Essay Example on Gender Inequality in the Workplace: Examining HR as the Source

Introduction

The problem of gender inequality in the workplace is a complex phenomenon witnessed in the organizational structures, practices and processes. Many men and women do not enjoy gender equality in their workplaces, which is attained when all workers receive equal treatment in terms of access to resources, opportunities and rewards (Sen, 2011). Studies have shown that the department of human resource is the primary source of gender inequality because it is responsible for making decisions, policies, and enactment that affect the recruitment, training, and promotion of employees, particularly female workers (Adamson, Beauregard, & Lup, 2018).

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This problem has been exhibited especially by the underrepresentation of women in the management, gender segregation in the industry and the continued gender pay gap. According to (Adamson et al., 2018), gender discrimination in HR decision-making and enactment of practices originate from gender inequalities in the entire organizational structure, methods and process. They stem from HR policies, leadership, strategy, and organizational climate and culture (Sen, 2011). It is worth noting that the level of gender discrimination in the HR department can affect the possibility of the organization in making gender-biased decisions.

The Problem of Gender Inequality to the Computing Profession

As the IT infrastructure continues to expand, there seems to be a lack of adequate information specialists due to gender dominance in the IT sector. According to Vitores & Gil-Juarez (2016), computing is one field that is experiencing under-representation of women, hence, causing the imbalance. Due to this imbalance, many people have suggested the need to address this problem to avoid discrimination of women not only in computing but also in other sectors of work. Barnes (2019) proposed that a solution to gender inequality is policy-making and a strategic workplace HR to maintain gender balance in this profession.

Causes of Gender inequality

Stereotypes cause gender inequality, especially in the computing field. Many people believe that women are not fit for technical courses such as computer engineering or computer sciences (Adamson et al., 2018). Male chauvinists, for instance, attribute these courses to men. Human resource managers who think in this direction are less likely to hire females in the computing department. This creates a room for gender inequality in the organization.

Another cause of gender inequality is ignorance. Many women experience sexual harassment and other forms of discrimination, but the organization lacks appropriate discrimination policies and laws to prevent such cases. Occasionally, managers ignore reported instances of harassment due to inadequate systems, and this intensifies the problem. Ignorance of such cases clearly shows the practice of gender inequality in the workplace.

Another cause is the lack of women empowerment. Women empowerment helps in encouraging women to take a course in computing, seek computing jobs irrespective of discrimination, and ensure that they become successful in this field to act as role models to others. Insufficient empowerment of women makes females have a negative attitude towards computing and other work-related roles.

Solutions to the Problem

Despite the steps several organizations have made in eliminating gender disparity in the workplace, female employees still face discrimination when it comes to promotion, salary and representation in senior management roles (Sen, 2011). While the perception of workers is illegal, there are still tremendous challenges in equal opportunities and employers have a pivotal role to play in addressing these hurdles. Organizations can use the approaches below to reduce or prevent gender inequality in the workplace.

Increasing the number of Female Role models

When the organization has IT, professional females, then other institutions in this sector will emulate them (Vitores & Gil-Juarez, 2016). This should strive towards empowering women to venture in the IT sector. It begins by encouraging women to take computing courses and compete favourably with male students. This action not only creates employment for them but also opens opportunities for more females to join the sector. Women who join the IT sector will become role models to others who have a negative attitude about this area for fear that it was only meant for men (Vitores & Gil-Juarez, 2016). In this context, the organization should enhance the advance training of women to eliminate illiteracy and negative thoughts. Increasing the number of female role models through training, education and employment will, therefore, enable the organization to attain gender equality.

Policy implementation

The organization needs to develop clear policies on discrimination that aim at addressing inequality in the workplace. A study by Unilever found that men and women struggle to acknowledge gender discrimination and inappropriate behaviour, such as sexual harassment in the workplace (Barnes, 2019). Implementing clear, unbiased, non-retaliatory policies on discrimination like severe penalties for sexual harassment, bullying, and racism will help alleviate the problem. Therefore, companies should ensure that they punish such offences harshly.

Prioritizing Work-life Balance

Research has shown that the gender pay gap is widening among working mothers because they are vitally suffering a pay penalty for taking time off (Adamson et al., 2018). Rongala (2019) stated that inadequate childcare support is one of the most significant obstacles that presently prevent women from reaching their career goals. Apparently, the lack of proper childcare support form companies reduces the participation of women in the labour force. The International Labour Organization (ILO) reported that women perform about 76.2% of the total hours of unpaid work more than men (Rongala, 2019). For that reason, organizations need to come up with childcare support and elderly care to help females and also avoid high rates of attrition mang women employees.

To relieve working mothers from stress, the organization should provide paternal leave for fathers as this will allow the mothers to invest more time into their work. This will also help the father to get involved in the child upbringing. Most importantly, companies should play a significant role in supporting mothers by creating a fair and balanced workplace that will enhance productivity (Rongala, 2019). Work-life balance is an essential aspect of a healthy work environment. Maintaining balance helps in reducing the levels of stress in the workplace.

Identifying and Stopping Harassment Immediately

Research indicates that one in four women have experienced workplace harassment at some point (Rongala, 2019). The management is often responsible for ensuring harassment does not occur in the workplace In case any employee participates in such activity, the administration should identify them and take immediate measures such as suspending the worker because they take part in illegal activity (Sen, 2011). The company should also take legal action against any worker who violates the rights of women in the workplace by engaging in any form of harassment. This step may serve as a warning to other perpetrators and prevents them from discriminating females. Ignorance towards offensive activities against women indicates that the organization practices gender inequality.

Establishing an Open-minded Environment

A company can attain gender equality at the workplace only when the managers, employers process owners and team leaders have an extensive and open-minded policy. If most of the departments within the organization are gender-biased, then, the growth of the company will be affected in the long run (Rongala, 2019). Employees need to be appreciated according to their performances and talents as opposed to the employer's favourites.

Providing both Men and Women Equal Leadership Roles

Many people stereotype that only men succeed in leadership roles and women can only support them in their roles. This stereotype is the foundation of gender discrimination in the workplace. According to Rongala (2019), every person deserves a leadership role so long as they have the appropriate attributes. An excellent way to promote gender equality is by providing leadership roles to deserving candidates regardless of their gender. Representation of women in leadership improves gender equality at the workplace as the organization will hire more females across the board (Barnes, 2011). Additionally, an increased population of women in leadership will result in a higher percentage of women employees in the organization due to opportunities in career advancement and mentorship.

Conclusion

Gender identity commonly occurs in different organizations. It is accompanied by discrimination of women which denies them equal opportunities as men in the workplace. Women who are discriminated do not have the opportunity lead, are deemed insufficient to take part in technical roles, are underrepresented in organizational functions, receive low pay and do not enjoy the promotion. Possible causes of this problem include stereotypes, lack of women empowerment and ignorance. To address the problem, the company should consider measures such as increasing the number of female role models, developing clear discrimination policies, prioritizing work-balance, identifying and stopping harassment, establishing an open-minded environment and providing both men and women equal leadership roles.

References

Adamson, M., Beauregard, T., & Lup, D. (2018). The many faces of gender inequality at work. Work, Employment and Society, 32(4), 623-628. Retrieved from https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/0950017018780603?casa_token=7HasrNQJmEAAAAA:Pdqbmj55PDiMaSlbqRg1SSoBSLRFs9tncphdXQVbhiMuGJedz7BUxrengqoqU0WO2fbcYT7mfVaV

Barnes, P. (2019). "Is the EEOC Protecting Workers or Discriminatory Employers?" Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/patriciagbarnes/2019/09/04/is-the-eeoc-protecting-workers-or-discriminatory-employers/#2bf696e55407

Rongala, A. (2019, January 25th). Invensis Global Learning Services. Retrieved from https://www.invensislearning.com/blog/workplace-gender-equality/

Sen, A. (2011). Many Faces of Gender Inequality. Frontline, 18(22).Retrieved fromhttps://www.sas.upenn.edu/~dludden/MANY%20FACES%20OF%20GENDER%20INEQUALITY.htm

Vitores, A., & Gil-Juarez, A. (2016). The trouble with 'women in computing': a critical examination of the deployment of research on the gender gap in computer science. Journal of Gender Studies, 25(6), 666-680. Retrieved from https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09589236.2015.1087309