Gender Equality And Gender Bias

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.

Although in 2012, only 18 women served as CEOs of Fortune 500 companies. Furthermore, in a recent report, women only held 16.6% of board seats in 2012 in the fortune 500 companies (Aguilar). Women are somehow being held back from achieving their higher potential, and is is not due to lack of education. The department of education found that “140 women will graduate with a college degree at some level this year for every 100 men”(Aguilar). Most people believe the reason is because of the phenomenon of the “glass ceiling”. Many large companies do not hire women for the upper level positions, because they have always hired men, and many companies may believe that they do not see women in that position. This is also influenced by the media as well, as “women hold only 3% of clout positions in telecommunications, entertainment, publishing and advertising.”(Newsom 2011). With so few women leaders in the media industry, women are rarely portrayed in highly respected executives roles. This in turn communicates to young girls and the public in general that women are not supposed to hold these

They said if the share of female bosses increased by only .24 percent, the gender gap would decrease by more than 40 percent. This is an interesting find as it shows that just a couple of changes could make a big move toward equality, yet we aren’t making those changes. The authors concluded the slow progression of women’s corporate jobs is due to the history of men dominating those

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

This shows the reader the difficulty of the topic from the very start. This suggests that the educational system will always be more favorable to a certain group within our society because of societal expectations. It is also clear that because of the engrained stereotypes such as “girls are all hardworking” (Forde, p.5) and “boys are inevitably troublesome” (Forde, p.5) complicates the task of creating a gender-equal curriculum and environment. This is why it is important to realize that gender in education cannot only be evaluated as an individual variable, other factors (such as disability, poverty, religion…) come into play and can affect one’s education and identity. The first part of the book gives us background knowledge on this issue.

While women make up 46.6% of the Fortune 500 workforce and 51.4% of middle management, according to Catalyst, in these companies they represent only 14.1% of executive officers, 7.5% of the highest paid and only 4% of CEO’s Despite the fact that women have a foot in the door with 4% of all CEO positions of the Fortune 500, the rest of their frame is stuck in the entry level, which is 46.6% of the Fortune 500 workforce. The difference is not in men and women; it is in masculine vs. feminine ways of thinking and acting. Both men and women incorporate masculine and feminine approaches (Forbes).

In our schools currently, a cornucopia of gender biases is inhibiting the good education of students. Women have been trained to be ‘feminine’ ever since preschool, always being told to be less assertive and be ‘girlier’. These ideas of femininity have created the bias

Gender bias, also known as sexism, is a full of attitudes, laws, taboos, preferences, and behaviors that differentiates and discriminates against either sex. These may be a position of which male dominance and female subjugation in the modern society. It could also be a form of sexual stereotypes between men and women, these are commonly experienced in employment versus other positions. A final place that discrimination is faced is the academic environment, the female to male ratios are not in sync in certain programs and courses because of this and it is pressuring men and women to not go into certain fields and do what they love and please. Most advertisements on Television, magazines, newspapers, online ad’s, use a charged sexually image with a female as the star. Women are to be a pleasure for men, and nothing else. Many people have different opinions on genders and sexuality and that is okay, but sometimes you just need to keep them to yourselves.

The movement of promoting gender equality is exponentially growing every year; however, gender inequality is still a persistent problem in today’s workforce. Each year, gender inequality, especially employment equity, the distinct barrier between genders in the workforce, has become a topic of contention as its affecting working individuals worldwide, especially women. Before examining this problem, we must further understand what gender inequality is in the workplace. Gender inequality is an ascriptive factor, in which limits individuals to reach their full potential in their area of expertise by discriminating based on gender (module …). Both genders can have the same qualifications for an occupation, but a specific gender, mainly men, are seen to be more qualified than their female counterparts are. This can result in the refusal to allow the individual to take on leadership roles due to socially constructed views on gender. In addition, they may receive unequal wages compared to the opposing gender due to statistical discrimination which is the idea hiring or promoting individuals based on the average characteristics of their gender group rather than solely focusing on the individual( Textbook, 169). As we strive towards the goal of gender inequality, we must understand it in order to construct a proper solution.

Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (2011) found that 98 % of Fortune 500 CEOs are men, and 97 % of them are White. Women are not able to enter the career fields such as science, politics and business. “Although America has opened its doors to the 50% population women college graduates entering the working world, it has locked its gates on promotions above the first management tier, except for the few that were able to knock the gates down”(Lana 1). Lana reveals that it is difficult for women to earn higher positions even both genders have similar opportunities to get jobs nowadays. Women have gained their independence from a male dominated society and are rising to become less dependent on their husbands for financial support. Feminism movements not only have helped to raise the confidence and self-esteem of women but also helped them to get a better life from advocating gender equality. Thus, this shows that gender equality have been improved over the years but there are still gender Inequality due to the gender stereotype in our society.

In this taking sides chapter, the author addresses the well-known debate on whether women experience barriers due to society norms and expectations of their abilities to be a leader or is there an evolutionary preference to choose men over women. On the yes side, the author expresses the numerous statistics that prove women have a barrier stopping them from climbing the career ladder and making it to the very top. To further explain this phenomenon the author uses a metaphor that is also well known called the glass ceiling when referring to women and the obstacles they face. The metaphor describes women climbing the career ladder while viewing their ultimate career goal, but hits the ceiling preventing them to go any further when they almost

Women have experienced a historic situation of inequality in the social as well as professional aspects. Women were normally the ones that would take care of children, do the chores in the house, and in rural areas; they would work in the field with the rest of the family. However, today’s women have become more self-sufficient and independent from the predominant male figure within every historical family. Gender inequality in the workplace is becoming less common; yet, gender is a factor that affects men and women. Especially women have been subjected to a historical discrimination that has influenced society to decide which job is more suitable for women than men. However women have confronted and tried to break down the barriers that

The business world today is competitive. It's full of fierce, educated, and motivated people. For some people it's tough to rise to the top and for some people it comes much easier. It's not always about hard work! One might ask for a map to the yellow brick road, but few people are ever provided with it. Most people are stuck in an ocean making calculated guesses as to how they can reach land. Which route is the best? How much school is enough? How many certificates of accreditation is enough? How much work experience is enough? All of us ask these questions attempting to navigate our ships in a competitive world were only a few individuals ever get to their targeted career position. How many of those in leadership positions are women?

Throughout the past few decades, the gender inequality discourse have became a dominant feature of international, national and local policy debate on the subject of economic development. This policy concern has emerged as an area of scholarly research which seeks to show that improving gender equity leads to economic growth.

While reading our communication book and taking notes during lectures, I came across a concept that I thought was particularly interesting. The concept I am going to talk about is language and gender and more specifically, gender bias in our culture. I think that this topic is quite interesting and especially relevant in the current times we live in. With women demanding more rights and recognition than ever before, I think that this topic is appropriate to talk about.