Gender Equality In The Workforce Is Possible And Here’s How
Over the past few years, a particular, troubling statistic regarding workforce gender equality has been mentioned a bit in the media and a lot on social media. That statistic is this:
Women working full-time in the U.S. are paid 82 cents for every dollar earned by men.
Think about that for a second. In the U.S. today, women are still not paid the same amount as men for the same work.
Workforce Gender Equality And Fortune 500 Companies
Unfortunately, equal pay isn’t the only workforce gender equality issue that still exists. Although there are now more female CEOs of Fortune 500 companies than ever before, the numbers are still low. Only 41 women are leading Fortune 500 companies. The point is, not that long ago, the number of women CEOs of Fortune 500 companies was even lower.
The leadership of women is an important aspect of overall gender equality because if women do not occupy enough leadership positions, there won’t be enough female voices working to change the workplace for all women in a positive way. We need more women in leadership so that they can use their authority and position of influence to create even more opportunities for women like them in the workforce.
Workforce Gender Equality And The Coronavirus Pandemic
Decades of progress towards a more inclusive economy are now threatened due to the coronavirus pandemic. Almost three million women in the U.S. have left the labor force over the past year. The exodus was largely caused by the coronavirus but is reflective of persistent unequal pay, undervalued work, and notions of caregiving.
Prior to the pandemic women accounted for more than 50% of the workforce, which helped to signal how important they are to the overall functioning of the economy. However, since the pandemic began, that number has plummeted as many women, especially those with young children, have been furloughed or laid off. Others left the workforce after being forced to choose between showing up for work at frontline jobs or taking care of their children. Most daycares have been forced to close, as have schools, meaning that more children have been stuck at home all day, requiring that a parent be there with them. This responsibility has overwhelmingly fallen on mothers.
Unfortunately, there has also been a lack of public policy to help support working women during the pandemic, and the usual pay disparities and disproportionate job loss have made the situation even more unequal for women. It has been estimated that pre-pandemic employment levels for women may not be reached again until 2024, two years after the same recovery for men.
Two-parent families considered salary as a deciding factor in which one would continue to work while the other stayed home to care for children. Unfortunately, due to the gender pay gap, women most often earned less than the men in the family, causing the decision that they would leave the workforce.
Single mothers had things even worse. Too many businesses are not doing their part to keep people in the workforce. If more companies were willing to re-examine workloads, minimize meetings, share responsibilities, and increase employee benefits, some of these women may have at least felt that they had more options.
Thankfully, there are some positive developments for women in the workforce that are helping them enter new fields that have previously been heavily regarded as fields that men primarily work in.
Workforce Gender Equality: Women Using Social Media
Social media is now giving women a platform that is helping them enter fields predominantly occupied by men. There are more women becoming plumbers and electricians than in the past, and they are using social media to help advertise their businesses. Not only is this good news for the women who are starting careers in these service professions, but it’s also good for women who are homeowners.
Some women would likely feel more comfortable inviting a woman into their home to fix something than a man, especially if they are home alone at the time of the appointment. More women in service professions not only improve workforce gender equality, but it empowers individuals to choose the service professional they feel the most comfortable with and it also provides homeowners with more varying options.
OneBook’s Commitment To Workforce Gender Equality
At OneBook, we are excited by the developments in the workforce and the fact that more women are becoming entrepreneurs and entering service professions that were previously primarily occupied by men. We are excited to offer a place for anyone to offer services, regardless of what gender they are. We are fully committed to promoting gender equality in the workforce and promoting people from all genders on our platform.
The OneBook team is working hard to develop the most innovative two-way marketplace on the internet. Will you join us?
