Abstract
Mandel and Shalev's (2009) response to the efforts made by Estévez-Abe (2005) and Soskice (2005) to ‘gender the varieties of capitalism’ (VoC) has provided a valuable critique focused on two major topics, the explanations of variations in participation rates of women and the explanations of variations in gender segregation. Both of these elements of the critique can be further widened and deepened to underline the need to move beyond the rather narrow lens of the varieties of capitalism perspective.