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The role of women in the workplace is an ever changing, always-evolving role; one that is an ever-important concern in today’s society. Statistically, women have always been in low paying jobs, with little room for advancement. These roles are rapidly changing, but this has not come about easily, or without help from strong men and women who fought for this change.
One of the most noticeable changes in the workplace is the amount of women who have decided to go to work. Women have traditionally taken on more of a home-orientated role, usually taking care of children and household chores rather than working outside the home. In 1996, 45 percent of the workforce was comprised of women. The age group that had the highest participation rate was the 25 to 44 age group, which boasted a 77.8% participation rate. This is particularly interesting because traditionally, that is the age when most women are starting to have children. This age group is incredibly noticeable because from 1996, to 2000 this group experienced a steady incline to 80 per cent participation. This incline was higher than that of any other group.
So what is it that women are doing differently?
There are two things that women are doing more now than ever before: educating themselves, and participating in non-traditional roles. According to the U.S. Department of Labor “Educational attainment is a reliable predictor of labor force participation. The higher the level of education, the more likely the person is to be in the labor force.”
Post-Secondary institutions have seen a dramatic increase in Female enrollment from 1996 to 2000, particularly in the areas of health, and agricultural and biological Sciences. For every one heath care position that has opened up for a man, two have opened up for women.
Even though women are educating themselves more, and they are working more, women statistically are earning less than men. This is partially because many women are still concentrating their efforts in low-paying jobs on the service and retail industry, but even when they do enter into the same career as a man, they are still paid the minimal amount that they can be paid. “There is an art to getting paid high salaries. One thing that men do is they ask for it, right from the time of the interview. If an employer wants you bad enough he [or she] will pay for you. You have to know how to show that you are worth that much.” (anonymous)
Money is not often a large factor when women choose a certain type of employment. It is a small factor because women need to be able to have enough money to live, but there is a much larger reason that women take less-paying positions.
Many women need a job that is flexible with their home lives. Many women who do work take care of children, and they need to be able to spend time looking after the everyday issues of their family. It is really difficult to balance a full time job, and children, not to mention housework and personal time.
It would be a lie though to say that women in all cases choose to take positions that pay less than men do. It is still true that men are paid more for the same position than women. That battle is still far from being over.
In Canada, one woman in particular has shown that she is worth that much, and she has earned the respect that got her the career as President of Sony Music Canada. Denise Donlon has been called the most influential woman in the Canadian music industry. As the former General Manger of Much Music, she had helped create some of the most watched programs on Much Music and Much More Music. As a person, she has had her fair share of struggles in her career, but she doesn’t find that her gender is a hindrance. “I don't think I've ever been very aspirationally motivated. I've been very lucky in my life to have attracted opportunities. Often I think that I've stood out because I was a women, so in some ways, gender's been a benefit.”
In response to how she earned the respect of the people in her field, she said “Adhering to solid principles, endeavouring to be strongly community motivated and enabling team ethics.” This seems to be particularly important when one of the differences most noted between genders in polls is that women do research to be better informed with what is going on as opposed to men who improvise and make thing up so that they don’t look uninformed. Women are also better at taking criticism then men and changing their behaviour to one that is more suitable and productive [taken from AskMen.com].
Another reason that women go into a specific type of work is self-fulfillment. It is not uncommon to find women who leave a position for which they are highly paid, to go to a position that pays less, but is more fulfilling. The duty manager at one of the hotels in Toronto, Canada said “I left the RCMP and found a job here. I have advanced, and become happier here than I was there.”
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Amanda Moddejonge
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Opened My Eyes Joel Harding | Oct 1st, 2001
I really liked the article, the stats, particularly 80% women in 2000 are in the workforce, surprised me, I'm glad to hear so many are working. Family, then career is my personal motto, but it opened my eyes to how many are now in the workplace, the more the better, we need an equal balance of sexes.
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