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English 111 G/H Rhetoric
and Composition
Sample E3
Imagine yourself walking into a corporate office building
and finding that all the receptionists and secretaries were male.
As you proceed further into the office, you amazingly discover
that all the executive positions are held by women. How would
you react? You would probably think that you had stepped into
a different dimension in another world because of the fact that
in reality, things are just the opposite. Even though female
participation in the United States labor force has increased
steadily and dramatically in the last half of the century, women
entering the workforce find that their employment prospects are
limited in ways that those of men are not. Many women are unjustly
faced with discriminatory practices in both salary wages and
positions in the workplace. Is it fair that women be discriminated
against in places of employment just because of their gender?
The
"glass ceiling" is a term coined in the early 1980’s
to describe the invisible barrier which women come in contact
with when working up the corporate ladder. This speaks of the
showing of partiality or prejudice in treatment specifically
in action or policies against women. This form of discrimination
has been depicted as a "barrier so subtle that it is transparent,
yet so strong that it prevents women from moving up the hierarchy"
(Chaffins 380). For example, it is more likely to see women as
secretaries and men as executives. This glass ceiling effect
has been unfairly evident in both position and pay within companies
and organizations.
Perhaps
one of the greatest reasons that women are discriminated in the
workplace concerns the socialization of women concerning gender
roles. Parents generally rear their children to conform to the
roles that they are expected to perform in society. It has been
argued that males are treated as superior to females due to the
attitudes of society. The concept of male superiority has said
to begin at birth and continue throughout adult life (Chaffins
381). Parents seem to socialize males to be aggressive and females
to be passive. Thus, women are taught to feel inferior to men
from the beginning of their lives.
Stereotypes
based on gender have historically placed women in a nurturing
submissive role. On the contrary, men are seen as the dominant,
more aggressive gender. Male behavior is considered more valuable
to employers because of possessing characteristics of objectivity,
impartiality, and orientation toward problem-solving. These stereotypes
have kept women from advancing in the workplace to an equal status
with men. Stereotypes as these often seem to encourage women
and men to seek employment in keeping with their presumed natures.
Women are often discouraged or pressured by family members and
vocational counselors not to seek nontraditional occupations
such as physicians, lawyers, and police officers. Stereotypical
thinking in organizations not only influences the recruitment
and selection of women to particular positions, it also affects
career development and performance evaluation.
A
strong indicator of the glass ceiling is the gender gap in wages
that has remained constant over the past 50 years (Unger and
Crawford 1992). It is pretty well established that in the United
States, on average, women’s wages are lower than those of
men. Data on the 1992 annual earnings of full-time, year-round
workers ages 16 and older indicate that, on average, women earned
71 cents for every dollar earned by men (U.S. Bureau of the Census
1993). These salaries discrepancies have been analyzed by economists
and sociologists in a number of ways. One explanation centers
on what are called human capital factors, the resources that
individuals bring with them to the labor market. According to
the human capital argument, the salary discrepancies reflect
the fact that men typically possess more resources than women.
Men are thought to generally have more interest, training, and
previous work experience in occupations such as in medicine,
law, business, and engineering that command the highest salaries.
However, human capital resources are not the only, or even the
most important, contributing elements in the income gender gap.
There are other factors that may be of equal or greater importance.
An
explanation for the fact that women seem to earn less is due
to the segmented-labor market structure. This system contains
two distinct tiers of jobs. At the top tier are professional,
administrative, and technical occupations offering high income
and prestige rewards but requiring high levels of skills and
training. Some of these occupations include engineers, physicians,
managers, etc. At the bottom tier are service, domestic, and
other unskilled jobs that do not require much education or training
and do not offer many salary or prestige rewards such as receptionists,
nurses, childcare workers, etc. The sex-segregated jobs filled
primarily by women are those at the lower tier of the segmented-labor
market. This type of work is neither desirable nor financially
rewarding in modern economic system.
Another
explanation for the income differences in gender is discrimination.
The gaps between women’s and men’s salaries can be
explained by the fact that women continue to be treated unequally
and unfairly in the labor market even if the women’s educational
qualifications match or exceed those of men. In a study conducted
by Margaret Marini and Pi-Lang Fan, the results indicated that
42% of the gender gap in earnings at career entry were due to
external influences of employing organizations and network processes.
The findings suggested that women and men with the same aspirations
and qualifications are channeled into different, sex-typed jobs.
This less widely recognized type of discrimination occurs through
institutionalized personnel procedures governing the recruitment,
allocation, and retention of workers. For example, women and
men with the same formal employment credentials may be triaged
by personnel officers into different jobs. These different job
placements may have important implications for earnings and future
career mobility (Marini and Fan 592).
Women
are often steered into a much narrower range of choices in occupations
that are largely segregated by sex. Therefore, they come to occupy
"pink-collar" jobs such as nurses, kindergarten teachers,
dental assistants, receptionists, and secretaries (Bryak and
Soroka 223). Women are kept out of management positions because
of societal norms and beliefs in relation to women. In contrast,
men predominate in administrative and managerial positions because
they re thought to be more intellectually superior to women,
are more emotionally stable, and are more achievement-oriented
and assertive. The Glass Ceiling Commission, a panel led by the
United States Department of Labor, was organized to research
these types of barriers that prevent women and minorities from
reaching the highest levels in the business world. For example,
a study conducted by the Glass Ceiling Commission confirmed that
97% of senior managers in Fortune 1000 industrial companies and
Fortune 500 companies are still predominantly white males (Tovar
60).
Furthermore,
an analysis of the inequality of the number of women in managerial
positions as compared to men is evident at West Teleservices,
Co. located in El Paso, Texas. At West Teleservices, there are
five different branches. Each branch consists of 1 branch manager,
2 assistant branch managers, and varying amounts of sales managers.
Out of the four branches, all branch managers are taken by males.
All assistant branch managers are male as well. Furthermore,
out of the 30 sales managers throughout the four branches, only
11 are female. This is a perfect example of how the majority
of managerial positions within companies and organizations are
held by men.
Stereotypical
views of males suggest that they are more suited for managerial
positions that females because of their leadership style: "Men
appear to be more directive or autocratic while women opt for
a more participative style" (Eagly and Johnson 1990). Further,
stereotypical views of the difference between men and women are
observed from a psychoanalytical perspective in a recent article
in the American Psychologist by the industrial consultant Harry
Levinson. According to Levinson, "The male orientation as
described a penetration and thrust versus the female orientation
of enveloping and surrounding. The whole psychology of management
is that of aggressive attack and dominance. . .to be on top or
on the bottom--helpless, dependent and victimized" (Levinson
1994).
Gender
discrimination may also come in other forms as well. Women may
be excluded systematically from certain types of occupations
on direct grounds just because they are female. For example,
in the U.S. armed forces women are currently prohibited from
serving in direct combat roles. Their nurturing instincts presumable
would make it difficult or impossible for them to take the lives
of other human beings. Men, on the other hand, are supposedly
able to meet the requirements of the job without undue stress
(Bryjak and Soroka 225). Women may also be excluded from occupation
on indirect grounds in which job requirements are structured
to eliminate all or most women from consideration. For example,
police and fire departments in many United States cities may
impose minimum height and weight standards that effectively eliminate
most women candidates (Bryjak and Soroka 225).
Often
women are discouraged or pressured by vocational counselors and
family members not to seek nontraditional occupations such as
management positions. They are socialized to believe that they
are not suited for "male-oriented" positions and have
difficulty overcoming these cultural norms of out of fear of
being seen as "different". Women in general, do not
feel that they are capable of performing the duties of upper
level managers. They tend to accept the belief femininity and
achievement are incompatible. Since women have been socialized
to develop less confidence, less independence, and lower self-esteem,
they tend to devalue their own skills and intelligence, just
as other do. Therefore they do not attempt to reach these high
levels of positions out of feelings of guilt, anxiety, or uncertainty
(Herkelmann et al. 1993).
An
illusion of equality has been established by government and organization
in an attempt to prove to society that the glass ceiling no longer
exists. Antidiscriminatatory laws have been passed by the government
to increase gender equality in employment. For example, the Equal
Act of 1963 provided that equal pay should be received for equal
work regardless of gender. Unfortunately though, this has not
been very successful because corporations can easily go around
these type of laws. Organizations rationalize discrimination
by saying that men "deserve" more pay than women because
they are the traditional "breadwinners." They also
give similar jobs different titles as a basis for pay differences
(Bateman and Zeithami 1993).
Moreover,
other people may believe that men are in fact superior than women
and should be given higher positions and salaries. However, it
has been found that women possess many qualities that make them
superior in several ways. Developmentally, men are more physically
vulnerable and susceptible to stressors, both prenatally and
perinatally. Women usually live longer, cope with stress better,
are sick less often, and are more open and expressive (Chaffins
383). Therefore, the explanation to gender discrimination in
the workplace that men are the superior gender has no factual
basis.
Gender
discrimination against women in the workplace in positions and
salary is unfair and unjust. Women should be treated as equals
with men. The glass ceiling that restricts women from advancing
in the workplace needs to be broken. More strict laws restricting
companies or organizations from practicing discrimination towards
women should be passed and enforced. Women and men should both
be judged on the basis of their ability rather than their gender.
Furthermore,
the socialization of both male and female children must be changed
in order to break the glass ceiling permanently. Parents should
encourage their daughters to be more independent, value their
achievement, and avoid overprotecting them. This will produce
women with attitudes of competence and the ability and desire
to succeed. Hopefully, the perception of women by society will
then change as they are taught to develop more skills. Appropriate
and encouraging childhood direction from parents will give females
an equal opportunity to pursue goals they were previously discouraged
from.
Apparently,
the glass ceiling remains to be firmly entrenched and intact.
Women continue to be treated inferior than men in the workplace.
This discrimination is seen in both women’s position and
salary wages. In order to succeed, women should become more familiar
with the system, be prepared for competition, and understand
that sex role differences will be difficult to overcome. They
must continue to strive for excellence and not give in to the
pressures of the male-dominated business world. Furthermore,
we as a part of society should question ourselves: Why do we
let this pattern of discrimination continue?
Works Cited
"Adding a Gender Dimension to Economic Decisions."
UN Chronicle 32.2 (June 1995): 45- .
Bryjak, George J. and Michael P. Soroka. Sociology: Cultural
Diversity in a Changing World. 3rd. ed. Needham Heights:
Viacom, 1997.
Chaffins, Stephanie. et al. "The Glass Ceiling: Are Women
Where They Should Be?." Chula Vista 115.3 (Spring
1995): 380- .
Marini, Margaret M. and Pi-Ling Fan. "The Gender Gap
in Earning at Career Entry." American Sociological Review
62 (1997): 588-602.
Primary Research, Content Analysis. (October 1997).
Strong, Maurice. http://iisd.ca/youth/ysbko59.htm. October
15, 1997.
Tovar, Dora O. "Shatterproof Glass." Hispanic
Washington 9.4 (April 1996): 60- .
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Copyright 1997 Department of English |
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New Mexico State University |
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Use only with permission |
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