CB658: Diversity in Organizations (2012/2013)
Final Essay Assignment
Topic: Managing gender equality in the workplace.
Word Count: 2,417 words (excluding references)
“We've begun to raise daughters more like sons... but few have the courage to raise our sons more like our daughters.”
- Gloria Steinem
Gender can be defined as the unique sexual identity of an individual, irrespective of the person's biological and outward sex. People’s perception of masculinity and femininity can differ based on their respective backgrounds as well as their surrounding culture (Cherry, 2012). This means that gender helps an individual to be identified in society, politics or in the workplace. Gender has always been a controversial topic since the beginning of history due to the natural differences between the sexes based on biological as well as anatomical factors, which has lead to the conception of ‘gender inequality’ or ‘gender discrimination’. Looking at history for instance, the economic power of men and the process of production monopolized by men meant that the importance of a woman’s role in society was declining, it can be seen as the roots of the two teams “boys dressed in blue and girls in pink”. This mindset of gender inequality has lead to the concept of people being free to develop their own personal skills and abilities without the limitations set by strict gender roles, or in other words “gender equality” (EEA, 2006).
As of 2013, gender equality is generally promoted due to the inequalities highlighted in the status that men are seen to have better jobs, which hints to men becoming wealthier then women. The key bodies where gender inequalities ensue are in schools, family life and the workplace. The primary focus in this essay will be the workplace.
Influencing the equality approach in workplace is still a major challenge for many, as there exist many forms gender stereotypes in human resource management. Company policies are at present...