As recent research has shown, gender issues in the workplace not only affect women, but our economic growth and society overall. Therefore, it is important for us, as a nation, to dedicate ourselves to finding a solution to gender disparity and the gender wage gap. I believe one solution could address the multitude of problems that women are faced with: empowerment
. A major issue that women face is lack of presence in leadership positions and in high-paying and professional careers, such as engineering and academia. Several studies have been done on why these fields are so male dominated and results have shown that women often feel uncomfortable attempting to enter a profession where they have little support and often times, where sexism still exists. Empowering women in the workforce means giving them the comfort and the confidence they need to follow their goals, despite the odds. The importance of empowering women and promoting gender equality in the workplace is documented in “The Business of Empowering Women,” a survey done of 2,300 business executives. It was found that companies that focused on empowering women reported growth within their business. A third of businesses reported that their investments in their female employees resulted in an increase in profits. Another third reported their investments were expected to grow in the short-term. (Source 1) This should give businesses the incentive to take measures not only for women and our nations economic growth, but also for their businesses’ advantage.
The pay gap between men and women has barely budged in a decade. In 2013, among full-time, year-round workers, women were paid 78 percent of what men were paid. Women face a pay gap in nearly every occupation. From elementary and middle school teachers to computer programmers, women are paid less than men in female-dominated, gender-balanced and male-dominated occupations. While higher education is an effective toll for increasing earnings, it has no effect on the wage gap. At every level of academic achievement, women’s median earnings are less than men’s and even in some cases; the gender pay gap is larger at higher levels of education. (Source 2) Faced with all the statistics and data, closing the wage gap seems like a far-fetched dream; however, empowerment may also be the key in this case as well. Surveys have shown that 2.5 times more women than men said they feel “a great deal of apprehension” about negotiating. By not negotiating a first salary, an individual stands to lose more than $500,000 by age 60, and men are more than four times as likely as women to negotiate a first salary. This plays a major role in the wage gap. Women should feel empowered to ask for the salary they believe they deserve and argue for it.
In July 2010, the United Nations General Assembly created UN Women, the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. This was our nation’s first step in accelerating the global goal of gender equality and the empowerment of women. Since then, the “Women’s Empowerment Principles” were created, which outline practical guidance to businesses on how to empower their female employees as well as women in the marketplace and community as well.
In brief, the principles urge businesses to establish high-level corporate leadership for gender equality, treat men and women fairly, ensure the safety of both genders, promote education and professional development for women, implement enterprise development to empower women, and promote equality through community initiatives. (Source 3) I believe that if these principles become engraved in every company and business across the United States, we can see great improvement in our gender disparity problems.
Sources:
- Women & Empowerment in the Workplace. (n.d.). Retrieved April 28, 2015, from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/women-empowerment-workplace-17827.html
- The Simple Truth about the Gender Pay Gap (Spring 2015). (n.d.). Retrieved April 28, 2015, from http://www.aauw.org/research/the-simple-truth-about-the-gender-pay-gap/
- Women’s Empowerment Principles. (n.d.). Retrieved April 28, 2015, from http://www.unwomen.org/en/partnerships/businesses-and-foundations/womens-empowerment-principles
