While the societal mentality nowadays is that the glass ceiling is gone, a recent study proves it is far from shattering.
The sixth annual UC Davis Graduate School of Management (GSM) census found that women hold only 9.5 percent of the highest-paid executive positions and board seats at 400 surveyed companies in California. That’s truly abysmal, and the numbers won’t change unless people begin to actively and critically look at their surroundings.
Take The California Aggie, for instance. Out of 17 managing positions, nine are female – 52 percent. Point one for equality, right? Well, not entirely. There hasn’t been a female editor-in-chief in 10 years.
According to the GSM’s research, women are entering the first level of management at high rates. However, there are hardly any at the top positions, like at The Aggie, which shows that there is still a glass ceiling lurking somewhere.
If The Aggie’s numbers are any indication, the future has potential. But ultimately, there is still some discrepancy given the lack of women having ever held The Aggie’s top-paid position.
Similarly, there has been a fairly balanced gender ratio at the ASUCD senate table in the past few years. Since 2005, the table has been roughly 60 percent male and 40 percent female, collectively. However, the top position as ASUCD president has consistently been filled for the past decade with men – with the one exception of Sara Henry in 2003.
Equality can’t happen on its own. It takes initiative and the application of ideals, rather than assuming that time will heal all. Until people realize that there is still a large chasm between women’s current presence in the workforce and what that presence could be, that glass ceiling will remain awfully sturdy. XXX
I think that this brief article does not properly address the issue. Perhaps, the reason for gender inequality in the workplace, has little to do with discrimination. Women and men are different, at the very least: physically. They are brought up differently, with different values and attitudes, thus different strengths are developed. It is no secret, that men are more competitive than women (there are numerous studies illustrating this). Also, women have to take time off their careers to give birth and raise children. A combination of these factors leads to the “inequality†we see in the workplace, but this inequality is not caused by some evil power hungry man, rather by women themselves. By women, who choose to take time off to raise kids, or who prefer to work in social work rather than in the private sector. This is not to say that there is no discrimination, there certainly is, but it is not the only reason for the gender inequality.