The empowerment of a single female is about the empowerment of all of us. Empowerment is the idea that we can increase an individual’s autonomy, self-determination and personal independence. It is through personal empowerment that we can enrich the lives of others. Personal empowerment has often been considered the rallying cry for the women’s movement, but in truth, personal empowerment should be the rallying cry for humanity.
It is through personal empowerment that people ultimately will achieve authentic equality, liberation, and the fundamental idea that women should have freedom from external control.
Empowerment in the Workplace
As the female labour force has risen, it has had a significant effect on society. No longer are men considered the only qualified candidate. The participation of women in the labour force has had a profound effect on men and women in the workplace. The employment of females has caused a re-evaluation and consideration of our attitudes, perceptions, interactions, behaviours, and interpersonal skills. While sexism may be on the decline, there remains an underbelly of deeply seeded prejudices, stereotypes, and discrimination. The old guard has had a difficult time relinquishing this way of thinking. No longer can we allow these traditional points of view and attitudes to skew our way of thinking.
Workplace Communication
If we desire to create true equality, we must refrain from sexist remarks, jokes and language that is disparaging of another. While it is no longer considered acceptable, ethical or legal; telling jokes at the expense of another has continued. Women continue to be the punch-line of many jokes. The jokes are often considered to be harmless. In reality, when women are made the punch-line of a joke, it creates an environment that perpetuates the most egregious of attitudes.
Being made the punch-line not only creates negative images, attitudes, and perceptions, but it dismisses the female. By the way, men are not the only ones to blame for sexism. Research has shown that women too are to blame for perpetuating this most egregious form of communication. Why would a woman perpetuate such communication? Women tend to perpetuate such communication to become part of the old boy’s club.
A study by Stephanie Schnurr of The University of Hong Kong found that female leaders frequently deploy humour to portray themselves as effective leaders. The rationale is that some female leaders find that humour is the inroad to being accepted by their male counterparts.
Research by Yam, Christian, Wei, Liao, and Nai (2018) suggests that
“When leaders display humour and, as a result, violate norms, followers will likely perceive that it is socially acceptable to violate norms in the organization for two reasons. First, leaders’ formal position makes them strong sources of normative expectations. Leaders, as role models, are more likely to be observed by followers who are scanning the environment for information on how to behave in the work context.”
If a leader is telling a joke at the expense of another, they are dismissing that individual’s right to a safe environment. Furthermore, they are empowering those who might tend to dismiss workplace norms. When humour is used in a derogatory, critical and disrespectful way; it creates an environment that makes such humour acceptable. Moreover, if the environment is accepting of sexist and disparaging remarks; then the attitudes, perceptions and behaviours are often mirrored.
“Research by Ford, Wentzel, & Lorion (2001) “found that men who were previously exposed to sexist humour later believed that there is an increased tolerance of violating sexism norms compared to men who were not exposed to such humour.”
Research has further suggested that sexism is often the catalyst for rape and sexual proclivity (Romero-Sanchez, et. al., 2016; Ford, 2015; & Basow, 2011). Let us not dismiss that the individual is responsible for his or her attitudes, perceptions, and choices, but when there is an undeniable numbing of the senses it creates an environment of tolerance.
As an individual, you can end sexism and disparaging communications. Sexism and intolerable communication should not be validated. Do not validate someone’s sexist or disparaging communications by laughing, staying silent or denying that there is an issue. You set a tone by your actions or inaction.
Sexism
So, what is sexism? Sexism is any prejudice, stereotype, or form of discrimination used against another based on sex or gender. Sexism can be communicated through either verbal or nonverbal language. Sexism and gender biases occur throughout our lives. I seriously doubt that there is a single human alive who has not experienced some form of gender bias or sexist remark. Even if the sexist remarks or gender biases were vicariously experienced.
They can be as subtle as saying:
“You play like a girl.”
“Women are not natural leaders.”
“Hey you, don’t let that female carry those boxes.”
“Women should be seen, not heard.”
“Why would you want to work in this male-dominated workplace?”
“Don’t you have a woman to do those chores?”
“Get back in the kitchen!”
“Are you one of those feminists?”
Sadly, women are more apt to hear sexist remarks throughout their lives. Believe it or not, sexism can affect an individual’s self-esteem and outlook.
It is important to understand that sexism is not merely an issue for women. Sexism has been experienced by both men and women. If females are to be empowered, they too need to empower one another and their male counterparts.
In the workplace, sexism is not just about the language used, but the behaviours, attitudes, and perceptions of an individual’s role based on sex. If you have ever received unsolicited comments about your body or your appearance, you have probably encountered some form of sexism. Research has reported that approximately 80% of women in the workplace have been sexually harassed. They have reported that sexual harassment comes in a variety of forms: catcalls, being groped, intimidated, unsolicited photos, and stared at in a lecherous manner.
Whether you are male or female, you mustn’t avoid alerting someone to being sexually harassed. Harassment is not permissible and it should not be tolerated. The influence and impact of these sexual remarks can take a toll on your overall view, perception and worldview.
Double Standards
There is without a doubt a double standard when discussing the roles of men and women in the workplace and education. Double standards frequently favour one group or individual over another. An example of this is that men continue to be compensated at a higher rate of pay and women continue to be passed up for promotions. While the global community has made tremendous progress in shattering the glass ceiling and empowering women, there remains much work to be accomplished to achieve true equality.
The Double Standards that Women Face:
Being Appointed to Executive Positions
Senior executive roles held by women remain significantly low. According to Grant Thorton, there is a proportional difference among women in senior leadership positions geographically they are: 32% in Eastern Europe; 28% in Asia Pacific; 28% in The European Union; 31% in North America; and 25% in Latin America. At this rate, women are less empowered to reach top levels of managerial roles anytime soon.
Receiving Equal Pay
There remains an indisputable pay gap between women and men. According to the United Nations Women (2020), the pay gap is approximately 77 cents for every dollar a man earns. Let’s put that into a different perspective, globally women continue to be paid 23% less than men. The inequality continues despite several countries that have already implemented legislation for equal pay.
Gender Inequalities in the Workplace
Strong women in the workplace are often shunned, mocked, ridiculed and called the most atrocious of names. An assertive woman may be considered bossy, dominant, aggressive, and in general, an unfavourable person. Whereas, an assertive man is often considered confident, astute, high-principled, powerful and controlled.
“Research by Biron, De Reuver and Toker “suggests assertiveness in the workplace is beneficial for women, as researchers found that assertive, dominant women were generally compensated better than their less assertive counterparts.”
Gender Inequalities in Academia
Whether or not we want to admit it, there remains a divide even in the world of academia. The world of academia commonly sees itself as being more progressive and in tune with the populous but the lag of progressiveness affects the halls of academia. Women are less likely to receive promotions, be placed on tenure tracks, and be recognized for their academic contributions.
Changing the Double Standards:
Real equality will be achieved when we eliminate the traditional stereotypes around the roles of men and women. The impartiality and discrimination continue to occur because of a lack of acceptance of the opposite gender. According to Biron, De Reuver, and Toker (2016)
“Gender stereotypes are persistent and difficult to change. Some people still cling to the idea that some qualities are exclusively male and exclusively female.”
In academia, we must do a better job. According to the American Association of University Women (2018), a mere 27% of women have been placed on a tenure track at four-year institutions. While there continues to be gender inequality in academia, there have been great strides towards improving this disparity. Equal pay will occur the moment that we begin to legislate it and demand it. The wage gap is narrowing because of the academic achievements of women.
The Home
As females are placed into the labour force, we are seeing a rise in men’s participation in the home and family life.
Gender Equality in the Home
Gender equality in the home is something that we seldom speak of. Gender inequality is a known and acceptable taboo. The gender inequality occurs for both genders. Men who work from home are often considered lazy, uninspired and unmotivated. Whereas, women have traditionally been expected to be homemakers, caregivers, and supporters of their husbands. If we are going to achieve real equality in the home, we must strive for interchangeable relationships.
“Gender is not about biological differences between the sexes, rather, it is a social construct—people define what it means to be a boy or a girl, and these social conditionings often expect children to conform to specific and limiting gender roles and expectations from a young age.”
(UNWomen, 2020). These social constructs not only define what it is to be a boy or girl, but they define their roles into adulthood.
Furthermore, we need to stop seeing a homemaker and caregiver as not contributing. Whether it is the man or the woman; a homemaker and caregiver is financially contributing to the home. If we are going to achieve authentic empowerment of women, we need to fight these stereotypes.
The changes in the family structure have contributed to the empowerment of females. There are more and more men who are working from home; who are performing tasks traditionally thought to be that of women; and who are the primary caregivers.
Creating Lasting Equality in the Workplace
While women remain drastically underrepresented in the workplace, there is hope for their future. The empowerment of women is occurring. At this time, there are more women in the workplace than ever in history. Women are beginning to make an incredible mark on the world stage and have a presence in government.
The Leadership
Achieving equality begins with leadership. Leaders set the tone of an organization. As leaders, we must actively listen, model, and mediate when sexism occurs in the workplace. Leaders must be intentional in their decision-making, but there should be haste when an environment is unhealthy.
Active Listening
Leadership must consciously employ active listening skills. If you are listening to me, really listening, then I am more apt to discuss what is on my mind. The employer and fellow employees must begin practising active listening. Many women, often speak of being overheard, interrupted, sidelined, talked over, and their voices being squelched. The devaluing of women’s voices in the workplace and academic settings has occurred for many generations. Leaders should ensure that everyone at the table has an equal opportunity to contribute or comment.
Denying Room For Stereotypes
Leaders must not give in to stereotypes. Research has indicated that a great deal of prejudices in the workplace occur because of stereotypes. The stereotypes that women and men have specific job functions and roles in the office must become ancient history. It is critical to understand that stereotypes affect a woman’s self-confidence and her ability to perform work related to her job.
Female Empowerment
Female empowerment will occur when women are considered equal contributors. Despite society’s embrace of female empowerment, there continues to remain an apprehension when discussing the topic. The empowerment of females frightens people. Powerful females continue to be disparaged and regarded poorly.
The empowerment of the female will occur the moment we relinquish our traditional ways of thinking. We have long-held beliefs that women and men should maintain specific roles. It is time that we begin moving beyond these traditional constructs.
We must strive for true equality when it comes to active listening and hearing the voices of those in our labour force. Whether it is a female or male, everyone should feel as though their voice is equally represented. Fortunately, women today have gained greater ground in the workforce but there remains a tremendous amount of work to be done to create true equality.
The empowerment of the female is not the relinquishment of the male’s rights. Authentic empowerment should be about making each gender stronger and more confident. Empowerment is about recognizing and accepting an individual’s rights.
Female empowerment is about being equipped with the same education, training, and skill set. For females, true empowerment should be reflected in their confidence, self-esteem, and personal control. Nevertheless, anyone who has experienced empowerment should not only embrace the opportunity to be empowered but should have a desire to empower all people.
While we are seeing more and more women placed into high-profile executive and legislative positions, there remains an undeniable gap. Female empowerment is about changing our perceptions, attitudes, and concepts of the roles that men and women perform.
Empowerment is the process of helping oneself or another to become more confident and stronger. In our global community, we have witnessed generations of women who have been downtrodden, oppressed, abused, and simply overlooked for positions that they were uniquely qualified for. We must begin empowering women through literacy, training, and education. It is ultimately about equipping and empowering them to make decisions.
In cultures where women’s rights are limited, it is of the essence that we promote personal empowerment. Personal empowerment should be a universal human right. When women and men are empowered, they are capable of influencing the masses.
An empowered person is a liberated person.
