Essay Sample on Gender Equality

Gender equality is a universal right for both men and women to be treated equally through equal rights and opportunities regardless of their gender. Inequality doesn’t just affect women, but also men, children, and the whole society. Gender inequality becomes the root of gender-based violence, gender discrimination, and more others.  In this modern culture, society is becoming more and more committed to breaking down gender barriers, with the goal of gender equality. This includes fighting for equal leadership opportunities. Based on a research done by catalyst.org, the proportion of women in top executive positions are at 29% worldwide in 2020. Although there is an increase of women in leadership, the issue persists. A United Nations Development Programme research on gender study shows a result that 25% of people in the UK thought that men have more right to a job and are better business executives compared to women, and in some countries, the number is higher. A step towards gender equality is through the equality of opportunity for both men and women to be senior managers and leaders in businesses. Businesses are one of the most influential agents in society, being able to create trends and change people’s lifestyle. Therefore, society should utilize this influential agent to advocate women empowerment and urge all of society to stand in solidarity in achieving gender equality through female business leaders. 

According to Pew Research Center, in 2020, women earned 84% of what men earned meaning that women are paid 84 cents for every dollar paid to men. This shows the gender pay gap which is the differences of the average earnings between men and women. Surely, in the compensation of employees, a lot of factors are taken into account, such as age, experience, skills, and more others. However, there are a few causes to the gender pay gap such as the unconscious bias in businesses and the overall social belief. A big part of society believes that a good leader is someone who is dominant, authoritative, and competitive and is able to take charge. This describes agentic qualities which are identical with the masculine stereotype. On the other hand, women are considered sympathetic, gentle, and nurturing, describing the opposite of what a good leader is. This traditional mindset affects the underrepresentation of women in the workforce. Furthermore, gender bias and this social belief also hinder opportunities for women to work in male-dominated industries, discouraging women and leading them to work in lower-paid jobs. In short, gender bias and stereotypes cause the lack of opportunity for women to work in higher-paying jobs and in hiring and promoting. This leads to a wider difference of earning between men and women. On the other hand, with more women in leadership roles, means a higher-paying job, which will decrease the gender pay gap. 

According to a survey conducted by the American Association of University Women (AAUW), 38% of women who’d been sexually harassed said it contributed to their decision to leave a job early, and 37% said it disrupted their career advancement. This proves how the external factors, such as the workplace environment, affect the advancement and development of its employees. The case of gender discrimination in the workplace such as sexual harassment is rooted from the lack of respect and the abuse of power from colleagues or even supervisors. Often, sexual harassment in the workplace happens due to the power dynamic where the men in power outnumber the women, leading to a lack of respect. Pew Research Center published a survey on women and leadership in which they collected data from nearly 4,600 Americans and asked their perspective on gender and the workplace. The result shows that 43% of the respondents thought that female leaders and executives are better at creating a safe and respectful workplace environment compared to men. Therefore, through female business leaders, will create a more diverse workforce and encourage a more respectful workplace environment. Women having more influence and authority also allows them to establish policies regarding discrimination, and attract a more diverse workforce, as well as the policies supporting the career advancement of minorities, including women. 

As people would say, we live in a patriarchal social system in which men are predominantly assigned to social, political, and economic roles. For example, according to a research done by yougov.co.uk, 59% of men are more likely to be given an opportunity to lead and take charge of a project, in contrast to women with a 44% chance showing the underrepresentation of women in leadership. Knowing this, women may perceive gender as a “disadvantage” or barrier to opportunity, demotivating women. The root of this issue is the unconscious social belief that men naturally have qualities of a good leader making them more competent as a leader than women. However through the rise of women leadership in business, this can slowly change the conception, prejudice, and mindset about who can and have the ability to lead. Female leaders will pave the way and become role models for other ambitious women, empowering them and encouraging them to dream big and advance their career, reducing stigma and increasing the female role of authority and participation in society economically, socially, and politically. 

Based on the current progress in achieving gender equality, it seems that this is not something society will achieve anytime soon due to the persisting issues such as the gender pay gap, sexual harassment, and gender-based violence. In order to achieve this equality of rights and opportunity, both men and women as a society should stand in solidarity against discrimination. In doing this, society should support the increase of authority and role of women as leaders. The empowerment and support towards female leaders will encourage women to display their potential and bring societal impacts. Through female business leaders, not only does it bring a positive impact to the gender pay gap, but will also promote a more respectful and safe workplace environment through the change of workplace policies, avoiding and decreasing gender discrimination in the workplace.  Furthermore, women in power will also empower and become role models for other women to actively participate in social, economic, and political situations, which is critical to the career advancement of women. Achieving gender equality requires a cultural and social change in removing gender barriers, encouraging full participation from both men and women.