Overview; the Struggle for Women’s Rights:

When college students think of gender equalities in the workplace, they often view the issue as skewed and unfair. As many of you might be thinking, there does exist many inequalities for women in the workplace, even in the modern day. These often include unfair treatment at work, lower wages than men, and most notably, sexual harassment. These disparities regarding civil rights for women blatantly go against United States law. While there have been considerable improvements for women in the American workplace, it is evident that there is still a long stride before they receive equal opportunities. As a labor relations and human resources major, I plan to use this week’s blog to demonstrate the many inequalities women face in the modern American workplace.

The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission: Title Seven of the Civil Rights Act

As I noted in my previous blog posts, one of the most important organizations in human resources is the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. This agency is very evident in the modern American workplace as it aims to protect workers from any form of unfair discrimination. Back in 1964, Title Seven of the EEOC’s Civil Rights Act clearly stated that it “prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin” (http://www.eeoc.gov/facts/qanda.html). Therefore, under law in the modern workforce, women are protected from experiencing any inequalities based on their gender. This includes protections based on treatments from their bosses and especially sexual harassment

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Wage Discrimination/Protections

Furthermore, another misconception made by college students is that wages are not protected based on sex. In the modern era, many women do the same job as men but receive less money for their services. This demonstrates sexism and bosses attempting to screw over their employees. As a labor relations major, I am here to tell you that wages for women are protected under federal law. According “to the the Equal Pay Act of 1963 (http://www.eeoc.gov/facts/qanda.html),” men and women are protected against wage discrimination for doing the same job at the same quality. Therefore, whenever women experience discrimination for wages and protections, their bosses are breaking federal law.

Modern Unfair Treatment for Working Women: Pregnancies

Despite protections under federal law, there are still countless modern situations where women experience prejudice in the workplace. According to the article Gender Equality as a Development Goal from Project Syndicate, one of the major problems women experience in the workplace surrounds pregnancy. Author BJØRN LOMBORG argues “that allowing women to decide if, when, and how often they become pregnant” will “lead to fewer deaths in childbirth and fewer infant deaths.” Unfortunately in the modern American workplace, many women do not receive fair treatment when they are pregnant. Many corporations still fail to recognize the health hazards the workplace has on pregnant women.

According to another article known as The Effects of Workplace Hazards on Female Reproductive Health, workplace chemicals often also affect the wellbeing of unborn children. The article then notes how Employees are “responsible for learning about the hazards in their workplace, using personal protective equipment, and following proper work practices.” Therefore, despite knowing about the unfair health hazards exposed to pregnant workers, many women still experience unhealthy conditions in the workplace.

Sexual Harassment
            Along with wage discrimination and unfair pregnancy conditions, the most common inequality experience by women in the workplace is sexual harassment. This semester, I have learnt plenty about the effects of sexual harassment through my deliberation assignment. These often include psychological effects, the transmittance of sexually transmitted diseases and a sense of hopelessness. I am here to tell that in human resources, thousands of women unfortunately experience these horrid effects due to sexual harassment in the workplace. Last semester in Labor and Employment Relations 100, we learnt that nearly 7 out of every 10 workingwomen will experience some sort of sexual harassment in the workplace.

Another interesting fact I learnt was that there are also two different types of sexual harassment experienced by both women and men in the workplace: a quid pro quo or a Hostile Work Environment. According to the article Know Your Rights: Workplace Sexual Harassment by the American Association of University Women a quid pro quo is a “promotion or threat” experienced by women in order for them to maintain their jobs. Similarly, the article describes a hostile workplace as one where the “environment” feels “intimidating, hostile, or offensive” (http://www.aauw.org/what-we-do/legal-resources/know-your-rights-at-work/workplace-sexual-harassment/). In essence, when college students think of modern sexual harassments in the workplace, it is true that women experience greater chances and forms of discrimination than men.

Conclusion: How we can better the Workplace for Everyone

Despite protections under law, it is evident that many working class women do not experience equal protections under the law as men. Whether experiencing wage inequalities, unfair treatment during pregnancies or sexual harassment, inequalities are very notable in the American workplace. Ways I believe we can improve the workplace are through demonstrations. It is imperative that we let our voices be heard and show how corporations are violating working conditions protected under law. Furthermore, I believe that as college students, a major lesson we can learn from this is empathy. Just as in the workplace, we as students have an obligation to understand unfair treatments and improve them when possible.

 Sources Works Cited

“Federal Laws Prohibiting Job Discrimination Questions And Answers.” Federal Laws Prohibiting Job Discrimination: Questions And Answers. 21 Nov. 2009. Web. 17 Feb. 2015. <http://www.eeoc.gov/facts/qanda.html>.

Lomborg, Bjørn. “Gender Equality as a Development Goal.” Project Syndicate. 17 Feb. 2015. Web. 17 Feb. 2015. <http://www.project-syndicate.org/commentary/gender-equality-development-goal-by-bj-rn-lomborg-2015-02>.

“The Effects of Workplace Hazards on Female Reproductive Health.” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 6 June 2014. Web. 17 Feb. 2015. <http://www.cdc.gov/niosh/docs/99-104/>.

“Know Your Rights at Work: Workplace Sexual Harassment.” AAUW Empowering Women Since 1881 Know Your Rights at Work Workplace Sexual Harassment Comments. Web. 17 Feb. 2015. <http://www.aauw.org/what-we-do/legal-resources/know-your-rights-at-work/workplace-sexual-harassment/>.

Images Works Cited

“Equality In The Workplace.” New Trends in Management -. Web. 17 Feb. 2015. <https://newtrendsinmanagement.wikispaces.com/Equality In The Workplace>.

Wikipedia. Wikimedia Foundation, 16 Dec. 2007. Web. 31 Jan. 2015. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Equal_Employment_Opportunity_Commission#mediaviewer/File:US-EEOC-Seal.svg>.

 

“Premier League Clubs Can Cut Wages, Bundesliga’s Christian Seifert Says.” Web. 17 Feb. 2015. <http://www.theguardian.com/football/2010/apr/04/premier-league-cut-wages-bundesliga>.

“SEXUAL HARASSMENT, DON’T LET THIS HAPPEN TO YOUR COMPANY!” Craig Bushon Show. 3 Nov. 2014. Web. 17 Feb. 2015. <http://www.craigbushonshow.com/sexual-harassment-dont-let-this-happen-to-your-company/>.

Chhabra, Smriti. “12 Tips for Pregnant Working Women.” Rediff. 16 Apr. 2013. Web. 17 Feb. 2015. <http://www.rediff.com/getahead/report/slide-show-1-health-tips-for-pregnant-working-women/20130416.htm>.