The issue of workplace equality is one that frequently rears its head. This could well be because directors and HR departments are failing to make significant progress in removing the glass ceiling. Maggie Berry, Managing Director of Women in Technology, analyses the findings of some recent research.
Several new studies have shown that little progress has been made towards equality in recent years, and that women’s predictions for the future are far from optimistic. The Future Foundation along with Friends Life has released a report entitled Working Women. The fifth in a series, the study examines the particular challenges faced by working women in striving to balance career and family aspirations. In particular, it looks at predictions for how working life will look in 2020, and more specifically, whether or not progress will be made towards gender equality. The results of the survey showed that the majority of working women see never-ending obstacles hindering their professional advancement in the workplace. Over half of respondents predict that there will still be a significant gender pay gap in the year 2020, and that they will still be overlooked for senior roles in favour of their male counterparts.
“It’s up to businesses to see the benefits of having diversity at board level, and it’s up to women to restore their optimism and belief that the glass ceiling can be shattered”
These results correspond closely with a recent study we conducted in conjuction with Intellect, Women’s Careers in IT. The survey revealed that minimal progress has been made towards breaking the glass ceiling since the last report in 2007. The fact that headway towards gender equality is slow and has remained relatively stagnant in the last few years does seem to indicate that by 2020, as the ‘Working Women’ report predicts not much will have changed. Both studies indicate several potential reasons for this lack of improvement, many of which revolve around maternity and motherhood issues. One reason that has come up time and again has been a lack of willingness, at least in practice, on employers’ part to offer flexible working. The results of the Working Women survey showed that most mothers agree that greater flexible working measures would have made their lives easier. Over half of women who returned to their jobs after maternity leave said that they would have appreciated more flexibility in their hours, as well as the ability to work from home whenever required or part-time.
In order to make advancements towards a more level playing field, a concerted effort needs to be made on the part of individual managers and HR departments, as well as working women. Employers need to make better use of facilities that are in place to help those struggling to juggle the demands of their work and home lives. However, women need to be realistic too. They must understand there will be compromise on both sides, and their employer may not be in a position to give them exactly what they ask for. The Working Women study showed that 88 percent of respondents agree that a woman should be allowed to cut down on her paid work for the sake of her family without this impacting on her career opportunities. However, this may not always be feasible, depending on the industry and size of the businesses. Conversely, employers need to do more to remove any existing stigma around those who take up the options that are there to remove the obstacles blocking their path to success.
Other issues highlighted in the report were that 51 percent of mothers are concerned about the costs of returning to work after maternity leave, with some going so far as to say that it negates the financial benefits of working. This is particularly worrying, as it indicates that female employees with children or dependents are simply unable to resume their positions as it’s financially untenable for them to do so. This means that some women are now delaying having children and having to choose between family and work life. Perhaps most interestingly, the survey showed that female workers with higher levels of seniority are more likely to feel that the female gender itself is a barrier to success. This could be down to bad experiences or the lingering effects of a less enlightened era. Or perhaps insights from having climbed the career ladder and seen the prejudices that female workers are up against.
While the results appear to be bleak, I don’t believe that women should resign themselves to a second-class future. In fact, there are constantly new ways being introduced to help female workers to succeed. It’s now up to HR departments to properly use existing legislation that allows them to facilitate flexible working, childcare, support networks and paternity leave. It’s up to businesses to see the benefits of having diversity at board level. And finally it’s up to women to restore their optimism and belief that the glass ceiling can be shattered – because without that, nothing significant can be achieved.
