In today’s society, there is an inequality seen within the genders of humans. Whether this inequality is intentional or unintentional is another story, but it is still a problem rooted in our society that can cause economic issues in the future. Women make up fifty percent of the global population so it does not make sense that they are overshadowed by men in the work force. An equal contribution by all is a moral point deeply embedded in the ideas of the founding fathers and a disparity with this causes a distopian society that will lead to bad feelings and slow progression.
The wage gap between genders is a big issue that activists argue about in regards to gender inequality. Women on average are reported to make 78% of what men make doing the same type of work. Certain areas in the United States, such as Washington D.C., women make 91% but there are also areas such as Louisiana where women make 66% of what a man makes. The disparity among states in wage gap shows that the perception of women are vastly different among different areas possibly because of culture and misinformation. Equality requires that everyone be recognized for their abilities and are rewarded accordingly and women will have less of a voice in society if they are not respected and rewarded with the same appropriate pay as men. The perceived dominance in terms of wealth is an obstacle for gender equality and needs to be fixed in order to maintain progress and order.
Women also take less STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math) fields than men. The benefits of taking STEM fields are well known, they pay well, contribute to society, and promote an intelligent self image. According to the United States Department of Commerce, women take on average 24% of all the jobs in the STEM field which is a huge disproportion compared to the men’s 76%. This disparity directly affects economic growth since new technology fuels the much needed boost in the economy. Women taking on STEM fields can help close the wage gap and provide an alternate perspective when working in a research and development setting. Pursuing STEM fields and higher education can promote independence which can set men and women equal in addition to benefiting the economy. Women in STEM can even act as role models for other women to fight for equality so it is currently a big problem that women aren’t actively filling STEM careers. Seeing so few women in these fields can discourage other women from pursuing their dreams and as a result they will conform to societal expectations in a vicious cycle.
The problem with maternity leave is also an issue that needs to be addressed in the work place. Paid maternity leave is a huge investment for companies to consider since they will need to pay an individual for a good amount of time for work they have not done. There is discrimination in the workplace where employers are reluctant to hire women to avoid the extra cost of paying for this maternity leave. As a result, women face a bias in the workforce which sets them back and widens the gender gap. The United States does not provide paid maternity leave and makes it hard for mothers to choose between work and family. These two should not be mutually exclusive in life and women should be given the freedom to have both a family and job security.
Gender equality is an important issue that relates to solving economic problems. Empowering women to reach and surpass the expectations society places on them is important to improve society. Women make up 50% of the entire population and it is necessary to remove societal believes and stereotypes of women roles in order to benefit the economy and provide a moral compass for the rest of the world to follow.
http://www.aauw.org/research/the-simple-truth-about-the-gender-pay-gap/
http://www.esa.doc.gov/sites/default/files/womeninstemagaptoinnovation8311.pdf
http://www.vogue.com/3043257/paid-maternity-leave-election-season-issue/
I also wrote about gender wage gap in my sets of problems and I feel like that is the biggest problem thus far regarding gender and economic growth. The problem is literally in its name and why would women get paid less for the same amount of work? I totally agree with the point that equality is an important aspect in the workplace in the wage aspect. I believe there is not a specific solution to gender equality and dominance so there is no way of solving that directly. I don’t see how fewer women are not partaking stem field to be a problem since I feel career choice should be depended on self-interest and motivation. Many perceive the intervention while women are young to be the solution of this “problem.” By intervening into women’s lives while they are young, it doesn’t matter if they lack the abilities to pursue success in that field. I do see the problem with women having to leave work because of pregnancy. It is not women’s faults to be biological capable of carrying a child and having to leave due to that. I do agree that the connection between gender inequality; this causes women to have less success compared to men in the workplace which correlates economic growth.
I agree with your point that more women should be encouraged to join science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) programs. The gender gap in STEM fields is in huge disproportion largely due to the fact that women don’t believe they can gain success from these fields and instead just conform to societal expectations. It would be a huge boost of competition in the economy if more women took the initiative to major and later on work in a STEM field. While on a whole the disparity is about 3:1 in favor of men generally in STEM, it is much worse in only engineering. Being an electrical engineering major myself, I can see that there are little if any women students in my major classes. I believe that this is due to the stigma that it is a man’s profession which once again brings us to the point of gender conformity. Thus I think that women in STEM acting as role models would be a good way to diversify the classes and workplace.