Bargaining for equal pay and work–life balance in Danish companies – Does gender matter?

This article adds new insights into how equal pay and work–life balance issues are negotiated in male- and female-dominated companies, based on a survey of 3275 shop stewards, conducted in 2010. Inspired by Gregory and Milner’s concept of opportunity structures, we argue that the gender composition of the workforce affects the equal pay and work–life balance discussions and actions in Danish companies, but in a slightly different way from expected. It is often the male shop steward who exploits the opportunity structure created by more women among the staff to develop equal pay and work–life balance actions