Gender inequality at workplace
What is gender inequality at workplace?
Gender inequality is something almost all women have faced. Gender inequality at workplace specifically is when a job or some form of work is assigned to a person solely based on gender rather than skill and knowledge.
According to newsweek.com, a typical woman loses a sum total of $407,760 due to the wage gap. For women of color, the loss can add up to $944,800. For black women, $ 1,121,440. A woman only earns 78 cents for every dollar a man earns (govdoc.com)
Many women worry about treatment during pregnancy, motherhood or being sexually harassed. A poll conducted by Young Women’s Trust in 2018 found out that 23% of women faced sexually harassment at their workplace, only 8% of them reported it. Moreover, about 43% women have faced maternity discrimination.
According to Global Gender Gap report 2020, it will take another 100 years to achieve gender equality based on the current rate of progress. Not to mention the setback women have faced due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Women represent 39% of global workforce but amounted for 54% of job losses as of May 2020.
How can you promote Gender equality at workplace?
It is amazing how some simple steps can change a woman’s experience of working with you. The following steps may help you to achieve this long asked dream of most women:
1) Make a proper fee structure- A proper system for allotting salaries and making sure that it is being followed is one of the best ways to promote gender equality at your workplace.
2) Equal consideration of needs- Women need proper childcare facilities, clean bathrooms, adequate pregnancy leaves etc
3) Equal opportunities- If skills and knowledge is seen before the gender, many women can truly reach their potential and it will only benefit the company if an employee works to the best of their abilities.
4) Raise awareness towards this issue- raising awareness by organizing workshops and guest speaker programs is a great way to make women feel safe.
5) Shine a spotlight on successful women- it’s hard to reach the top when you are a woman, let these women help other women in their journey.
6) Senior women should be used as mentors- a woman might feel more comfortable sharing her personal experience with other older women.
It’s extremely important that women get an equal chance to work towards their dreams and goals. After all, “Any society that fails to harness the energy and creativity of its women is at a huge disadvantage in the modern world” ~ Tain Wei
-Tanvi Chopra
