''Olen tehnyt parhaani”

ABSTRACTHelena Karento”I have done my best.” A Research on Women in Higher Civil Service.Doctoral dissertation in administrative science.The research is based on the premise that gender organises work organisations.I postulate that the gender politics of a workplace control the conditions onwhich women gain membership of the organisation and how they achieve,take and establish their positions and what scope for action they have. Theaim of the research is to describe the gender politics in the positions andtasks of higher Civil Service. The central themes of the study are therecruitment of women, their careers and actions as women managers or highlevelexperts employed by state administration or local authorities. Thesewere analysed in view of administrative science and feminist organisationtheory, especially from the point of view of gendered processes.The data consists of 30 autobiographies written by women who holdmanagerial posts or work as high-level experts in state administration or localauthorities. The results of the study are based on my analysis of theautobiographies where the aim was to examine the women’s positions andscope for action in higher Civil Service.Gendered processes shaped the gender politics in public organisations. Inthe fight for ever diminishing resources in the organisations of higher CivilService – such as tenured posts, career advancement, management, expertiseand scope for action – gender was used overtly or covertly as the basis onwhich the resources were allocated. In these cases facilities were unequallydivided between women and men.There were differences between the women who hold managerial postsor work as high-level experts in state or local administration. Their scope foraction varied according to their feminist consciousness. Public administrationhas an official obligation to promote gender equality. Positive action haschanged the gender politics in higher Civil Service so that formal equalityhas been achieved. Positive action has consisted of special efforts whichhave been targeted on certain conditions to certain groups in state and localadministration. New co-operative forms of work and non-hierarchic structuresin higher Civil Service should be organised in a way that takes account ofgender. Women’s social collectivity and networks call for feministconsciousness.