Glass Ceiling

Glass Ceiling

"I now see the women's movement for equality as simply the necessary first stage of a much larger sex role revolution... What had to be changed was the obsolete feminine and masculine sex roles...It seemed to me men weren't really the enemy--they were fellow victims, suffering from an outmoded masculine mystique that made them feel unnecessarily inadequate when there were no more bears to kill"

Betty Friedan, The Feminist Mystique

Glass ceiling: The invisible gender barrier that keeps women and minorities at the bottom of the occupational hierarchy and prevents them from earning promotions to positions of power.

Women have made tremendous gains in the past thirty years in the areas of employment. However there is still a significant difference between the numbers of women and minorities working in upper management positions. Statistics estimates that women only represent 2.4% of fortune 500 companies upper management positions, and only account for 1.9% of the highest paid officers and directors. Statistics show that 97% of senior level positions are held by men, and 94% of those positions are white males. The remaining 3% are women of which 1.5% are minorities. These numbers indicate that women and minorities are underrepresented at all levels of management. Even though women are graduating in higher numbers than men in the fields of Commerce, Management and Business Administration the misrepresentation of women in senior management continues to show that the "Glass Ceiling is still a relevant factor in corporate Canada.

It is important for us to realize that in this paper I have seemed to focus on the dominant corporate world. The "glass ceiling" can be found in all levels of industries from Wal-Mart to Bay Street. The effect of the "Glass Ceiling can be felt in every Province in Canada. Although this does not mean that women and minorities are not receiving Senior level positions, it is just the rate of growth in these areas that are inadequate and astounding.

Many women are denied top executive positions because of their gender, for being a woman who might want to have a family or has a family. This obligation would interfere with the commitment to the company and result in time off and extra expense to the company. Women are expected to make a choice between a career or family. Although most women can handle both family and career it is clear that for a woman a choice has to be made in order for her to climb that corporate ladder. The higher women climb, the more they have to give up in their personal and family lives.

Our Society:" Many women find themselves in what is called a "double -ghetto". This occurs when a woman both works for wage and undertakes housework, including looking after the children and the needs of her husband" Pg 71

Although many women have broken through the "glass ceiling" they have failed to remember where they came from and the struggle it took to get there. These women have taken on the same bias as their male dominant counterparts. This type of attitude and behaviour can only hinder the chances for other women to gain some experiences and knowledge from those who have broken through the barrier. Instead of supporting other women towards advancement, these women join their male counterparts in harassing members of their own gender. This type of behavior only reinforces the patriarchy of the workplace. Mullaly talks about this in his book Challenging Oppression.

"Mimesis" Robert P. Mullaly (2002) "One response to oppression is for a member of a particular oppressed group to mimic or imitate the behaviours and attitudes that the dominant group displays towards that group in an attempt to gain a slightly more privileged status" Pg. 66

Frequently women who