Sexism In The Workplace

Sexism In The Workplace
tend to earn less than white men at the start their careers, basing future pay off past pay, the thinking goes, Gentlemen, imagine life for one second. Imagine life not making an equal dollar to a woman. Imagine looking provocative in your required business attire no matter how modest it is. Imagine not being worth the pay. Imagine your boss hiring you because you are cheaper to pay. Imagine being asked to leave the job you have had for quite some time all because you have a child now, and you should be home taking care of him or her instead. Imagine being told that work was never meant for you. You do not belong in the workplace. Your job is meant for a woman, a man could never handle it. Now stop imagining and reflect

on how unfair the workplace would be for you, think of how you would fight against the odds.

Think of how women have been fighting these things for decades. According to the Merriam- Webster Dictionary, sexism is defined as discrimination against one sex or attitudes that create stereotypes of gender roles. Men created the social role of a woman, but women were unhappy and decided to fight the limited social acceptions. Throughout history, gender roles have caused a huge uproar and sexism in the workplace has been a significant issue in many ways. Jobs that are or are not meant for women, disrespect and sexual assault, family and maternity leave makes women unworthy of a higher ranking in a business. Learn about the evolution of cultural expectations of women and how they have come a long way since the days of Rosie the Riveter. All though blaming seems extreme, I can tell you that the ones who can help fix the issues we have today are those who are not affected, we need everyone to fight for equality, and people to set examples in order to make every issue with sexism in the

workplace come to an end.
Since the beginning of the working days for women, they were not viewed as hard workers in fact, they were hardly ever allowed to work because men did not think they were capable. It was culturally unacceptable for a woman to do a “man’s” job. Prior to World War II women were expected to be the typical housewife who stayed home to take care of the children, cook, and clean; if they had jobs they were allowed to do work meant for women such as nursing, or being a maidservant. A woman before World War II was like a family book keeper, one who controlled everything in the household and even if they did work, the only jobs men believed they were qualified for were like the previously mentioned-- taking care of other people, and their homes. When World War II commenced, women were all of a sudden needed to do the jobs only men did. This meant women were taking over; now making ammunition and weapons, women were officially war workers.
During World War II, employers desperately needed women to replace the men who were drafted and to staff the industries making war products. To induce them to enter the labor force, businesses began to provide the resources that enabled women to keep their households going even while they put in many hours on the job. (Kessler-Harris, 11)
This was said during a question and answer interview with a Columbia University History Professor, Alice Kessler-Harris; shortly before this she was talking about the help women had to make it possible for them to work. That included child care which was not free, so staying home was not an option and women did have to keep their homes while their husbands were in combat; working was the way to do so.
Subsequently women were expected to return to home making duties, instead they resisted. As a result, women took the low paying jobs they were allowed to do after the men returned because they were willing to take any offer in the workplace. They were still doing a “man’s” job, but they were satisfied with the allowance of being out of the house. Shortly after. as the baby boomer generation sparked, women returned to being full-time housewives. An ideal role for a woman arrived once again. Submissive, and domestic caregiver not by choice.
Eventually this began to change and women were no longer going to finishing or charm school to get their “Mrs. Degree.” Instead, they became journalists and took on managerial jobs in the 60s. As the decades went by, more and more women began to not stay at home, the ideal role was fading. Soon being a stay at home mom or housewife was no longer a thing, it was viewed as unusual. With the economy constantly changing, there were times where families could no longer afford to only have one working parent. Divorce was also becoming more common so there were more single parents. The cultural and social idea of a women staying home while her husband was the main financial provider had banished. In the early 2000s studies proved that the education gap was closing. In an article titled,” Profile of Women in the Unites States in 2000,” governmental author Robert Longley stated, “61% The percentage of women age 16 and over in the civilian labor force in March 2000. The percentage for men was 74%.” (para 13). He provided many more statistics about women with income, family, marriage, education, and more. I appreciated that it had been statistically proven that more and more women were working, and working jobs they wanted not jobs meant for their gender.
Along with the major issue of gender roles in the workforce, women have dealt with disrespect in many ways. Whether that is name calling, being looked down upon for doing a man’s job, or worse, sexual assault, it is disrespect. Sexual assault in the workplace has been huge, many women have multiple stories they have told of personal experiences with both verbal and physical assault. One example of sexual assault in the workplace that I found was from the book International Business Ethics, written by Dennis McCann and Stephan Rothlin. In chapter nine abstract it said, “ In May 2011, Dominique Strauss-Kahn was arrested by New York City police for allegedly committing various criminal sexual acts against a maid at his hotel, including attempted rape, at a time when he was there on business for the IMF.” (9) A woman was doing her job, and although they were not working in the same business, that woman had been assaulted on the job. For those who are unfamiliar, IMF stands for International Monetary Fund, and they reside in 189 countries. The man who committed the sexual assault and disrespected this woman who was just trying to do her job, was sent to trial, but when it comes down to it, whose fault is it? Does it fall on the shoulders of the men who were never taught to treat a women with respect? Is it the woman’s fault for wearing proper work attire which may have made her look provocative in a man’s eyes? Are you supposed to point your finger and the ones who did not stand up for the woman? According to Shane Ferro, economics reporter for Business Insider, in her article entitled, “The Problem With Women In The Workplace Is Men,” she stated, “it shouldn’t be women’s responsibility to fix men or deal with their misogyny. Instead, men should be taking it upon themselves to treat women with respect, and demand their other male colleagues do the same” (para 4). Some may not agree but when step back and look at the picture in whole, men should set the example for their other male friends.
Now that we have addressed the gender roles, and sexual harassment/ disrespect, I must remind you that those are not the only problems with sexism in the workplace.

Why is unequal pay such a large problem still? Why are women still fighting for it and should they still be fighting? Let us backtrack for a second. If you remember, after World War 2, women were proudly taking any job they were allowed to take in the factories or in the workforce other than being a maid, or entertainer. Taking any job other than being a stay at home mom meant they were making money so as I said before as well, they were given the lowest paying jobs. Men had only allowed women to take the jobs with the lowest wage because they still believed only men could financially support the family, women were still incapable in their eyes. This meant that for the next few decades women would still make a lower-income than men. Since most people have to give their salary information when looking for a new job, this makes it easier for a manager to decide who they would have to pay less. Since women started out making less, they would always be paid less than men. Even though the difference is not a large number, it is still unequal pay. Alicia Adamczyk in her article, “What You Need to Know About Women’s Workplace Equality” stated, “Massachusetts became the first state to pass a law banning employers from asking prospective hires about salary history. Because women and minorities means they'll always lag

behind” (para 6). I appreciate that Massachusetts has stepped up to make a difference in the workplace. This is not just any difference, but they are taking actions to create a more equal work environment by trying to make equal pay a reality.