of workers is important to those who support protective labor laws
(D) the laws in question were really used to the detriment of women workers, despite being overtly protective in intent
(E) the health of workers is not in need of protection, even in jobs where many hours of overtime work are required

3 
 3. The passage suggests that which of the following is a shortcoming of protective labor laws that single out a particular group of workers for protection?

(A) Such laws are often too weak to be effective at protecting the group in question.
(B) Such laws are usually drafted by legislators who, do not have the best interests of workers at heart.
(C) Such laws exert no pressure on employers to eliminate hazards in the workplace.
(D) Compliance with such laws is often costly for employers and provokes lawsuits by employees claiming discrimination.
(E) Employer compliance with such laws results in increased tension among workers on the job, because such laws unfairly privilege one group of employees over another.

4 
 4. According to the first paragraph of the passage, the author considers which of the following to be most helpful in determining the value of special protective labor legislation for women?

(A) A comparative study of patterns of work-related illnesses in states that had such laws and in states that did not
(B) An estimate of how many women workers are in favor of such laws
(C) An analysis of the cost to employers of complying with such laws
(D) A consideration of what intentions the advocates of such laws really had concerning women workers
(E) An examination of the actual effects that such laws have had in the past on women workers

5 
 5. The main point of the passage is that special protective labor laws for women workers are

(A) unnecessary because most workers are well protected by existing labor laws
(B) harmful to the economic interests of women workers while offering them little or no actual protection
(C) not worth preserving even though they do represent a hard-won legacy of the labor movement
(D) controversial because male workers receive less protection than they require
(E) inadequate in that they often do not prevent employers from exposing women workers to many health hazards

6 
 6. The author implies that which of the following is characteristic of many employee health insurance plans?

(A) They cover all the common medical conditions affecting men, but only some of those affecting women.
(B) They lack the special provisions for women workers that proposed special labor laws for women would provide.
(C) They pay the medical costs associated with pregnancy and childbirth only for the spouses of male employees, not for female employees.
(D) They meet minimum legal requirements, but do not adequately safeguard the health of either male or female employees.
(E) They have recently been improved as a result of the passage of new labor laws, but continue to exclude coverage of certain uncommon medical conditions affecting women.

7 
 7. According to the passage, special labor laws protecting women workers tend generally to have which of the following effects?

(A) They tend to modify the stereotypes employees often hold concerning women.
(B) They increase the advantage to employers of hiring men instead of women, making it less likely that women will be hired.
(C) They decrease the likelihood that employers will offer more protection to women workers than that which is absolutely required by law.
(D) They increase the tendency of employers to deny health insurance and disability plans to women workers.
(E) They have little impact of any kind on women workers, since typically very few women are employed in those classes of jobs covered by the laws.

RC Butler 2021  -  Practice Two RC Questions Everyday.   
Passage # 145 Date: 13-Apr-2021
 This question is a part of RC Butler 2021 .  Click here for Details

narji · Answer

Why C is the right option in 3rd question?

Rheaa1908 · Answer

Hey can anyone explain Question No .3, 5and 7

Posted from my mobile device

agarwal1993 · Answer

For question 3 refer para 3- "manufacturers using the chemicals comply with laws protecting women against these hazards by refusing to hire them. Thus the sex-defined legislation protects the hypothetical female worker, but has no effect whatever on the safety of  any  actual employee. The health risks to male employees in such industries cannot be negligible, since chemicals toxic enough to cause birth defects in fetuses or sterility in women are presumably  harmful to the human metabolism ."

Here the author suggests through an example that the "chemical manufacturer" refuses to hire women workers to "protect" them rather than improving the working conditions for  all  the employees. Hence choice (C) Such laws exert no pressure on employers to eliminate hazards in the workplace.

5. The main point of the passage is that special protective labor laws for women workers are

(A)  unnecessary  because most workers are well protected by existing labor laws
The author clearly mentions in the first para that "they are, in practice, more of a curse than a blessing." Therefore, it is extreme to say that the laws are unnecessary. That is why choice (B) is more correct than this choice.
(B) harmful to the economic interests of women workers while offering them little or no actual protection
Correct.
(C) not worth preserving even though they do represent a hard-won legacy of the labor movement
The author does not present a such extreme conclusion. In the last para, he concludes that these laws do not meet their intended purpose.
(D) controversial because male workers receive less protection than they require
The author has used only one comparison between male and female workers (para 3). In that too, the author says that 'all' employees are subjected to risks.
(E) inadequate in that they often do not prevent employers from exposing women workers to many health hazards
The main point is not limited to only health aspects. The passage talks about overall economic development and interests of women. The author does not say the laws are inadequate, rather he questions that overall logic behind making 'sex defined laws' and 'laws protecting only special groups'.

7. According to the passage, special labor laws protecting women workers tend generally to have which of the following effects?

(A) They tend to modify the stereotypes employees often hold concerning women.
Modify stereotypes? Absolutely not. They are rather based on stereotypical assumptions. 
(B) They increase the advantage to employers of hiring men instead of women, making it less likely that women will be hired.
(C) They decrease the likelihood that employers will offer more protection to women workers than that which is absolutely required by law.
The author questions that these laws are actually providing more opportunities to the employers to discriminate. Para 2 is completely regarding this (choice B). Therefore, 'more protection' is out of question.
(D) They increase the tendency of employers to deny health insurance and disability plans to women workers.
Tendency to deny health insurance-> Not discussed in the passage.
(E) They have little impact of any kind on women workers, since typically very few women are employed in those classes of jobs covered by the laws.
"those classes of jobs covered by the laws"-> this is nowhere discussed in the passage.

Hope, this clears your doubts  Rheaa1908

GAngstA · Answer

question 6 choice A is sort of incomplete, that what i personally think because the phrase from passage - The lawmakers and the courts continue to permit employers to offer employee health insurance plans that cover all known human medical disabilities except those relating to pregnancy and childbirth.

Naila02 · Answer

Could you please provide us with OE?

PrachiMaloo · Answer

can anyone explain question 6?

Ruby2021 · Answer

Can anyone please explain the reasoning behind Q6?

the27s · Answer

In summary
i) 1st para introduces the special legislation but quickly jumps to an opinion that they are being used against people it was supposed to benefit. 
ii) gives situations where the legislation has been used against women (veteran employment, reducing opportunities in the name of protection, inadequate coverage in insurance policies etc.)
iii) Discusses more situations of how the special laws are used against women (not hiring in certain industries interacting with harmful chemicals), and how protection needs to be provided to anyone irrespective of gender
iv) concludes with similar expression in 1st para and presents the requirements that need to be considered by the special laws

Q1) Correct Answer should be Option A. 
This question can be answered by directly looking at Line 5 of 2nd Para. Option B is exact opposite of what happened. Option C & E are anyway incorrect because the nowhere in the passage is attracting women into employment a subject. Option D is not true (cannot be inferred from passage) and irrelevant.

Q2) Correct Answer should be Option D.
Since the author of the passage discusses how the special laws are being misused by employers and the passage in which the highlighted word is present presents situations where the exploitation happened, the word 'protecting' is more of a cliched use. Option A is incorrect because the author doesn't quote any specific laws in the entire passage. Option B, C are in a positive sense, where as the right option should have the negative feel. Option E is far too negative as the passage never said health of workers is supposed to be out rightly overlooked.

Q3) Correction Answer should be Option C. The right option should give a drawback or an example of misuse of the special protective law. Option A ruled out because the passage never talked about the strength of the special laws, it rather quotes how employers misuse them and weakness of a law is not a drawback in itself. Option B is sort of out of scope choice because the passage never explicitly quotes the intention of lawmakers who drafted the laws, moreover, laws being written by ill-intentioned law makers cannot be draw back of the law itself. Option D is complete opposite of the intention of the Passage. Option E is out of scope again because the passage never talked about the discrimination that may arise due to implementation of the special laws (without the employers taking advantage)

Q4) Correct Choice should be E. The author clearly quotes historical data points/instances to conclude how the special laws are being misused. Option A, B, C are out of scope. Option D is the stance of the defenders/advocates and author doesn't agree with their defense

Q5) Correct Option Should be B. Option A is exact opposite of the intention of the passage. Option C recommends removal of the special laws, whereas the passage neatly puts forward some of the loopholes in the laws which need to be rectified and not everything is to the detriment of women. Option D is untrue as per passage. Option E is the opposite in that the employers, as per the author, are using the special laws to prevent women from being employed (not to mention that it is restricted in scope)

Q6) Correct answer should be option A. Option B is ruled out because the passage never quoted if the special laws required special health insurance plans for women. Option C is out of scope of the passage and is a benefit for the male employees only. Option D is incorrect because there is no quote of the scope of the health insurance which only meets the minimum legal requirements, further, the 2nd para specifically talks about coverage for most conditions, specifically for males. Option E is out of scope as the passage never talked of improvement to the existing policies

Q7) Correct answer is B. Need to look out for a negative choice or a choice that quotes misuse. Option A is ruled out because it is a positive. Option C is incorrect because, the special laws as quoted in the passage have never been restrictive in providing benefits to employees, the author rather discusses how the loopholes in the legislation are being misused by the employers. Option D is out of scope as the employers never denied providing health insurance, they have just been inadequate for women and a specific set of men in certain industries. Option E is out of scope as the passage never talked about the share of women in positions where health insurance is to be mandatorily provided by the employer.

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Explanation

3. The passage suggests that which of the following is a shortcoming of protective labor laws that single out a particular group of workers for protection?

Difficulty Level:    700

Explanation

The passage does suggest that protective labor laws for women exert no pressure on employers to eliminate hazards in the workplace. The passage argues that protective labor laws for women are often based on stereotypical assumptions about women's needs and abilities, and employers have used such laws as legal excuses for discriminating against women. Moreover, compliance with such laws may not actually improve workplace safety for women, as manufacturers may simply refuse to hire women to avoid complying with laws that protect women against reproductive hazards in the workplace.

Option (A)  is incorrect because the passage does not suggest that such laws are weak, but rather that they are discriminatory and do not meet their intended purpose.

Option (B)  is incorrect because the passage does not suggest that legislators do not have the best interests of workers at heart. Instead, the passage argues that even well-intentioned lawmakers, courts, and employers have often been blind to the real needs of women.

Option (D)  is incorrect because the passage does not suggest that compliance with such laws is costly for employers or provokes lawsuits by employees claiming discrimination. Instead, the passage argues that employers have used compliance with such laws as legal excuses for discrimination.

Option (E)  is incorrect because the passage does not suggest that employer compliance with such laws results in increased tension among workers on the job.

Answer: C

Sajjad1994 · Answer

Explanation

6. The author implies that which of the following is characteristic of many employee health insurance plans?

Difficulty Level:   650-700

Explanation

The author suggests that even well-intentioned lawmakers, courts, and employers have overlooked the needs of women by allowing employers to offer health insurance plans that exclude coverage of pregnancy and childbirth. The author states that "lawmakers and the courts continue to permit employers to offer employee health insurance plans that cover all known human medical disabilities except those relating to pregnancy and childbirth." Therefore, the correct answer is  (A) "They cover all the common medical conditions affecting men, but only some of those affecting women."  This option accurately reflects the author's argument that employee health insurance plans discriminate against women by failing to cover medical conditions unique to them.  Options (B), (C), (D),  and  (E)  are all incorrect because they are not supported by the passage.

Answer: A

VerbalBot · Answer

Hello from the GMAT Club VerbalBot!

Thanks to another GMAT Club member, I have just discovered this valuable topic, yet it had no discussion for over a year. I am now bumping it up - doing my job. I think you may find it valuable (esp those replies with Kudos).

Want to see all other topics I dig out? Follow me (click follow button on profile). You will receive a summary of all topics I bump in your profile area as well as via email.

Defenders of special protective labor legislation for women often main

Prep Toolkit

Top 5 GMAT Debrief Videos

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards

GMAT Reading Comprehension (RC) Questions

Defenders of special protective labor legislation for women often main

Prep Toolkit

615 to 715 in 15 Days (Ria's Strategies)

More than Quant/Verbal Abilities: Speed vs. Accuracy

745 with Only Self-Prep and GMAT Club

From 555 to 765: 210-point Improvement

Perfect 805 Score Debrief by Julia

My Rewards