Gender Inequality

We live in a society where men and women are not see the same nor are treated equally. Gender inequalities have always been an issue in our society. Women have always gain less respect than men based on their sex. The society has developed certain images and roles for males and females. Men are seen to have masculine traits such stability, independence, and confidence; whereas, women have more feminine traits such as nurturing, affection, and patience. As well, the society has developed the division of occupations for genders. Females are expected to work in caring professions such as: a nurse, sectary, or teacher. While men are expected to be: doctors, lawyers, and construction workers. These stereotypes of gender should not state what a woman can do. A woman should have the same opportunities as men when is come to issues such as paying rate and job positions. This paper will address gender inequalities that women face in their occupations.

Gender stereotypes are one of the most common encountered on a daily basis. The infamous ‘Glass Ceiling’ still exists in many areas of the professional world, restricting valid promotions simply based on gender. This type of concept can be verified by looking at comparative weekly wages of other professionals in a variety of industries. Most people will generally see female dominated occupations, such as nurse, teacher and secretary as requiring feminine personality traits and physical attributes for success; whereas male dominated occupations such as doctor, lawyer, and business executive are seen to require male personality traits for success (Sanderson, 2010, p. 344).

As a result of these reviews, the ongoing reconstruction of the social status and roles of Hindu women has brought about many new changes in Hinduism. Some of these changes include changes in education, health measures, problems of early marriages, the positions of widows, and the representation of women in governing bodies (Desai, et al., 1995). For example, within Hinduism now,

In addition, women are seen to be less committed to labor force participation than men. "High turnover rates and low productivity levels in females-dominated occupations" produce this stereotype (Adler 450). Gender stereotypes of this nature result in loss of opportunity for women to gain the necessary job experiences for advancement (Bell 67).

“Gender Roles Attitudes since 1872 In social Trends..”, Campbell discusses the gender roles and their representations within numerous fields. In addition, Campbell mentions that the politics, in particular, have seen an increase in women involved within the government. Campbell mentions that during the 20th century, many women were not in the workforce. After WWII, they began seeing an increase of women entering the labor force. In 2000, 60%of wives with children younger than six entered into the workforce, as were 80% single women”(Campbell, 83). GSS measured numerous items about women in 1972 and got numerous responses.

Women’s involvement in society, especially political events, had increased significantly. In addition to this women have gained more responsibility in providing for their family as well as their own sexulaity. From WW2 onwards, society recognised that women could be helpful in improving the country economically by participating in political and social events as well as being employed in jobs that were originally overruled by men. Although women have been much more active in the workforce gender stereotypes are still as prominent as they were during The Great Depression. Men are still seen to be the dominant provider in the family and are expected to complete all the manual labour whereas women are are thought to be more domesticated and to be employed in jobs that involve minimal physical labour.

This article portrayed explicit connections between stereotypical tasks for women and female dominated jobs. For example, as many women

Women are married young, become mothers quickly, and are burdened by stringent domestic and financial responsibilities. Like in Greece, they have little chance to progress in the work force. Females, in certain regions of India, are frequently malnourished since they are the last member of the household to eat typically and the last to receive medical attention. Also, only “54 percent of Indian women are literate as compared to 76 percent of men” (Gender Equity Issues in India). Unlike in Greece, women of lower status still receive little schooling, and suffer from “unfair and biased inheritance and divorce laws” (Gender Equity Issues in India).

Women are perceived as being less knowledgeable or less qualified than men. They are also viewed as being less responsible or unreliable, due to family related issues, than men are. In addition, women are seen to be less committed to labor force participation than men. "High turnover rates and low productivity levels in females-dominated occupations" produce this stereotype (Adler 450). Gender stereotypes of this nature result in loss of opportunity for women to gain the necessary job experiences for advancement (Bell 67).

Traditionally, an Indian woman had only four roles and those were; Her role as a daughter, wife, sister, and lastly, a mother. The women in today’s time however are experiencing far reaching changes and are entering into new fields that were unknown to them. They are actively participating in social, economic and political activities. Unlike the older times, women today have received higher education.

The mainstream media is one of the most popular, prominent ways people get their information about social issues, government action, and the general knowledge about what is happening in the world. A topic that has received a quite a large amount of media coverage in history, throughout the years, and currently, is gender inequality. Specifically, the issue of women being stereotyped into traditional “home” roles and not being able to join the work force or, rather, being pressured not to attempt to join. This particular issue has definitely lost much of its ammunition with the breaking of traditional gender roles in the past few decades, the successes of women’s movements and the overall national attitudes. However, not all of the stereotypes have been destroyed, and while women have entered the workforce, they are still being paid less than men for the same work. The lingering inequality of the past and the pay gap are huge issues covered by mainstream media in mostly constructive ways, and it should be receiving much more attention than it has in the past.

Gender is a biological and physiological phenomenon that characterises the differences between males and females. One of the most contentious points relating to gender over the past few decades is the difference between the representation of the sexes within the workplace. Scott (2013) states that variations across gender in a working environment stem from social factors, which influence the behaviour of men and women. Some organisations such as those in the retail sector welcome gender diversity and encourage the inclusion of both sexes whereas other organisations for example the engineering industry may discourage gender inclusion and promote bias in the workplace. As is evident, the representation of both genders is an extremely controversial matter for organisations and industries. Due to the increasing number of industries the extent of the variation differs depending upon the type of work. The gender imbalances found in the work place is best defined by David Cotter (1984) and his 'Glass Ceiling Theory '.

A study on the implicit and explicit occupational gender types, Sex Roles, “Occupational gender stereotypes are activated when men and women are considered to be more suited for certain occupations based on stereotyped characteristics and temperaments” (White and White 2006). Matheus represented the following examples, “a stereotypically feminine job would be associated with attributes such as nurturing, caring, and being sensitive to the needs of others and a stereotypically masculine job would be associated with attributes such as decisiveness, coldness and toughness” (Matheus 2010). Nowadays, women are usually seen in the workforce as secretaries and nurses. Meanwhile, most doctors and construction laborers are men. In addition, Anker points out that “Occupational segregation by gender is prevalent in most if not all countries” (Anker 1998). “Women and men work in different fields and within fields at different levels” (Anker 1998). Diekman and Wilde explained that “men’s concentration in leadership and other high power roles led to the assumption that men have “agentic characteristics” such self-assertion and dominance and women’s concentration in subordinate and caretaking roles lead to the assumption that they have “communal characteristics” such as being kind and supportive (Diekman and Wilde 2005).

Women have long fought for the right to be viewed as equal within the work place. Over the past decades the percentage of women in management has risen from a mere 13.8% in 1950 to 50.6% in 2007 (Latu, 2000). However, gender stereotype bias and discrimination are still present in the modern workforce. Gender stereotypes are beliefs of how men and women should be and act. When evaluators don’t have clear criteria, ambiguity causes gender stereotypes to fill the voids. Leading to differences in the way men and women are evaluated. This happens, in most cases, on an unconscious level, though it does still occur consciously. It has been shown by psychologists that we routinely categorize individuals within milliseconds of meeting them, we classify them by their gender. In doing this we assume they will possess certain gender role traits, either feminine or masculine. Men are expected to have strong leadership traits, while women are known to have nurturing, submissive qualities. The cause of gender discrimination is based on cultural beliefs and organizational policies. Women are most vulnerable to gender discrimination and sexual harassment when they are in a male dominated environment, they may also be perceived as a threat.

However, male domination is still present in the banking sector. The fact that the banking sector does include many jobs which require looks, personalities, and emotions, as well as their physical and intellectual capacities, females are more likely to get these jobs. (McDowell and Gillian, 1994)