Women
and Work
During the World War II era, women’s
lifestyles changed dramatically. The men were leaving their civilian jobs to
serve in the army. The economies had to continue growing to provide resources
for the war. Factories needed to operate day and night to produce the supplies
needed. There was a labor shortage to meet this demand and all of a sudden, it
was okay for women to work, patriotic even. All women, even those married were
encouraged to work. The female workforce increased to a third of the entire
workforce, many of them in defense factories. The government used adverts,
radios and women’s magazines to convince them to fill the vacant positions.
However, men still held the supervisory roles.
After
the war, every media of communication was pushing the women back to their
homes. Many of them were fired and only had the option of getting back to their
traditional jobs. They were even discouraged from getting into college (Seema,
p. 32). Despite the discouragement, more women were getting into the workforce
and taking teaching, clerical, light manufacturing and health-related jobs.
They wanted better lives for their families, just as those ideal families they
saw on TV. The problem was that they had the responsibility of taking care of
their home in addition to their work. Times have changed since then. A woman
can take up any job she qualifies for, just like the men. They have jobs in all
ranks, as leaders, entrepreneurs, and employees. Their number, however, is not
comparable to that of men. Men still dominate the workforce.
The
modern time mistreatment of women in the workplace is not new. Though the
notion has subsided over the years, a feeling is still prevalent among the male
workforce that women are only perfect at conducting household chores. In fact,
the overly critical and egoistic males blame working women for the family woes
that result in a rise of divorce cases in the United States
Not
all believe that women are primitive creatures wired to perform housework.
There is a workforce section that bases its belief on women's capacity to excel
in works outside home environment. Today, the society is increasingly coming to
terms on the role of women in not only caring for their families but also
achieving their dreams (Chen 4).
Women
have capabilities that men don’t. They experience the whole period of pregnancy
and labor courageously. It is undeniable that the entire process is stressful
and dangerous, but women demonstrate their bravery to push through all and overcome
the challenges. Women in leadership positions translate this to boost the
performance of the organization. The experience of most of them as mothers,
wives, and family members is useful and applicable at the workplace. That’s why
men should view women as equals and accorded respect they deserve at the
workplace. This way, they will exploit their full potential hence improving the
organizational performance.
Women
at work
There
are a handful of women holding leadership positions in the modern time. The
achievement fades when the global population of women is considered. Latest researches indicate that women
constitute more than half of the global population. If this is translated to
the workplace, more than half of CEOs and business managers should be women.
However, has largely not been possible considering the hurdles that women have
to pass through to prove their worth. On the other hand, men are almost
considered as natural leaders in the society and families. Their progress in
the leadership ladder is flawless.
In
spite of higher education and literacy rate levels in the world, the female
workforce is still low. The labor market has continually showed gender
discrimination, manifested as occupational sex segregation leading to only a
small number of women participating in political and economic affairs (Seema
33). The paradox is that women are educated but remain unemployed. Traditional
gender roles are another factor that restricts the mobility of women and
impedes their employment, especially in rural areas. However, women should have
the ability, the equality, and the safety to work and achieve their goals for
the future beside men.
Leadership
Many people in the world have faith that women are better
business and political leaders than men. They are indistinguishable regarding
innovation and intelligence. The advantage of women is in their compassion,
honesty, fairness and willingness to compromise. The qualities make women suit
leadership positions better than men. However, these thoughts are still not
reflected at work. One would cite progress from the increased number of women
in parliaments and other legislative bodies in the world. Between 2000 to 2008
women represented a great improvement from the past statistics in parliament's
seats, and the growth in increasing (Hughes and
Paxton 2008).
Leadership
theories and studies about effective leadership are rarely based on the quality
of the gender. Their outcomes are commonly summed up as being general to both
men and women. However, expanding the quantities of ladies in administration
parts has been a considerably all the more "uphill battle”. although,
administrations have typically been focused on male leadership and ignoring
female (Denmark
True
leadership demands more than just learned behaviors and a set of skills. It
pertains how an individual is able to demonstrate their personal behavior and
the perception of colleagues regarding a leader’s competency level. There are subconscious stereotypes
influencing leadership selection. It involves the negative perception towards
women and the view of machismo as entailing crucial leadership virtues.
Machismo and confidence are predominantly male virtues making them
automatically qualified to hold fundamental positions in the corporate world
(Ayman and Korabik 157).
Studies
indicate that women are humble and perform better in emotional intelligence
tests than men. This means that women can make good leaders if they are
entrusted with the position. In addition, women are remarkable decision makers.
Their innate decision-making abilities are crucial in setting up goals,
reviewing the corporate performance and the direction it ought to take in the
future. In comparison, make decisions based on the set regulations, corporate
rules and the decisions that their predecessors made. The ability of women to shirk corporate
tradition implies that there is an injection of fresh thoughts and mindset in
the corporation hence inspiring creativity and innovation among the
workforce. Women have the ability to
forge strong relations with the stakeholders thus fostering cooperation and
teamwork.
Modern
leadership positions demand an inquisitive personality able to listen and heed
to calls of the stakeholders. It also demands effective leadership style that
involves proper strategic planning. A study on corporate female leaders
revealed that they are better at mentoring and empowering their subordinates.
They are also flexible in their approach to solving problems as compared to
men. These traits qualify women as leaders: they should be given the
opportunities to demonstrate their abilities and to meet their goals. Such an
opportunity will inspire a new generation of empowered women to work harder and
to compete at on the same level with men.
Recently, women
battled for an equivalent spot at the table. They have succeeded in
"cracking the glass ceiling", and they have covered places in high
positions in corporate America United States U.S.
Working
from Home
To
ensure that women do not neglect their motherly duties, working from home
should be a viable option. Modern organizations should accommodate this choice
to ensure mothers have sufficient time to bond with their kids at the same time
earn a decent living. Working women are protected from financial shocks. There
is no need for women to be over-dependent on their male partners while they
have capability and skills to work. The work of a housewife is monotonous and
prompts overreliance in male partners for emotional support. However, when
women are given an opportunity to work from home, their self-esteem levels are
raised.
On
the contrary, professional women working from home should be protected from
executing multiple tasks including being a mother, a housewife and a salaried
employee. Such excessive duties often result in fatigue and psychological
stress which might further hinder optimum service delivery (Walker et al. 262). While most women with years of experience
have adapted to such demanding working conditions, many still feel that the
option of working from home adds to the burden that women have to bear. Male
partners should assist women working from home to ensure proper balance between
household chores and those of the workplace.
Within
the family unit, role decisions should rise, especially when mothers are back
to work. Both partners deserve a feeling of fulfillment and happiness.
Therefore, both family unit parties should clearly define and discuss roles
prior to mother’s return to work.
Besides, the family members should not overlook the woman’s job as
optional. A confrontation to such attitudes eases the transition to working
from home (Sinai et al. 182). In addition, the society should avoid hurling
constant backlash to a mother working from home. The negative public perception
instills guilt to the mothers hence lowering their levels of motivation. Others
quit the workforce because they find it hard to keep up with the demands of the
society. Organizations should provide
child care support to protect working women.
Maternity
leave
Cost
vs. Wages
The
physical orientation of women is different from that of men. Women bear
children thus the need for their protection at the workplace. In the early
1920s, International Labor Organization built up maternity protection
convention. It consisted of rough and inconsiderate rules regarding working
mothers. Several amendments have been conducted since then but still, there are
hurdles to overcome. The law clarifies
that a woman is entitled to a paid maternity leave though they will be absent
from the workplace.
While
it is true that the organization has to incur costs on such an unproductive
undertaking, women deserve the support especially when the past service to the
corporation is factored. The financial support goes a long way to motivate
working women when they are back from the maternity leave. It is worrying that most managers find an
excuse in pregnancy to dismiss women in the workplace without pay. They view
pregnant women as a hindrance to the organizational performance because their
wages costs a fortune to the organization.
Besides,
the managers view pregnant women as a destructive force to the costly image of
the organization. The perception is
baseless and meant to suppress working women into admitting pregnancy as guilt. Human resources management has to find a
replacement for women on maternity leave which adds to the costs of operations.
However, the organization should prepare well in advance for such expenditure
to avoid mishaps and misunderstandings with working women.
In the other side, women
who can't leave their children, home responsibilities, the wage gap and
disparity can work from their homes. Getting away from They can use their ideas
to create money sources, and they can try to balance between their home
responsibilities and the society’s needs. For example, 33% of small business
owners in Australia are
women, and 21% of these small businesses are home-based businesses (Walker
In
many cases, working mothers do not have enough time to bring up their infants.
The law in most countries does not require that companies offer their employees
paid maternity leaves and many do not. Women discovered that they were not
considered for promotion after they got pregnant because, they asked for
maternity leave or working part time and rejected working overtime. After they
return from their maternity leave, they find their salaries penalized and not
as they had left because they miss many important projects or meetings, also
when their employers notice that their
workers conflict between their work and family, they would find people to
replace them or cover their positions. Once they have a chance to get back to
their jobs later, it is usually at a lower rank than they were. Maternity
leaves now look like a punishment (Murphy, 195). Some women may end up suing
the company, which involves legal fees and settlements that the employers must
pay. In the end, the situation just damages the image of a working woman.
Possibility
of No pregnancy
Many organizations are considering enacting policies that
refrain women from becoming pregnant at the workplace. The policies are
anchored on the claim that pregnant women are less productive and unfit to hold
office. However, the policy-makers should consider that a high percentage of
female workers are at their youthful stage or early years of marriage.
Restricting
the, from bearing children will be offering a disservice to humanity and nature
as well. Besides, such a move will result in family breakdowns which can affect
the motivation levels of working men. The instability in families will result
in a spike in divorce cases and societal discontentment. Therefore, the possibility of no pregnancy at
the workplace is not effective.
Higher
Health Cost
Risks
of Illness
Female workers
face different health issues as compared to men. The main reason for this is
the job difference where women work in a varied environment than men. Stress
disorders, anxiety, and respiratory diseases are more prevalent in working
women than men. Moreover, there are many
economic, social and cultural factors that heighten risks of illness in women.
For instance, female workers are more likely than males to do contractual jobs,
part-time or temporary jobs. The incomes
are usually lower for women thus making it harder for them to seek proper
healthcare. In addition, most of the temporary jobs lack benefits such as
healthcare ( Sayer 294).
Balancing
family chores and work demands stresses women. There are times when family
demands collide with work requirements resulting in blood pressure and
depression (Livingston et al. 207).
These health risks are avoidable if organization encourages
accommodation of concerns for women in the workplace. Women should also get the
necessary support from partners and other family members to discourage cases of
stress and depression.
Risk
of Injury
Women working in industries face high risks of injury.
Most women fear to raise alarm over poor safety measures at the workplace,
hence multiplying risks of injury. The
fear emanates from the need to keep the job, but it plunges women to more
dangers and health concerns. Often, work related injuries are hardly
reported. In the end, many of them are
forced to drop out due to the worsening heath conditions. To solve these problems, top-level management
should institute measures to ensure the safety of women at the workplace. They
should also encourage women to air their views without fear of job loss or
other repercussions.
Men
at Home
Stay
at Home
Both
parents have a responsibility of raising children. In the modern society,
working women are left to bear the burden of raising children on their own.
This adds the pressure of stress with regards to work demands and those of the
family. Some traditions should change: men should also play a role in raising
their kids. Not only will this enable women to concentrate on their jobs but
also, it will ensure stability and health of the family.
Therefore,
there is a need to accord a paternity leave to men that will ensure they work
from home. Such a move would ensure a bonding moment between fathers and the
family members. It also results in flexibility and relieves tension that builds
up when working for a long period of time in an office environment. Most
importantly, working from home demystifies a job as a formal activity that
demands full attention and a compromise to social life (Duvander et al. 324).
Balance
the Work
To
ensure gender equality and respect for women’s rights in workplaces, men should
balance their time at a work environment and the time spent with the family.
The balance is vital and sends an assurance message to women on men’s support.
Times have changed, so should working men.
People should not forget that most women join the workforce to provide
for their families, including their husbands.
Lending a hand on matters housework is the best way that men can
contribute to the success of their wives in the corporate world. It is achievable
if men can balance their work.
In summary, the progress of women towards success in the
corporate world is a testament of resilience and handwork amidst a resistant
society. Today, leading women beats all
odds related to culture, physical orientation and history to command respect
and authority in their powerful positions. The story of women at work proves
that truly, all are created equal and should be treated equally. However, there
is still a long way ahead in terms of empowering a new generation of female
workforce and ensuring their safety in their work environment.
References
Ayman, Roya, and Karen Korabik
Duvander, Ann-Zofie, and Mats Johansson. "What are the
effects of reforms promoting fathers’ parental leave use?." Journal of European Social Policy 22.3 (2012): 319-330. Retrieved from:
http://esp.sagepub.com/content/22/3/319.short
Hegewisch, Ariane, and Janet C. Gornick
Sayer, Liana C. "Gender, time and inequality: Trends in
women's and men's paid work, unpaid work and free time." Social forces 84.1 (2005): 285-303. Retrieved from:
http://sf.oxfordjournals.org/content/84/1/285.short
Sinai, Dana , and Liat Tikotzky
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