Equality For Women's The Business World

"In 1950 about one in three women participated in the labor force. By 1998, nearly three of every five women of working age were in the labor force" (Heatherfield, n.d., para. 4). In 2008, the U.S. Department of labor estimates that women will make up 48% of the workforce (Heatherfield, n.d., para. 6). As the number of women in the workforce rises so do the numbers of women who hold higher titles such as Chairman, CEO, Vice Chairman, President, Chief Operating Officer, Senior Vice President, and Executive Vice President. This number has increased from 7.3% in 2000 to 9.9% in 2002 (Diversity statistics, 2006).

In the United States, study after study continues to show that women have fewer opportunities to advance in the workplace than men. These disadvantages are a result of society’s views of women in leadership positions and how women may view themselves in these roles. Women have been making progress in terms of equality in pay and job positions, but significant gaps remain. Women who strive to be promoted into higher levels of responsibility in their companies often meet resistance that prevents them from achieving the goal of a senior or executive level of management. This barrier is referred to as the “glass ceiling” and it is a controversial issue in our country today. The glass ceiling called this because women are able to see the higher level positions, but can reach them because of an intangible barrier. One can look at the Fortune 500 companies, which are the most successful companies in the U.S. in terms of revenue to see how few women are in leadership positions. Clearly, women are significantly underrepresented in these companies, as less than 5 percent of these companies have female chief executive officers (CEO) today (Dockterman 105). Providing the opportunity for women to move into management positions, like CEOs, would bring a unique talent and a new perspective on how the company can operate to perform better (Buckalew 147). The “glass ceiling” is a real obstacle that creates an intangible barrier that puts women at a disadvantage in advancing in a company.

The history of unequal pay between men and women in business started in February 1869, when a letter was sent to the editor of the New York Times questioning why female government employees were not paid the same as the male ones. “Very few persons deny the justice of the principle that equal work should command equal pay without regard to the sex of the laborer,” the author wrote. "But it is one thing to acknowledge the right of a principle and quite another to practice it." The author also noted that the U.S. Government employed 500 women in the Treasury department, but they made less than half of what the male colleges did. Throughout that year, a law passes the House of Representatives by almost 100 votes that included a resolution to ensure equal pay to government employees. This law, however was attenuated by the time it passes the Senate in 1870. The first public demand for fair pay for woman took place in 1883 when communications across the country came to a standstill when the majority of the workers for Western Union Telegraph Company went on strike. Their reasoning was partly to ensure “equal pay for equal work” for the male and female workers of the corporation. Although the strike wasn’t ultimately successful, it was the beginning of something larger. By 1911, New York teachers were finally granted equal pay to their male colleges after a long and vigorous battle with the Board of Education. As progress is still slow, women

What does it take for women to gain success in the business world? Well, it is generally thought that a great business leader has a few traits that led

Women are more successful than ever before. For instance there is women such as Melinda Gates, Michelle Obama and Oprah Winfrey that are very successful. Melinda Gates is a co founder of the Bill & Melinda Gates foundation and is an activist in philanthropy and global development and generates billions for this cause. Michelle Obama got her law degree in harvard, she advocate for the arts, education, and, above all, nutrition. Oprah Winfrey is a director, producer, entrepreneur , personality and philanthropist making a worth of $2.9 billion. Who would have thought back in the day that as a woman we have the potential to have a bright future in a world where Men have been the leaders for the past centuries.This woman apart from that their hard work have been able to thrive thanks to woman civil

In the fight for equality, it is obvious to defend against forms of sexism that are used for antagonization. However, chivalrous attitudes that cast women as weak and in need of men are often ignored. Social psychologists have studied the effects of benevolent sexism using experiments testing one’s performance shortly after being labeled as incompetent. Benevolent sexism is not a series of compliments, but rather a threat to one’s ability to think, learn, and perceive information. The workplace is an environment of which benevolent sexism occurs most often and one of which most are familiar with. Benevolent sexism in business does not allow men and women to achieve the same goals within the work place. Forcing an individual into a social role can limit them to only specific simple tasks that do not allow for maximum personal growth.

They believe they will let their emotions get the best of them in the decisions they make when it comes to leading a huge money making business. They feel women are less risk takers and in the business world it’s all about taking risks. Even though this can bring about new ideas and much more stability for workers as a whole. The individuals sitting upon the board of shareholders look towards making the fast money, so they believe women won’t lead them to that goal. The main objective for corporations is to make financial gains and increase net worth. She stated, “Weak, emotional, hysterical, gullible, dependent, and poor at math are a few of the common negative stereotypes about women so corporate CEO’s are reluctant to place a female in a seat of great power within a company. Gender stereotypes are hard to break, and like it or not, we are all prone to engaging in stereotyping at one time or another. As a society, we need to continue to encourage people to go beyond stereotypes and recognize the contributions that each individual, male or female, can make to the workplace (Galarza,

This myth has been perpetuated throughout history and in result; we have barriers such as the glass ceiling in existence. If we were to pull up a list of the Board of Directors for any given company, the probability of it being a predominately male group is high. This notion alone shows how companies have continued to dwell in olds days where men are considered more capable than women. The Glass ceiling effect has continued to place barriers against women endeavor in achieving success in their careers and participation in their work place. Women have not been able to realize their potential in their work places since they are not offered equal chances as compared to their men counterparts who enjoy great opportunities in organizations. The fact that an organization is ran by men, may cause an adverse effect on the performance of men. Obviously, a man thinks differently than a woman. It is likely that a decision made by men only is likely to ignore the interests of women in the organization. This creates a domino effect because it affects the woman’s performance in business since they only get limited chances to learn, and limited job assignments that will enhance their skills. Hence, low or limited skills and experience will lower their overall

In fact, progress for women and minorities in terms of both pay and power has stalled or regressed at many of the nation's biggest companies. This inequality shapes perceptions about who can or should be a leader.” (Hymowitz, 2008) This statement shows applicable reasoning as to why it is necessary to have equal pay between women and men in the workplace. When a company decides they are going to pay someone less money solely based off their gender without regards to their experience, it is discrimination and therefore the company is no longer an equal opportunity employer. Such practices need to be banned so our nation can truly say that we are all equal. Women need to form an alliance to prevent such discrimination from occurring and force our government to prohibit inequality in companies.

In the 1820’s women began being hired by companies because they could pay women less. They were willing to accept less money than men for the same work. “Workingmen often saw them as threats to their status, especially as new machines permitted less skilled operatives to perform tasks formerly assigned to craftsmen” (The Labor Site). Men see women as threats to their masculinity. Perhaps some of this fear or anxiety about women in the workplace has been transferred into the DNA of men. Many upper levels of management have remained male dominated. It’s as if they didn’t want women to join their “boys club.” Certain industries are worse than others, but the issue is across the board around the world. Only 14.2% of top executives in America are female. When you close your eyes, and picture the CEO of a company, who do you see? If you are like a predominant portion of Americans, you probably see a male in the role. This isn’t simply a problem caused by men, women play a large role in this issue.

Throughout history, women and men have been divided into societal standards. Women have been viewed as weak compared to men. Men did the work by providing the shelter and security; while women stayed home taking care of the home and family. This social concept stayed true for many centuries. However, today’s society is challenging that concept. Women are joining the workforce, not just for entry levels but also top managerial level. Women now are strong competitors to top earning male counterparts. They are standing up for themselves. They want equality. They want equal opportunities. Even though society gives men more privilege, women fight and strive for greatness. The focus of this paper will be on sexism in business and business practices

Women fight an ongoing battle for equality in the workplace. Regularly treated as disposable and replaceable, obtaining and keeping a job proves hard for many women. When given a job, men often micromanage which women join the workforce, who leaves, and when they can go home. Some even go so far as to control what happens to the women after they lose their jobs. Based on examples found in historic times such as the Gilded Age, Upton Sinclair’s novel, “The Jungle,” and modern day practices, women obviously do not receive equal treatment in society.

For my research question I will be asking: “How is America making progress on gender equity?” Fundamentally, I believe that women are still misrepresented, and are still facing many challenges in the workplace, especially in the business world. The gender stereotypes play a considerable role in the way the society sees women as leaders. However, it will be judicious to consider the small but noticeable changes that have been made over the past years concerning gender equality in the American workplace.

In this paper the history of women in the workforce will be outlined, as well as the challenges they face. The changing attitudes towards women taking over family businesses will be looked at briefly, how women lead in comparison to how men lead, and a comparison of their leadership style will also be discussed.

Rapid changes in the global economic market entail transformations affecting not only the external environment of organizations, but also its internal operations and processes (Hall, 2008; Hodgetts, 2002). One important change that has altered the nature of contemporary organization is the “acknowledgement, development and systematic use of the skills and knowledge of employees” (Ramirez et al 2007, p 496). The central role of employees’ participation in the success of the organization involves not only “high performance work systems… [but] they also involve the decentralization of decisions and work enrichment that is providing employees with opportunities for involvement in decision-making and innovation.” (Wood & de