Sexual Harassment & Gender in Todays Society
Comments(0) Issues in gender diversity can date back all the way to the 1840′s when the first women’s rights convention was held, telling everyone that women were not happy with the way they were being treated and that it was time to make some changes. One of the first large organizations formed was the National Woman Suffrage Association, formed by Susan B. Anthony and Elizabeth Cady Stanton in 1869. (Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony)
In 1893, Colorado was the first state to adopt an amendment allowing women voting rights. Dealing with gender diversity in the workforce, the National Women’s Trade Union League, which fought for better pay and working conditions, was formed in 1903. Finally, in 1920 (A Curriculum of United States Labor History for Teachers.), the nineteenth amendment to the Constitution granted women the right to cote- a huge step. (Failure is Impossible!) But gender discrimination was still rampant in the workforce.
In 1961, Eleanor Roosevelt was appointed as chairwoman to the President’s Commissions on the Status of Women. (Women’s Rights) This organization found that there was “substantial discrimination against women in the work place”. It was definitely seen as time for yet another change. Three years later, in 1964, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act banned discrimination in employment based on one’s gender. (Employment Non-Discrimination Act S. 1284/H.R. 2692) With this, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission was also established to investigate any complaints and to impose any punishments or penalties. Not until 1968- less than fifty years ago!- did the EEOC rule that help wanted ads that were gender specific should be made illegal. (Siegelmen, 725)
For over one hundred fifty years women have been battling gender diversities. So much progress has been made, but there is still issues of gender discrimination and sexual harassment at the workplace. These present-day issues are not just effecting women though. Perhaps it is because of women moving up in the work place, or maybe it is because society is much more open now, but men have recently been coming forward with complaints of gender discrimination and sexual harassment. There is still more work to be done when it comes to gender equality in the workforce, but we must also remember that it is not solely a female issue any more. Both men and women need- and deserve- to be treated equally at work.Gender diversity and gender differences are problems that we continue to see in today’s society. It affects everybody and is not exclusive to any specific people regardless of culture, geographical location or race. It is often prevalent in the workforce and it doesn’t matter if it is within the walls of a corporation or the workers of a construction company. We see gender diversity in schools and as early as in kindergarten. People are being labeled and stereotyped based on gender. It is an issue that has no end in the near future. Additionally, seen today are the forms of gender stereotypes. A typical stereotype that often can be heard about in ignorant jokes is “Women should be in the kitchen and men should be at work”. These are generalizations and really don’t make a whole lot of sense, because in today’s age we see that more women today would actually prefer to be at the workplace and not be labeled as “homemakers”. One of the more frequent problems within a gender-diversified workforce is sexual harassment. “Sexual harassment is a form of sex discrimination that violates Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964” (Sexual Harassment) Though many may make the assumption that this is a female- victim injustice, it is not. Men and women both can be effected by sexual harassment in the work place. These “unwelcome sexual advances, requests for sexual favors, and other verbal or physical conduct of sexual nature” (Sexual Harassment) are looked into by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. In 2007 alone, there were 12,510 charges of sexual harassment and 16% of those were filed by men. (Sexual Harassment) Like sexual harassment, gender discrimination is also an issue that is common in the workplace. It is typically women that feel that they are discriminated against based on their gender. According to an article from 2005, “Men seem to also have greater influence on group discussions and decisions. Women commonly complain that ideas they generate are often ignored. Yet, when the same idea is re-introduced later by a man, it is accepted.” (Distelhorst 24-28)
With women understanding they have just as much opportunity as the next male, how can this still be the case? Women have been progressing since the first women’s rights convention in 1848 and they are still feeling that they do not receive fair treatment in the work force. It isn’t hopeless though. “Under the right conditions, mixed-gender teams can and do significantly out-perform single-gender teams.” (Distelhorst 24-28) There are countless explanations as to why there is this idea that men are supposed to dominate in the work field. “Some are biological, while others are based on socialization and culture programming. Some focus on power differentials and dynamics. (Others) identify status and expectations as the heart of the matter.” (Distelhorst 24-28) So after well over a century of striving for gender equality and not achieving it, why not just give up? “Why bother with all this? Because research shows that striving for gender equity actually enhances group and organizational performance, as well as quality of work life, for both men and women. It’s just the right thing to do; it’s the effective thing to do.” (Distelhorst 24-28) So, a lot has changed in the last 150 years when it comes to gender diversity in the work place. Women have gone from not being able to vote to, in some instances, becoming the CEO of a company. There are still battles to be fought- for both men and women. Harassment and discrimination continue to take place with both sexes being victim. With continued work from the EEOC and other organizations like it, these issues will, in time, hopefully be resolved. It seems as time goes on that both men and women are becoming more accepting of the opposite sex. Hopefully this can continue on to create gender equality in the workplace.
“A Curriculum of United States Labor History for Teachers. .” Illinois Labor History Society 2006 11 Oct 2008 <
http://www.kentlaw.edu/ilhs/curricul.htm.
Distelhorst, Daniel. “Dominance and Deference: Status Expectations of Men and Women.” The Diversity Factor 13(2005): 24-28.
“Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony .” America’s Journal 2008 13 Oct 2008 <http://www.americaslibrary.gov/cgi-bin/page.cgi/aa/activists/stanton/friends_1>.
“Employment Non-Discrimination Act S. 1284/H.R. 2692” ACLU 26 FEB 2002 11 Oct 2008 <
http://www.aclu.org/lgbt/discrim/11853leg20020226.html>.
“Failure Is Impossible!.” UUVWHS 1995 13 Oct 2008 <http://www.uuwhs.org/worfailure.php>.
“Sexual Harassment.” The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission 4 MAR 2008 15 Oct 2008 <http://www.eeoc.gov/types/sexual_harassment.html>.
Siegelman, Peter. Shaky Grounds: The Case Against the case against Antidiscrimination Laws. Cambridge, Mass: Harvard University Press, 1991.
“Womens Rights – 1961 Eleanor Roosevelt is appointed to chair the commission on the Status of Women.” JusticeLearning 2007 11 Oct 2008 <http://www.justicelearning.org/justice_timeline/Issues.aspx?IssueID=13&TimelineID=54&TimelineEventID=190>.