How are proffessional and managerial careers gendered and racialist - Essay Example

?HOW ARE PROFFESSIONAL AND MANAGERIAL CAREERS GENDERED AND RACIALIST? of Introduction The role of genderin various managerial and professional careers is demonstrated by the gender bias against women especially in top management positions and the male dominated work activities such as engineering and construction. The social roles of women vary among various societies but generally the perception of individuals tends to categorize work roles based on gender. However, globalization and advancements in technology have led to the career advancement of women and fading of the cultural and feminist beliefs which have made women to increasingly participate in managerial and professional roles which were traditionally male dominated. Every individual despite his race is guaranteed by law a chance to develop in his career without any discrimination. This has however not always been the case since people from minority groups still face discrimination. Evidence from surveys conducted by Equality campaigner groups have shown that job applicants from minority races stood a higher of not being shortlisted for job interviews compared with white counterparts with similar qualifications. People from minority groups have been found to shy away from some professions due to perceived racial prejudice. Researchers have also shown that the racial background of an individual may determine their chances of getting into managerial jobs. The government has however worked towards equality at job place by introducing stringent laws to guarantee equal opportunities for all. Career and gender In professional careers, the role of gender is demonstrated by the perception of the society on the role of women in work activities. Some working environments such as construction and engineering work are considered to be hostile for women. According to Arditi and Balci (2009), the perceptions and beliefs on gender and work continue to persist despite the fact that women have demonstrated the ability of performing duties which were considered to be meant for men. Discriminatory employment and promotion policies have been observed especially in the managerial roles. Even though the modern age considers gender discrimination in the work place to be unethical and illegal, organizational misconduct within organizations are common most of which are biased against women. Watts (2009, p. 23) illustrates that high profile organizations have been reported to show bias against women in the promotion into managerial positions. For example civil lawsuits have been staged by women against large organizations and companies such as Wal-Mart for allegation of gender bias in the appointment, promotion and compensation of female employees as compared to the male counterparts. Fisher, Gushue and Cerrone (2011, p. 447) assert that women in the UK’s construction industry who work as engineers face challenges in balancing the professional and domestic life because of the obligations they are expected to meet at home and the pressure at work. The cultural context and belief of the society on the participation of women in construction work show that men are considered to be most suited for the construction work. According to Watts (2009, p. 37), women face prejudice when working in a male dominated career because some roles and work activities are considered to be meant for men. The number of women within the construction industry is increasing despite the challenges and the prejudice associated with this career. The ability of women to survive in the male dominated career shows that they are qualified to be part of the team and it is contributing to the reduction of the discrimination in hiring female engineers. Therefore the professional identity of women in some managerial and professional careers is facing conflicts and challenges but they are decreasing with the growing civilization within world societies. It is notable that gender discrimination in managerial and professional careers is not always apparently visible. Social exclusion of women from managerial positions may take less visible forms such as lack of mentorship and gender biased organizational culture. Moreover, the informal networks in social communications have branded women as unable to perform senior managerial positions but this is not usually the case because some women have shown exemplary managerial ability. Wilson (1998, p. 396) illustrates that most organizations have a male dominated top management positions due to an organizational culture and belief that such positions are meant for men. However the number of female CEOs is increasing and the perception of the community of the role of women in top managerial positions is becoming less radical. The changes in the mindsets of the society in the roles of women are due to the accessibility of education programs which have facilitated career development of the female gender. As a result of education and work experience, women have exhibited some qualities which are superior to those of men and thus changing the culture of organizations of being gender biased in the appointment of the top management officials. In accordance to Watts (2009, p. 26), the extent to which career experiences of women have been affected by gender based professional and managerial discrimination may go unnoticed by women themselves. More often than not, women assume responsibility and believe that men are allocated senior positions because they have earned them without considering the role of the overall culture of the organization. Men are sometimes treated better than women in the workplace and in the appointment of specific professional roles. Fisher, Gushue and Cerrone (2011, p. 441) explain that the feminist social theoretical perspectives demonstrate the societal and organizational perceptions that women are less qualified to meet some professional roles. As a result of the feminist bias, the distribution of women and men within a business organization shows a discriminatory pattern where specific roles are branded as reserved for women. Arditi and Balci (2009) assert that gender stereotyping in the society and within workplaces is not a new concept in the psychological perceptions of individuals. Women have been postulated as being unfit in the performance of specific professional and managerial roles especially those which require physical abilities and stamina. Women for example are minority within the construction industry because men are believed to be more physically fit to perform the characteristic roles within this profession. In the management of organizations, stereotyping has led to bias against women because in some societies men are considered to have better leadership abilities and skills. However the ambition and mental abilities and stamina of some women supersede those of their male counterparts a factor which has contributed to the reducing stereotyping in the professional careers. Poor representation of women in some careers is a product of unequal opportunities in education and career development in general as explained by Wilson (1998, p. 396). Some organizations disregard policies and regulations which advocate for equal opportunities and employment for all and thus contributing to the gender gaps in managerial positions and professional careers. Some institutions have gendered the training and career choices in addition to practicing biased criteria in the selection of trainees which leads to unbalanced pursuit of professional careers between the two gender groups. Fisher, Gushue and Cerrone (2011, p. 445) say that the support of institutions for unbiased training and employment is the most important consideration in the fight against gender based career discrimination practices. Therefore organizations should support training and development programs which will enable women to participate fully in work roles including those which are traditionally believed to be suited for men. Watts (2009, p. 27) points out that with the globalization and the advancement in the technology within the modern society, women are playing more roles in management and professional careers which were traditionally dominated by men. The global economy has caused competition for human resource and expertise and as a result, qualified women serve higher positions despite their feminine gender. Because of the forces of globalization, societies and organizations are thus losing their gender biased perceptions. Furthermore, globalization has caused increased education and work opportunities in equal measure between the gender groups. Women are able to pursue studies and work wherever in the world and thus develop their careers. With technology, communication has been enhanced and as a result, cultural exchange has led to the feminist beliefs of some societies and thus enabling women to be key players in management of organizations. Race and careers The 1976 Race Relations Act prohibits employers from discriminating their workers on racial grounds. A person’s race is defined by their skin colour, nationality and ethic or national origin. In the Act, Kirton (2009) observes that it does not matter whether discrimination is done by the employer intentionally or not but what counts is that an employee feels unfairly treated as a result of the employer’s actions. He further explains that the Act covers every component of employment including hiring, terms of service, pay, training, promotion and transfer. Under this law, a job can only be restricted to people from a particular race only where there is a genuine occupational requirement, such as when only a black actor is needed for a movie to pass a particular message. Despite the government coming up with laws to guard against racial discrimination at workplace, there is still evidence that a person’s race has a role to play in attaining managerial and professional careers. Peacock (2010, p.1) pointed out that research had shown open racism is prevalent in the workplace with one out of four persons from a minority group avoiding a career in finance, journalism and law due to fear of prejudice. The research which had been conducted on 1500 people from all minority groups also found out that half of the respondents were not interested in a career in the armed forces, and a further 38 % deliberately avoided police force for similar reasons. Peacock (2010 p. 1) further notes that the study found that 44 % of the participants avoided a career in politics due to perceived discrimination. Peacock (2010, p. 1) explains that the report by Race for Opportunity group showed that 50% respondents felt that police is a racist profession. Peacock (2010, p. 1) makes a shocking revelation on the extent to which professional and managerial careers are racialist. He wrote of how a Muslim missed out a chance of being shortlisted to a position of a passenger services officer. The 38 year man, Salim Zakhrouf, applied for the position but under two different names but with a similar C.V and cover letter. In the first application he used his Muslim name only to receive a regret email informing him that he had not be shortlisted for the job that had attracted 700 applicants and had high standards for entrants. Peacock (2010, p. 1) further observes that Salim was invited for the interview for the other application under the name, Ian Woodhouse. He further explains that on both occasions the reply came from the same airline office administrator. Salim went ahead to file a complaint with an employment tribunal against Cathay Pacific for racial discrimination. He argues that this has made him scared and has put him off from applying another job. This allegation demonstrates that a person’s racial background could be a determinant of a person’s career. It could only be that Salim had failed to be shortlisted given his racial background. The story carried by Peacock (2010, p. 1) is a replica of the findings of a BBC survey where CVs from fictitious candidates who had been given traditionally black African, whites or Muslims names were sent by Radio Five Live to 50 firms as reported by BBC (2004 p.1). The study established that white candidates were more likely to be given an interview than equally qualified black and Asians. Following the revelations from the study, BBC (2004, p.1) argues that unless Race Relations Act is extended to cover the private sector, Asian and black people will continue facing discrimination at their workplace. Racial discrimination in professional and managerial careers varies across the minority groups. Hussain, Matlay and Scott (2008, p.740) asserts that labour market outcomes have proved to differ greatly between minority ethnic groups with studies showing that people of Indian and Chinese backgrounds have a higher chance to be employed and attain high level at their workplace than black Africans, Pakistani and Bangladeshi counterparts. Ostrove, Stewart, and Curtin (2011, p. 748) further argues that although studies have shown variation in the level of discrimination within different occupations, net racial discrimination was evident across all occupations. In the lower end jobs when fictitious applications carrying different names were sent, racial discrimination against minority names was 14 percent while this figure rose to 45 percent for office assistant applicants. This statistics are indicative of the situation at the job market. One is more likely to be discriminated for his or her race in professional careers. Racial discrimination may further hinder one from rising to managerial position at their workplace. Kirton (2009) observes that public service organisations are obliged by law to promote equality and reduce racial and other forms of discrimination. Ostrove, Stewart, and Curtin (2011, p. 748) further explains that due to these laws, public sector has led in best practice for recruitment. Due to this, workers in the public sector are less likely to be discriminated due to their race than their counterparts in the private sector. Kirton (2009) found that overall racial discrimination in the professional careers in the public sector stood at 4 percent while the private sector recorded a high of 35 percent. The statistics are a clear indication that the government needs to intervene in the private sector to save the minority. They argued that low level of racial discrimination in the public sector is due to the use of standard forms instead of CVs. Ostrove, Stewart, and Curtin (2011, p. 748) notes that in the 79 percent of applications in the public sector is on standard forms compared to 6 percent in the private sector. They hold that the standardised forms can be detached during the sifting process to hide the identity of the applicant. Professional football in Europe is guarded by stringent rules that check against racialist attacks on the minority players. In the European Convention on Spectator Violence and Misbehaviour at Sports Events, particularly in football matches, there are several measures that are introduced to against racist actions during matches. To this end players and spectators found to invoke racist messages or actions are prosecuted. This is a step towards ensuring equal opportunities for minority players to develop their careers without prejudice. This has indeed bore fruits with numerous players in major football leagues in Europe being from minority races. Despite several surveys carried out showing the role of race in careers, both professional and managerial; the government continues to come up with laws to ensure that equality for all at their workplace. The government has made it unlawful to discriminate students in schools due to their race either in state or private schools. This is a step towards ensuring that all students receive equal opportunities to develop their future careers and the give them an equal chance to compete among the natives. In the public sector hiring, standardised forms were introduced to limit chances of discriminating an applicant due to his race. Presently, racial discrimination has substantially reduced from what was the case in the early to mid 20th century. There is continued awareness among the employees and the employers on the rights and obligations. Presently, employees may seek legal redress in a court or an employment tribunal if they feel that their rights have been violated due to their race. Media has also led in the fight against racial discrimination with several campaigns done to bring down the vice. Conclusion Women have faced many challenges in professional and managerial life because the perception of the society and organization on their roles as compared to men. Some work activities such as engineering and construction and top management positions are male dominated. However, the participation of women in various professional careers is increasing due to education and career development opportunities which characterize the modern times and globalization. People from the minority groups are at times faced with hurdles in their quest to join and advance in their careers. This is in spite of the many laws that have been set out by the state to ensure equal opportunities for all. There is evidence that job applicants with traditionally black African and Muslim names are less likely to be shortlisted for a job compared to whites though their qualifications may be the same. The situation is usually worse in private sector since the public sector has limited racial discrimination by introduction of standardised application forms. However, there is remarkable progress in the way people from minority groups are able to progress in their professionals with many players in the major European leagues coming from outside the country. References Arditi, D, and Balci, G 2009, 'Managerial Competencies of Female and Male Construction Managers', Journal of Construction Engineering & Management, 135, 11, pp. 1275-1278. BBC 2004, Shocking' racism in jobs market. Web. 10. Jan. 2012. Fisher, L, Gushue, G, and Cerrone, M 2011, 'The Influences of Career Support and Sexual Identity on Sexual Minority Women's Career Aspirations', Career Development Quarterly, 59, 5, pp. 441-454. Hussain, J., Matlay, H. and Scott, J 2008, "Financial education in small ethnic minority businesses in the UK", Education & Training, Vol. 50, no. 8, pp. 737-747. Kirton G. 2009, 'Career Plan and Aspirations of Recent Black and Minority Ethnic Business Graduates’. Work Employment and Society 23(12) Ostrove, J, Stewart, A, & Curtin, N 2011, 'Social Class and Belonging: Implications for Graduate Students' Career Aspirations', Journal of Higher Education, 82, 6, pp. 748-774. Peacock, L. (2010). ‘Blatant racism' puts one in four ethnic minorities off top careers’ The Telegraph 15th June. Web. 10. Jan. 2012. Watts. J 2009, 'Allowed into a Man's World'. Meaning Of Work-Life Balance: Perspectives of Women Civil Engineer as 'Minority' Workers in Construction’. Gender Work and Organization, 16(1), 23-57. Wilson, E.M. 1998, "Gendered career paths", Personnel Review, Vol. 27, no. 5, pp. 396-411. Read More