Women Face Glass Ceiling in Hiring

Part 2: A Brighter Future?

The number of females students enrolled in institutions of higher learning is continuing to grow, according to The Digest of Educational Statistics, 1999,"Between 1987 and 1997, the number of men enrolled rose 7 percent, while the number of women increased by 17 percent... Since 1984, the number of women in graduate schools has exceeded the number of men. Between 1987 and 1997, the number of male full-time graduate students increased by 22 percent, compared to 68 percent for full-time women. Among part-time graduate students, the number of men decreased by 1 percent compared to a 15 percent increase for women." Over the next several years the number of enrolled females is projected to increase at a faster rate than the number of enrolled males.

The pool of qualified candidates coupled with the needs of the market should allow more female graduates to get on their chosen career track. One can only hope. A recent article in the New York Times discussed the problem recent female graduates face in Japan ("Diploma at Hand, Japanese Women Find Glass Ceiling Reinforced With Iron." New York Times. January 1, 2001). It seems these women, all with highly desirable skills, all graduates of prestigious schools, were being pushed onto a secretarial track or into dead end jobs. Their male counterparts had an entirely different experience when going through the interviewing process. This was a recent article, not something written ten years ago. Japan has a national equal opportunity law, and yet many employers didn't pay much attention to it. According to the New York Times article, they thought it was proper for a woman to get married and raise a family, while her husband built his career. This in spite of an impending labor shortage in Japan.

How could a woman be expected to break through the glass ceiling if she can't even get on a career path that brings her close enough to touch it? Why should the opportunities available to a woman be less than those available to a man, given both have the same number of years of education, the same degree from the same institution, and similar skills?

Many employers claim it's because young women stay on the job for a few years and then leave to have a family. Let's look at this from another angle. Perhaps if women were offered a sufficient amount of maternity leave, salaries equivelent to those of men doing the same work, adequate childcare, and the possibility of corporate advancement they would continue to work. Maybe if all employees were offered the opportunity of a flexible work environment, i.e. flextime and telecommuting options, there would be greater retention of good employees. And what if men were encouraged to, or rather weren't discouraged from taking paternity leave. Then women wouldn't have to take as much time away from their jobs when a couple starts a family.

More:
Part 1: But Can You Type?

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