Gender Discrimination in the Workforce
Discrimination on the bases of gender has been the major cause as to why women can't succeed in the workforce. With the gender wage gap and a glass ceiling holding them back, to name a few, women have to overcome all these obstacles just to get lower wages than their male counterparts for the same jobs done. Gender inequality is still affecting many women and their careers.
The Equal Pay Act of 1963
The Equal Pay Act provided “the legal foundation for the implementation of anti-discrimination law within the workplace”(Verniers & Vala, 2018). In 1963, President John F. Kennedy signed the Equal Pay Act that eliminated the differences in wages on the bases of gender. It banned any employer from paying their employees differently for the same job done. This act appeared to be a new step for working women, which not only gave them equal pay but also eliminated any type of discrimination toward women in the workforce. When the Equal Pay Act came about, Time Magazine anticipated that this law would not go into effect. They said,
“Supervisors complain that they have a higher absenteeism rate than men — 6.5 days a year v. five days — partly because men do not have babies.”
there were many comments as to why this act won’t work out, that many employers would hire more male employees rather than women. Since women were asking for the same wages as men and the law implemented by President Kennedy was in play, companies still chose to hire men over women. No matter the law, discrimination against women in the workforce was going to continue. The gender wage gap is one of the major issues in the fight for the end of discrimination towards women. Doing the same job, but not getting paid the same, provided that during that period in time there was this sexism towards women, which sadly continues to this day.
Gender Inequality and the Glass Ceiling
Women aren’t able to move up in their jobs due to the fact that we are in a patriarchal society that affects them in their everyday lives. No matter the level of education and experience women aren’t able to take the next step in their jobs due to being women. This issue has gone on for so long that no matter what women do men will be picked first. This discrimination towards women needs to change. But “with the disparities between men’s and women’s wages and the glass ceiling over women’s careers”(BensiDoun & TranCart, 2018).
The Importance of CEDAW and how it connected with discrimination in the workforce
Despite all the efforts to fight gender inequality in the workforce, with the Equal Pay Act of 1963 and CEDAW, there is still gender inequality and glass ceiling holding them back. The Convention on the Elimination of All Form of Discrimination against Women is better known as CEDAW is an international bill that was put in place to end all types of discrimination against women, including in the workforce. CEDAW is the Bill of Rights for women on the issue that affect them, to find solutions and take the necessary steps to stop the discrimination on the bases of gender. CEDAW allows
“women’s interests inequality across a wide range of areas, including political rights, education, employment, economics, foreign policy, health, rural life, and marriage and family life” ( Baldez, 2011)
not only does it involve the workforce but other interests that affect women too. The importance of CEDAW was that it provided a way to see discrimination happing against women. In many cases, women are working the same amount as men but only getting a small percentage of what men earn. With the Equal Pay Act of 1963 and CEDAW, why do we continue to see discrimination against women in the workforce?
References
- Baldez, Lisa. 2011. “The UN Convention to Eliminate All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW): A New Way to Measure Women’s Interests.” Politics & Gender 7(3):419–423;
- -BensiDoun, Isabelle, TranCart, Danièle, and Dutreuilh, Catriona. 2018. “Career Choices and the Gender Pay Gap: The Role of Work Preferences and Attitudes.” Population (English Ed. : 2002) 73(1):35–59.
- Rothman, L. (2015, June 10). Equal Pay for Women: What Happened to the 1963 Equal Pay Act? https://time.com/3906992/1963-equal-pay-act/.
- Verniers, Catherine, and Vala, Jorge. 2018. “Justifying gender discrimination in the workplace: The mediating role of motherhood myths.” PLoS One 13(1):e0190657.
