Gender equity and emotional labour in the workplace: an ethnographic study

Romania's recent economic growth has positioned it as a competitive player in the European Union. However, this macroeconomic progress contrasts with the persistent labour market challenges faced by recent university graduates, particularly in the outsourced services sector. This study investigates the gendereddimensions of education-job mismatches and emotional labour among young graduates employed in Romanian call centres. This study employs 3 years of ethnographic fieldwork (June 2021-June 2024) to investigate how the organisational structure of outsourced customer support creates and reinforces gender inequities, frequently resulting in unstable and limited career trajectories for female employees. Through participatory observation and semi-structured interviews with customer support representatives (CSRs) and their supervisors, this study identifies the often-invisible mechanisms embedded in daily routines, performance metrics, and management practices that perpetuate structural disadvantages within the digital workplace. The findings argue that the work processes in outsourced call centres are characterised by standardisation, emotional labour, deskilling, and rigid hierarchies, which significantly contribute to gender inequality and precarious career paths, especially for young and educated women. Often, the roles of CSRs do not fully utilise employees' potential, resulting in dissatisfaction, burnout, and high turnover rates. By analysing the intersection of emotional labour and gendered expectations, this study makes a significant contribution to the field of sociology, specifically in the areas of work and employment, offering insights into the structural mechanisms that perpetuate inequality in the contemporary Romanian Business service sector.