Roses - An apparent symbol of workplace gender equality

Few people will challenge the progress made in achieving workplace equality, but there is still a long way to go before women's contributions to the workforce are fully acknowledged on a par with those of males. How can a company develop a team when employees are excluded and denigrated because of their gender, race, or sexual preference?

And did you know that women currently make up just under 47% of the workforce globally? It is 72% for males. That is a 25-percentage point differential, with some places facing a gap of over 50 points.

Furthermore, men continue to hold the majority of high-paying occupations, despite the widespread perception that women have almost eliminated the gender pay gap in the workplace. Unfortunately, in my opinion, there is still a great deal of work to be done to bridge the gender gap despite more attention being paid to the injustices women experience in the workplace.

At all educational levels, women are paid less than males with comparable backgrounds. However, as the education level increases, the salary difference tends to widen. Again, this is most likely due in part to labor market regulations that promote more equitable outcomes for workers at the lowest end of the pay scale. It might also be impacted by issues including earnings penalties for time away from the labor, long work hours, domestic gender roles, and pay and promotion discrimination, all of which have an outsized impact on women's ability to obtain jobs at the highest income levels.

Then again, males make up larger proportions of some occupations or job types, while women make up larger proportions in others. Some claim that a large portion of the gender wage gap can be attributed to these inequalities in the distribution of men and women among occupations. Gender discrimination does not only occur when businesses provide wages to essentially similar employees of different genders in pay-setting methods. It can occur at any point in a woman's life, from discouraging her from studying science and technology to burdening her with domestic duties that limit her ability to work the long hours required by demanding professions.

Women who work in industries where men predominate are paid much less than men with comparable educational backgrounds. Hence, suggesting that women pursue professions that pay better does not address the issue.

Moreover, and as a recruiter I’ve witnessed this, women show a sense of discomfort when salary negotiations come up. Due to the social norms, we live in, talking about money is different for women. So, the gender pay gap should be seen as a social and cultural problem, not just a gender one. We should strive for a society where everyone feels valued.

Let’s take the IT industry for example, having more women as leaders in the tech industry acts as a great role model for future talent when deciding between an engineering or, a doctor career, for example. Still, as stated by Jennifer Gregory “Among the various industries studied, the difference in leadership scores between men and women was the largest in the tech industry.” We need more women in technology to provide a more balanced viewpoint on issues relating to the female gender and technology. The media, academia, and business generally ignore problems that women may identify with and resolve when they focus on only one gender.

Companies that don't deliberately target women are probably going to get fewer job applications. Words like "enforcement" and "fearless" may draw in male applicants, but inclusive words like "transparent" and "catalyst" are required to draw in the 51% of us who are female.

Technology is reshaping our world; however, women are currently underrepresented in the software sector. The digital revolution must be accompanied by human transformation if it tends to be beneficial to everyone. Lowering the disproportionate female attrition rate is crucial if gender inequality in computing is to be conquered. Boosting women's involvement in technology is essential for the industry's ability to develop and adapt to meet societal demands as well as for the excellent career opportunities it may offer.

The gender wage gap is a result of women often having less work experience than males. Yet, it would be incorrect to draw the conclusion that this undermines the role of discrimination, as the lack of experience is a result of social norms and expectations that disadvantage women in the workplace. Women are more likely to quit the workforce temporarily than men, usually to raise children.

Certain research showed that despite the fact that women now acquire more bachelor's degrees than males do and have a similar attrition rate, they are less likely to be hired for entry-level positions. Also, managers regularly use their personal networks—which typically include "people like them"—to find candidates for open positions (same gender, race, identity). This keeps and deepens the representation gap. The discrepancy widens as employees climb the corporate ladder. Only 86 women are promoted to manager positions for every 100 men.

So, what can we do to change this? The answer to this question certainly isn’t once-in-a-year bouquet of roses for every woman in your company.

Gender equality is essential if you want to fully utilize the abilities, concepts, and viewpoints that each gender has to offer. Also, people want to work for organizations that place a high priority on equality. Organizations still fail to recognize that by putting less emphasis on gender diversity, they are effectively limiting the amount of talent available to them. You can benefit from these diverse perspectives and increase the level of creativity and invention on your team by ensuring a balanced mix of women and men. I’m glad to say that at SnapStack Solutions we are a gender-diverse team, and many of our senior positions are held by women.

In my humble opinion, other than educating your employees about gender bias and appointing diverse recruiters during the recruitment processes because women feel more secure and are mainly more attracted to a certain role when they see that the interviewer is a woman, you should promote transparency and open conversations in your company. As a recruitment team at SnapStack Solutions, we uniformly nurture a diverse and inclusive approaches in our recruiting strategy which welcomes more women in top positions. Provide equal pay for equal work to all of your employees, regardless of gender. This is one of the most obvious and simple ways to promote gender equality in the workplace. Offering competitive and equitable pay is an excellent way to attract and retain top talent. Furthermore, grant equal opportunities for skill improvement and awards, organizations can gain a lot from putting women's advancement first, including higher revenue growth, greater innovation, and more customer happiness.

Representation matters, in every context of the word, so the ball is in your court managers, fellow recruiters, and decision-makers!?