Though there have been great strides made to bridge the gender equality gap in America, we still have quite a ways to go. Within the last decade, there has been a recent uprising of females pursuing careers in math and science (particularly in the fields of medicine and information technology); however, it is up to us to continue to educate and encourage girls to pursue the American dream. We must provide opportunities for young women to investigate their own unique talents by giving them adequate resources, setting a positive example as role models, and by showing them that we believe in their potential to change the course of history. The time is now!
Workforce Shortage
- The IT industry only fills half of the jobs available.
- While women make up nearly half of the workforce, they represent less than 5 percent of all CEOs and less than 10 percent of the top earners in the S & P 500.
- Only one in Seven Engineers is female
- Women (on average) would have to work 70 additional days a year to earn the same wage as men.
- Women earn 76 cents for every dollar that men earn.
- After college, on average, men are offered $4,000 per year. After the first year, the average salary disparity jumps to $9,600 per year.
- Over a lifetime of work, a woman with a Bachelor’s degree will earn one-third less (approximately $700,000) than a man with the exact same degree.
- Even women with graduate degrees earn less than their male counterparts—female Harvard graduates earn 30 percent less than males, on average.
- There are cultural stereotypes that undermine the power of women in the workplace.
- When women prove that they are competent in a position, they are often times simultaneously judged to be “unlikeable”.
- The manner in which people are hired more closely resembles choosing a friend or someone to “hang out with” rather than choosing the most qualified candidate.
- Both males and females fall into the trap of giving males higher marks in leadership positions, and generally seen as less “influential” than men.
- Women in female dominated industries are negatively affected by what is known as “the glass elevator”.
- Organizations commonly have a high proportion of their female employees on the frontline working low-skilled, low paying jobs.
- Clearly competent men are rated higher than equally competent women; so if “Allison” appears at the top of a resume instead of “Andrew”, recruiters may not give the female candidate a second look.
- Even in university settings, men garner more offers, better pay and more mentoring opportunities than women.
- In university settings, both sexes deemed women to be less competent than men.
- Men are promoted on potential, women are promoted on performance.
- The U.S. is miserably behind in paid maternity leave and paid parental leave compared to many European countries, which speaks to our stance on recognizing female leaders.
- The U.S. is well behind in closing the gender gap in overall employment rates compared to many progressive European countries, including: Finland, Norway, and Sweden.