Wages in the work place are equal, right? This is the year 2002. We’ve come a long way past the negative stereotypes of June Clever. Women are just as proficient as men. Several pieces of legislation have been enacted in an attempt to solve the problem of gender-based wage inequality. Then why do we still have the difference in wages? The answer is clear. Gender-based inequality still exists in the American work place.
The glass ceiling is an expression used to clarify the “invisible barrier” that limits advancement in the course of a number of women’s careers. There is documentation which states that women deal with challenges in their career that men will never face. Some of these challenges that women deal with are negative female stereotypes, increased visibility due to being a minority, exclusion from formal mentoring structures and negative valuation in management/leadership roles (Monks and Barker).
The glass ceiling phenomenon lists three models: the human capital model, the ruling elite model, and the developmental model (Daley).
The human capital model describes results in relation to individual distinctiveness. When the ratio of women to men in the labor force is observed, the actual number of women in executive titles is lacking due to the lack of expertise, experience, skill and the decisions they have chosen. The ruling elite model suggests that women are not as successful in their careers due to the views of society. Female characteristics and negative stereotypes have hindered women and forced them to choose traditional careers or not allow them to hold supervisory titles. The developmental model views the glass ceiling as a short-term hindrance that training and development will solve. This model fails to acknowledge contributing factors of discrimination and the negative view of society (Daley).
The Essay on 17th Century Women Models Of Corporate
Access provided by your local institution [Access article in PDF] Engendering the Guilds: Seamstresses, Tailors, and the Clash of Corporate Identities in Old Regime France Clare Croston Louis XIV established the Parisian seamstresses' guild in March 1675, provoking a groan of protest from the city's tailors, the women's closest trade rivals. Inspired by fiscal, economic, and social considerations, ...
President Kennedy passed the Equal Pay Act into a law in 1963. The Equal Pay Act forbids discrimination on the basis of sex in the payment of wages or benefits where men and women perform equal or substantially equal work of similar skill, effort, and responsibility for the same employer under similar working conditions. Employers may not reduce wages of another employee to equalize the wage. The Equal Pay Act addresses no more than the topic of gender-based wage discrimination. A policy targeted to deteriorate gender discrimination, Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, broadens the standard for gender discrimination. Executive Order 11246 requires non-exempt federal contractors and sub-contractors to participate in affirmative action (Barbour et al.0.14-19).
Occupational choice is still a factor in dealing with the gender gap. One of the many factors that contributes to the wage gap is tendency for women to ”crowd” into certain occupations. Once women over-populate a certain career field, the wage tends to be lessened. Occupations that women tend to choose include school teachers, secretaries, registered nurses, cashiers, managers and administrators, sales supervisors and proprietors. Another reason that contributes to the wage gap is that the employment and/ or careers women choose have a tendency to require little or no continuing education or training. In turn, the earnings for the sources of employment are usually low. It has been assumed that women tend to choose career/employment that allow them to leave and re-enter the labor force with ease (Earnings Differences).
For women discrimination is still a real factor in today’s labor force. Although the Equal Pay Act laws against discrimination and the Affirmative Action program are in place, gender-discrimination is still in practice today. Employers still view men as more capable, reliable, responsible, productive and better qualified than women, especially when considered for executive positions. Employers feel that a family or children tend to be an added burden on a woman and tend to prohibit her from being loyal to her employer. Also she is perceived not to be as productive since she has other responsibilities on her mind. There is a domino effect that hinders a woman from being perceived on the basis of her work ethic instead of her gender. Another interesting fact is that married men on average receive a higher wage than men who are single, on the other hand (however), married women receive lower wages than a single woman, the same situation but just reversed. (Explaining Trends).
The Term Paper on Affricative Action Affirmative Discrimination Programs
The issue of whether Affirmative Action will survive during the 21 st century has been widely debated. This program was designed in the 1970's to combat discrimination in the workforce and promote equality for all people regardless of race, color, creed, gender or national origin. The system that has evolved since the civil rights legislation of the 1960's is a misapplication of its original ...
In December 1971 President Nixon issued Revised order no. 4 obligating contractors to acquire/develop “an acceptable affirmative action program,” a program to include minorities and/or women in contracting. Affirmative action is a program that plays a significant role in providing opportunities to women and other minority groups that not otherwise be available. In the area of education there are grants and internship programs are available to provide an opportunity for non-traditional career choices. In employment Affirmative Action has encouraged employers to diversify their workforce. Affirmative Action is both beneficial and effective as a tool for most all who participate in the program (Affirmative Action).
In spite of the change in times, laws, and assistance/services/programs that support equality in the workplace, gender inequality still exists. The Equal Pay Act prohibits employers from discriminating on the basis of gender. Affirmative Action encourages employers to recruit a diverse workforce. Executive Order 11246 requires the government to provide opportunities for minorities and women. Progress has been made in the labor market and occupational status for women. In 2002 women are encouraged to enter college and to choose careers that suit them, not careers that are suited to them. The gender wage gap has continued to narrow, but women still face obstacles in wage equality.
The Essay on Affirmative Action Women Discrimination Minorities
What Does Equal Mean "All men are created equal," as affirmed in the Constitution of the United States of America. This is a statement that no America claims to dispute but it has been disputed many times when it comes to the issue of affirmative action. Both sides of the debate have over examined moral and ethical issues concerning affirmative action while forgetting to scrutinize the system that ...
