Women In The Workforce

"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).

When looking back at the 1950s and 1960s it is amazing to see how different the roles of women are, especially their occupation. In the 50s men were coming back from the war, and took their jobs back from the women who were doing them.Society told them that they needed husband and children to be acceptable, they were objects to men with little no rights. From then on it was difficult from a woman to have profession after that. If a woman wanted a profession she was something like an assistant, or secretary, something that was considered jobs that didn’t need an education. If a woman was unsure of pursuing a job the media of that time period didn't help, the media would often show pictures of women cooking and cleaning while looking happy. In the 1950s women were paid 71% less of what their male coworkers did. In the industry 6% of women were doctors, 3% were lawyers, 1% were engineers. Also in the 1950s women were fired after marriage or pregnancy, because women weren’t supposed to support

Over the past few decades, great strides have been made by women in the workplace. This increased number in women in the workplace does not mean equality however. Even with equal qualifications and achievements, women are still not given all the opportunities that men have. The chapter in the textbook, “Gender at Work”, shows us more of these inequalities in the workplace. Such inequalities cause gender segregation of jobs and can be linked with the pay inequality in the labor force. Even in jobs that are predominantly filled by women, men earn more than women. Women are often stereotyped as being family focused and not as able to travel, therefore they tend to get passed up for promotions (Garson p.353). This invisible barrier that keeps women from moving up the executive ladder is referred to as the “glass ceiling” (Baxter and Wright p. 346). Women also tend to do more domestic work, or unpaid labor and caregiving. This extra unpaid work is referred to as “the third shift” and is largely rested on the shoulders of women (Gersel p. 352). Consequently, this seems to be one of the biggest things holding women back from taking on jobs that are normally considered male

From the beginning of time there has been a distinction between the accepted roles of males and females. For ages men have been viewed as the family provider and women as the family caretaker. Although new roles developed with different eras, the same ideals have held for centuries now. Since the late 1800’s, the idea of “feminism,” or the social, political, and economic equality for females, has begun to shake the foundations of gender roles. It is 2015, and women have made tremendous strides to establish equality for themselves in a world dominated by male leaders. However, women have not been able to conquer the wage gap. The gender wage gap refers to women being paid on average 78% of what men do. Although the gap is closing, it is still

The armed forces are the ones who protect and serve our country. Back then the military, the navy, and the air force had one thing in common—they only recruited the men to serve and protect. Now over time women are finally allowed to serve along sides the men, but not without putting up a fight for equality in the armed forces. The author Rosalind Chait Barnett, who is a scientist and a director and the Brandeis University, wrote the article “Women and Work: Where Are We, Where Did We Come From, and Where Are We Going?” which talks about the past of of only the women being oppressed. Martha McSally, who is a professor at the George C. Marshall European Center and is also retired from the U.S. Air Force, wrote the article “Defending America

A topic that is often debated is whether there is a difference in pay for women doing comparable work with men. It is a fact that women on average make 78 percent of what a man makes while doing almost the same work. The first article discussed delivers evidence that wage disparity does in fact exist by using a first hand account of a woman directly affected by the wage gap’s injustice and correct statistics that are not outdated. The second source does not focus on one type of job, level of education, or length at the workplace that a woman may work in, instead this article attacks women for wanting to spend time with their families and not constantly work.

The American dream, an aspiration of “a land in which life should be better and richer and fuller for everyone, with opportunity for each according to ability or achievement”, is a cherished ideology in the hearts of Americans. ("The American Dream, What Is The American Dream?"). Although the American dream dogma is presented to be accessible to all individuals, obstacles and barriers such as financial and social differences, specifically with gender inequalities, limit the ease and simplicity in which such a dream can be achieved for that area of people. Unfortunately, many of these discriminations still exist today. Even more so with women in the work environment, such issues serve as prevalent matters located within their own personal American dreams. The workplace, an atmosphere fostered upon the daily relationships that employees experience, serves as a central foundation for teamwork, human interaction and employee affairs. Therefore, it is vital that all employees, especially women, be treated equally regardless of their gender. Common barriers and differences women face are socially and financially focused. In this research paper, I will be addressing the gender inequalities women face in the workplace in regards to pay, as well as the role and impact motherhood has on such inequalities.

The American Association University of Women reports that the average full time workingwoman receives just 80% the salary of a man. In 1960, women made just 60% of what men made, an upward trend that can be explained “largely by women’s progress in education and workforce participation and to men’s wages rising at a slower rate”, but a trend that is not yet equal (p. 4). Hill recognizes that the choices of men and women are not always the same, whether it be in college major, or job choice, however she concludes that women experience pay gaps in virtually all levels of education and lines of work. She suggests that continuing to increase the integration of women in predominately male dominated work will help the pay gap, however, she believes that alone won’t be enough to ensure equal pay for women.

On December 7, 1941 the United States entered World War 2 after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor in Hawaii. The US entering the war led to a draft for men between the ages of 18 and 45. The country soon realized that the draft caused a shortage of men in the workforce and this meant that women would now have to do traditionally men's jobs. Some of these jobs include working as mechanics, engineers, tank drivers, air raid wardens, driving fire engines, plumbers, and ambulance drivers. Although these task were nothing like what women had done before most felt like it was their duty to the country to fill in for the men.

It’s no secret that women aren’t treated the same as men. This can be seen in almost all aspects of our society. One example in particular is women’s treatment in the workforce. There is an unsaid expectation in America where men are supposed to go to work and make money while women are supposed to marry, stay at home and raise the children. While this might be an ideal situation for some people, it is not for others. Many women choose to work and even make up nearly 50% of the workforce (Hegewisch and Hartmann 2015). While almost half the work force consists of women, it’s peculiar that women only make (on average) 79 cents for every dollar a man makes (Hegewisch and Hartmann 2015). All of this information has to do with something called

The term woman at work has two different meanings when examined historically. The first meaning a historian would think of would be from the 18th century when women at work meant women working in the household. The work that women did adhered to the patriarchal structure, such as cooking, cleaning and making clothes. Around the time of World War II work for women began to mean something different. Women were entering the paid labour force specifically during 1939-1945 when they were needed the most to help men in the war. When World War II started, Canadian men and women stepped up to help the British Empire during this tough time. Although there were not very many women who participated in the war itself, we must remember that women

Inequality has been a dilemma for several years in countless different ways. A persistent problem with disproportion of income between women and men has been lingering within many companies in the United States. It has been said that women earn less money than men in the workplace for many different reasons. Some of these reasons are that women have not spent enough time in the office to be rewarded with raises and bonuses because they are busy with their home lives and taking care of their children, they, unlike men, have been taught to be timid and unaggressive which ultimately steers them away from requesting higher pay, or they do not meet the qualifications to receive promotions (Hymowitz, 2008). This essay is in response to On

In this book, it explains how women are becoming the family’s primary breadwinners in today’s society. Women are now receiving higher positions in major companies and taking the role of a male to provide for their families. This book also engages in how there are not many women that have these higher positions. It has been said that women simply do not ask to be promoted within the company. Also, when women are promoted it has been said that women do not negotiate their options and what would be suitable for them. Many jobs such as firefighters, police officers, and detectives have been labeled as a masculine job, and can be argued that they are more suitable for men. This book explains how the woman 's progression level has remained nearly the same over the years, standing firm at three percent of chief executive jobs and less than sixteen percent of corporate officer jobs since 2002.

The textile industry is an immediate topic of discussion when examining female working conditions globally. Today, with 1.3 billion women employed, females constitute 52% of the participation in the workforce (Source #2). Despite their large participation and slow move towards occupation acceptance in the developed world, women still face many trials that stem from gender-based discrimination, especially within developing countries. The textile and garment industry constitutes most likely the largest sector of manufacturing and profit production for many countries and therefore will be the concentration of this paper to represent the working conditions for the majority of people (WIEGO). Since females comprise 85% of the global garment industry, their gender role is relevant in all processes (SOMO, 2011). This paper seeks to explain general workforce issues for women globally, including specific Latin American country examples, what should be done to improve working conditions, and what is currently being done.

Around half of the working population consists of women, yet this number is often not reflected in traditionally male fields (Peters, Ryan, Haslam, & Fernandes, 2012). Although some may have joined these role, many women eventually leave male-dominated occupations resulting in underrepresentation in those fields, especially higher up the ladder (Peters, Ryan, & Haslam, 2013). Many of these male–dominated occupation are well paid and highly respected (Peters et al., 2012) which makes it important to identify why women are choosing to leave these careers. A study by Peters et al. (2012) showed that the perception of lack of fit with the dominant culture affects women’s ability to identify with the role and leads to them leaving or having the intention to leave. People disidentify with the job due to lack of fit with the prototype (Peters et al., 2012) hindering their career development, especially for women in masculine fields as more and more choose to leave.