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Gender Inequality within the workplace
How women are treated in the workplace
Sexism in the workforce
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Recommended: Gender Inequality within the workplace
The “glass ceiling” is one of the most compelling metaphors for analyzing inequalities between men and women in the workplace. Glass ceiling can also be misunderstood, invisible, and elusive as a barrier that will prevent women and minorities from rising to the positions of prestige, power, or the highest position in the workforce, professional advancement at managerial levels. Because of this barrier many women have feelings that are not good enough to have the highest position, but also they the impression that the superiors would not take them seriously as they deserved. Few years ago many statistics showed that women is still facing “glass ceiling” barrier in management world with a whopping of 73% in comparison with only …show more content…
Sexual harassment also tends to occur more frequently in non-traditional work environments. Women may be subjected to inappropriate language or unwelcome sexual conduct. Also, if male supervisors or colleagues dislike the presence of women in their workplace, they may use sexually harassing behavior to humiliate them. The cause of such big percentage differences between men and women in management is cause sometimes because of resentment. Many men have the mentality that management world is like an “old male club” where women have no access. Is very hard for them to accept and recognize that women came along in comparison with few years before, and are as competent, intelligent, and success driven as men are. Another assumption is that men are convinced that women don’t have the quality to be a leader, since they believe that women are not emotionally equipped for managerial job because of their nature; therefore, women are considered fragile and temperamental. In order to become equal with men in leadership, is very essential for a women to have access to management training and line experience, mentors and role models at the highest levels, as well as access to formal and informal networks and channels of communication at work. Moreover, men need to learn to change their attitude in women, and equal employment opportunity policies needs to be monitored closely, and not to be allowed to become like it is at the moment, selective. Work equality policies have to be transparent, non-objective, and fair for everybody. Furthermore, there are not many female mentors and role models in the management world, and future female business students need to have the option to be mentored by female leaders in order to shape their career
The glass ceiling is defined as the “unseen, yet unbreachable barrier that keeps… women from rising to the upper rungs of the corporate ladder, regardless of their qualifications or achievements.” According to the Department of Labor, the glass ceiling is made up of “artificial barriers [that are] based on attitudinal or organizational bias that prevent qualified individuals from advancing upward in their organization into management-level positions.” Qualified women are continuously denied a promotion to the highest levels of corporate America and other professions. Once women reach a certain level at their career, they plateau and the glass ceiling prevents them from advancing any higher.
Fisher, H. The Natural Leadership Talents of Women. In Enlightened Power: How Women are Transforming the Practice of Leadership.
(2) Gender also poses a challenge in the work force. Today, more and more women are entering the workforce. As such, the working environment has greatly changed. Companies make sure that sexual harassment does not happen. Men are expected to carefully say things without offending the opposite sex. The same rule also applies to women.
This phenomenon was first described in a Wall Street Journal report by Hymowitz and Schellhardt (1986). Morrison, White and Velsor (1987) adopted the term in academic settings in their book titled: Breaking the Glass Ceiling: Can women Reach the top of America’s Largest Corporations? They defined glass ceiling as “a transparent barrier that kept women from rising above a certain level in corporations”. Many studies across different disciplines adopted the term since then (Bullard and Wright 1993; Cornwell and Kellough 1994; Crum and Naff 1997; Kellough 1989; Lewis and Emmert 1986; Lewis and Nice 1994; Mani 1997; Naff 1994; Naff and Thomas 1994; Newman 1994; Pfeffer and Davis-Blake 1987; Reid, Kerr, and Miller 2003; Wilson 2002). As a consequence, social psychologists provided the theoretical explanation of why there is fewer female on managerial positions. They came to the conclusion that this phenomenon is closely related to the fact that leadership is considered as a male quality. Traits that can be found in the literature, such as: ambitious, directive and risk-taking, are generally associated with men (Sabharwal, 2013). Moreover, there are some theories that try to expand the role of men in leadership even further. The “think-manager-thin-man” is undoubtedly dominating the literature (Agars
Barbara White, author of Women’s Career Development, gives an opportunity for successful women to give advice to other women wanting to pursue a career in the workforce. First, they explained that women need to be single-minded today. They must make their own choices and know what they want. If a woman hopes to achieve her goal of an ‘American Dream’ and live up to it, then she should be persistent and keep working at achieving her objectives. The best advice given in White’s book is that a woman should not underestimate herself (227-229). A woman today can be whatever she pleases. It takes work, dedication and persistence to achieve goals in general, not just in the career aspect of life. As seen through Joan Crawford and Dawn Steel’s stories, a ‘business woman’ has a bright future now and for years to come. Women’s roles have drastically changed throughout the past century along with the actual number of women now working. It is phenomenal to see such an increase in women’s participation, and hopefully this course will continue even higher into the twenty-first century.
It has been proven that even by creating equal employment laws, one cannot ensure that woman will be treated fairly when being employed, especially in business. This equal treatment will not occur until enough men in power give the qualified women a chance to hold these positions. The business world will realize that women are capable of working alongside and over men in the business world.
Women have been treated unfairly and discriminated in the workforce for too long. The discrimination that these women face is unjust and unwarranted. It is sad that as a society in the twenty-first century we are still trying to combat these issues. In Developing Women Leaders was published in The Industrial-Organizational Psychologist July 1, 2012 it discusses possible solutions and how stigmas and stereotypes are starting to change. Women should not have to face discrimination in the workplace as a society there should be an equal standard for all individuals no matter the race or gender.
In “A distressing summer of workplace sexism reminds us how far we have to go” by Susanna Schrobsdorff, the author states, “according to a Pew Research survey released in August, most American men—56%— think sexism is over and done with. More than half believe that “the obstacles that once made it harder or women than men to get ahead are now largely gone. Of course, most women—63%—disagree” (Schrobsdorff 55). The misbelief that sexism still does not exist allows for the culture in which women continue to only be seen as sexual objects and not competent workers. Ehrenreich describes that, “[you should] watch out for Lon, who has a habit of following his female coworkers into service closets” (Ehrenreich 64). Ehrenreich is warned about a potential harassing employee and that it may happen to you, but most importantly, the behavior is normalized instead of trying to stop it. In “Not Just Fox” by Katha Pollitt, she explains that there is a misconception when it comes to being harassed and it is that, “being harassed is not a matter of weakness; it’s about the enormous power differential between worker and boss” (Pollitt 6). This is further supported by “ a 2015 Cosmopolitan survey, 71% of women said they did not file complaints about sexual harassment, likely because they feared appearing difficult or ‘too sensitive.’And they worry about retaliation and job security” (Schrobsdorff 55). Sometimes the person that is doing the harassing is the supervisor or the manager, when this occurs the victim is left with little options that will not disrupt the workplace. She also runs the possibility of being fired solely to avoid a sexual harassment complaint that she may file against him. Ehrenreich states that, “as a dietary aide, as I understand the job, is dependent on a cook as a waitress is[;] He or she
The “glass ceiling” is a barrier to advancement that affects women when they work in
When people are talking about CEO’s, Presidents or any other person in a high position, who comes to mind? For most people, the person that comes to mind is a white male. Even in one of the most progressive and modern countries in the world males are associated with positions of power. Gender inequality refers to the unequal treatment or perceptions of individuals based on their gender. Although we have made abundant steps in narrowing gender inequality, patriarchy still continues in society and thus women today have yet to gain the same opportunities in the workplace. Even with acts such as the Equal Pay Act that passed 35 years ago, today, half of the workforce is consists of women, but the average workingwoman earns only 80.9% of what the workingman makes. There is also a lack of promotion in high positions for qualified women in the work force. These are just a few of the work place inequalities that females are faced with. Even with the many steps taken to ensure equality in the work field, the gender discrimination continues to exist.
Also, the majority of women have been able to secure employment from traditionally female occupations such as teaching compared to male-dominated careers like engineering. Moreover, democratic country like the United States of America has recognized gender inequality as a fundamental issue and espouse equal right between men and women in contributing to social, economic and cultural life. Despite this improvement, gender inequality persists as women are not represented and treated equally in the workplace (Michialidis, Morphitou, & Theophylatou, 2012). The increasing number of women in the workplace has not provided equal opportunity for career advancement for females due to the way women are treated in an organization and the society. Also, attaining an executive position seem impossible for women due to the glass ceiling effects which defines the invisible and artificial barrier created by attitudinal and organizational prejudices, which inhibit women from attaining top executive positions (Wirth
Unfortunately, even today, women are still trying to prove themselves equal to men in many ways. The “glass ceiling” is perhaps one of the most familiar and evocative metaphors to surface from the 20th century. This expression has been used widely in the popular media as well as in official government reports. The image suggest that although it may be the case now that women are able to get through the front door professional hierarchies, at some point they hit an invisible barrier that blocks any further upward movement. “Below this barrier, women are able to get promoted; beyond this barrier, they are not”. Such a situation can be considered a limiting case for a more general phenomenon: situations in which the disadvantages women face relative to men strengthen as they move up executive hierarches. “Traditional approaches to recruitment, organization and job design, performance management and promotions are often designed in ways that are more suited to men than to women. This is what creates the glass ceiling”. Beyond the limit of job titles, the glass ceiling also creates a pay difference between men and women performing the same work requirements.
For many decades, women have faced inequalities in the workforce. At one point, they were not allowed to work at all. Although women's rights have improved and are now able to work alongside men, they are still treated unfairly. According to the 2012 U.S. Census, women’s earnings were “76.5 percent of men’s” (1). In 2012, men, on average, earned $47,398 and women earned only $35,791. This is when comparing employees where both gender spend the same amount of time working. Not only do women encounter unfairness in work pay, they also face a “glass ceiling” on a promotional basis. This glass ceiling is a “promotion barrier that prevents woman’s upward ability” (2). For example, if a woman is able to enter a job traditionally for men, she will still not receive the same pay or experience the same increase in occupational ability. Gender typing plays a huge role in the workplace. It is the idea that women tend to hold jobs that are low paid with low status. Women are not highly considered in leadership positions because of social construction of gender. Society has given women the role of “caretakers” and sensitive individuals. Therefore, women are not depicted as authoritative figures, which is apparent with the absence of women in leadership roles in companies. Furthermore, sex segregation leads to occupations with either the emphasis of women in a certain job or men in a certain job. In 2009, occupations with the highest proportion of women included “secretary, child care worker, hair dresser, cashier, bookkeeper, etc.” (3). Male workers typically held job positions as construction workers, truck drivers, taxi drivers, etc. (3). Sex segregation represents inequality because the gender composition for these jobs depends on what ...
According to a recent study, the causes of sexual harassment in the workforce can be exceedingly difficult due to the fact that employee’s are dependent on each other for team work and support, and are reliant on their supervisor’s approval for time off and career advancement. Supervisors and employers take advantage of their supremacy they have over their employees. Such closeness and intensity can distort the professional boundaries which lead people to cross over the line. The report also reported that Politics can be a catalyst, and problems caused by poor management, workplace bullying, frustration, and job/financial insecurity which creates a hostile environments. Furthermore, personal problems can also play a factor, and sexual harassment can be a symptom of the effects of life traumas, such as divorce, or death of a spouse or child (Sexual Harassment in the Workplace).
Gender inequality is present in all aspects of human society, from culture, politics, and economic stand point to personal relationships. Gender inequality can be viewed as a major problem especially within the business world (Corporation, 2016). In the past, men are seen as leaders in all aspects. For example, men could work without any criticisms, they could participate in political issues and were given higher education. Women on the other hand, were given no political participation, criticized for working outside the household as they were responsible for chores such as takes care of their children, cooking or cleaning and given limited education compared to men. Although there are claims rights equality of women in 21st century and much has been written about it in the field of business (Player, 2013), but there is still a gap between male and female. This essay aims to explore the impact of gender inequality in business and will analyze the details in terms of the men are given high pay and specific jobs over women.