Gender Discrimination In The 1970's

After more than 200 years of living under the United States Constitution and despite all of the progress women have made, they still to this day continue to suffer discrimination in employment, insurance, health care, education, the criminal justice system, social security and pensions, and just about any other area you can name.

This research paper examines gender discrimination in the workplace. Gender discrimination is a problem that women face daily in our society. This report will examine the causes of gender discrimination and the affects it has on women in the workplace. It will discuss the glass ceiling concept, how gender discrimination affects women’s family life, and how women’s job performance is considered when discussing gender discrimination.

Women have been discriminated against throughout the history of the United States. Women were typically associated with being “mothers” and having to take care of the children along with other so called home “duties.” They were not allowed to vote until fairly recently. Astonishingly, women in the United States were not allowed to have their own bank account before 1974. There is no reasonable excuse for such restrictions, except to keep women under the control of men. Altogether, the United States’ has a history of discriminating against women. Women have historically been treated as second class citizens, especially in the workplace, which kept them from doing certain jobs that were meant for men. The reality is that women have proven more than capable of doing labor intensive work. World War II proved that women were more than capable of replacing men. Women’s rights in the United States have definitely been improved, but they continue to be discriminated against in the workplace.

At the height of the 1960s, discrimination was at its peak. There was no middle ground between whites and blacks. White people had their place in society, black people had theirs. Americans often felt as if white people were superior than blacks. Prejudice, in different forms, existed on both sides. It was not often to see these two races associated together. According to the Plessy v. Ferguson court case, black people and white people were supposed to be separate but equal, but social institutions emphasized discrimination and segregation that were forced upon blacks.

Men were the only people for many years to have jobs to maintain the family. I believe because women were so late in gaining equal rights they, till this day they are underpaid. It is unfair that both sexes can have the same qualifications and job and yet women still fall short in salary pay. Even when it comes to promotions bosses tend to choose men because it gives their company a better imagine, a more “manly” image. A man in front of a company is said to show more strength and business knowledge rather than a women. People tend to be somewhat skeptical of what a women is capable of handling in their jobs as well as in a everyday life situation. Women aren’t as involved in meetings are given any challenging tasks because women are seen as incapable to handle it. During the hiring process there tends an abundance of discrimination. Women are typically chosen for women-based jobs like cleaning or nursing. Men are typically chosen for manly jobs like business and construction. Women able to to the same jobs so it’s not like they don’t try, they just aren’t very likely in getting the job. When it comes to the hiring process sexism tends to be programmed into people 's brains.

Throughout history there has always been an enormous obstacle for women to overcome in the workplace. Occupational Segregation has continuously acted as a force that impedes on the daily lives of female workers across the world. It not only eliminates several chances for women to capitalize on opportunistic events, but has also denied them of the basic civil rights they are entitled to. Jobs ranging from the military, sports, and even the corporate world have long been dominated by an aura of masculine characteristics. Why is our society structured in such an uncivilized way? Some women may not possess the "supposed" masculine attributes that are sought for in numerous industries, but in all honestly just as many men fail to meet those

In this society, men have more privileges than women in the workplace. It is true the world we live in today has many opportunities for women. Women can vote, have their own property, have jobs like men, etc. However, there is not much equality between men and women working. Women are often worse paid than men with few rights, which is one of many examples of gender bias. Gender bias is the unequal treatment between men and women in the employment area, based on their gender expectations. It turns out gender bias exists especially in the workplace. According to TechRepublic, unequal pay, diminished responsibilities, and positional bias are emphasized for women working.1 These examples of gender bias go back all the way to before when women’s rights were fought for. Women then had a basic education, they were generally married off by their parents, they had to take care of their children and the house, which their husbands owned, and they were not acknowledged of their hard work. That all began to change when the 1848 Seneca Falls Women’s Rights Convention triggered the beginning of the Women’s Rights Movement in the United States. Individualists like Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony have been devoted to the fight for women’s rights.2 Changing the unjust and unequal society was their purpose. Through petitions, meetings, and public speaking, they were able to achieve their purpose. Margaret Mead, an anthropologist said, “Never doubt that a small group of

Women have experienced discrimination since the beginning of time and in some countries women still do not have certain rights. In America, companies still tend to discriminate against women. The discrimination can be shown in different forms such as unequal opportunities to be hired, unequal pay, making it harder for women to get a promotion, women getting scrutinized more harshly than men, and even basing all these other aspects on the fact that women can get pregnant or already have children. Women also may face the “glass ceiling” in the workplace. These continuous discriminations are a leading factor as to why women do not reach for their full potential or believe they cannot speak up.

First starting in the 1920’s and all the way through the 1970’s there was a plethora of court rulings and government action to curb and prohibit sex discrimination on all levels in America, but according to Rosenberg, unfortunately, there is still “A particularly depressing measure of the lack of progress in the difference between the salaries of men and women”(Rosenberg 2008, 207). Places with real change are due to the fact it was congressional and executive action, not court action. Rosenberg points out that even during the year of 1987 after two decades of court action the position of income between the two sexes was the same as it was 30 years ago(Rosenberg 2008,208). Rosenberg notes that even the median incomes between women with college

Women have faced discrimination, regardless of nationality, throughout history. In the United States, women gained the right to vote in 1920, through the 19th amendment. However, women still faced discrimination both at home and in the workplace. It was not until the mid twentieth century that women began to truly express opposition to their treatment and the horrible standards to which they were set. In the 1960s, majority of women in the workforce worked as secretaries, teachers, cleaners, and nurses. Those that were not in the workforce still worked hard at home, though they were not recognized for their labor. Many women sought to be recognized and with that desire, they responded with various organized protests for equality both at home and in the workplace and they rejected the standards that society forced them to uphold.

Since the 1920’s women have worked hard to be considered as equal citizens in our country. The book Of Mice and Men by John Steinbeck shows the gender discrimination back in the 1930’s ; and the Houston Chronicle article “The Effects of Gender Discrimination in the Workplace” by Samantha Gluck shows gender discrimination today. Gender discrimination has been dealt with for decades; despite the legislation for equality, many women to this day still feel gender based discrimination exists. Victims of gender discrimination experience offensive judgment. In Of Mice and Men the workers on the ranch constantly made jokes about curley’s wife.

From the beginning of time the male and female have been expected to perform certain roles in society. Males have been expected to work and provide for their family while the female raises the children, cooks, cleans and keeps the house in order. Today many women have broken that tradition and are starting their careers and becoming more independent. Even though females today are braking away from that stereotype, they are being discriminated in the work place because there are still individuals out there that believe that women should play a certain role and that they are not strong enough to work in a cooperation or

Equality for women has come a long way in the United States. Women were given the right to vote in 1920. Even after this, what seems like, fair law was passed, women were still not equal to men. For years this was just accepted by the majority of America. Women were housewives with little option to do much else. It was not until the 1960’s when the women were finally heard. The women’s rights movement pushed the fact that women can do just as much as men. While many were still housewives, they slowly began to enter the workforce. Women

The present global scenario has come a long way when it comes to discrimination against women. Employers who discriminate against female or male employees because of their sex are held to be in violation of The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission Title VII (Twomey & Jennings, 2014). Gone are the times when the men were stereotyped to be the bread winners while women were expected to remain at home to cook and clean. Discrimination had always preferred the able bodied superior. Women today work alongside the superior sex but sadly, still face discrimination in the workplace when it comes to opportunities and higher responsibilities. The female worker is still not provided with the same promotion as opposed to men. They experience fewer opportunities for promotion and positions of authority. Additionally, women who are illiterate have a lesser chance to get jobs doing labor work. Yet, every company desires workers who are fast working and hence, the company hires people who are young and energetic. This is why old people and women get singled out for competitive job positions. Women are often not treated equally for positions despite being more qualified than their male counterparts primarily because the employers are apprehensive of their commitment towards the job. They believe women cannot be as committed because they are more tied to their families and might miss out on their job roles due to pregnancies or other family obligations. Gender inequalities have plagued

Gender inequality and discrimination are generally discussed towards women (Parziale n.d.), and this report will mainly discuss it this way. But actually, in anyone’s daily life, they will have a chance to experience gender inequality or discrimination.