The Issue of Gender Inequities - Case Study Example

Human Rights in the 21st Century (Gender Issues) Introduction Human rights refer to the worldwide rules that apply to every human being regardless of their gender, nationality, race, ethnicity, language or any other basic diversity. However, during the 21st century, gender challenges have changed due to developments among nations. Gender equality is important for reduction of poverty, conflicts and enhances economic growth for any nation. Contextualization Gender inequalities exist more frequently in the work places than any other place. The most transparent discrimination can be observed in the payment structures of employees. The employees can possess the same qualifications, skills and perform the same task, but during payment, a part of the group is paid differently from others. These income differentiations come about from discrimination due to gender, friendship and ethnicity by their superiors. There is the issue reduction of salaries due to the placement of women within a certain occupation (Stacy 56). Some employers reduce the amount of salaries paid to their employees due to the existence of women within a particular job group. The presence of many women within a particular job may make the employers to take advantage of their numbers and cut their salaries due to their perceived weakness. Subsequently, the men get discouraged due to the reduction of job satisfaction and leave their employments. There is also the perception of some men where; the large numbers of women in the workplace can imply the job is either old fashioned or there is recruitment of unqualified employees. Many men usually dislike entering jobs which are mostly dominated by women like in such a situation (Stacy 126). Gender issue can also arise in the work place due to the nature of the job. Men and women display different attitudes towards emergencies, situations or pressures that occur occasionally in the course of interactions or business operations. Some jobs require different emotional, mental and social capabilities at all time, hence they tend to favor a particular gender group. For example, personal secretaries’ air hostesses, receptionists just to mention a few, all interact with numerous people who have different attitudes and personalities. Women are believed to be slow to anger, social and quick adaptability to different attitudes hence, the reason these jobs are preferred to women as compared to men. Manual jobs are often preferred to men because of their strength and tolerance (Stacy 86). Education also indicates a big gap between males and females in the society. In the developing nations girls are normally given less opportunities in the educational sector. This is because most societies believe girls and women belong in their houses and education is of less importance for their wellbeing. The girls are normally schooled to a certain level and later on married for a certain dowry price for their parents. The girls are frequently seen as assets or investments to their parents, and education is viewed to be wastage of resources. In this case girls and women are of less importance and they are only valued for the material gain they bring in form of bride price (Stacy 178). In the current twenty first century, there have been changes in the social welfares of genders. Throughout history, a pregnant mother is the one normally given the maternity leave. With the change in time, many countries have added the benefit to fathers too. The father is also a parent of the new born child and deserves an equal treatment as the mother. The fathers are given time off from work for a specific period of time; before the baby is born to care and familiarize with the kid. Some companies also provide for paid paternity leave of fathers when they are away. The paid leaves are mostly limited to big companies who care for the general welfare of their employees. The paternity leave changes between countries such that others can provide a longer period than others regardless of their job requirements (Motilal & Nanda 99). There is also the formation of civil organizations which care for special genders in the society. The nonprofit organizations advocate for gender equality within the society. As time goes by, there is the formation male nonprofit organizations which fights for men physical and sexual harassments. In the past, these nonprofit organizations did not exist for fear of shame or discrimination. There are men who get beaten by their wives or female employers, and feel shameful of reporting the incidences due the negative perception of others especially their friends and workmates. The nonprofit organizations fight for the assaulted men rights because they are all humans and they all deserve fair treatment (Motilal & Nanda 208). In medical, there has been a recent research; and findings revealed a different picture regarding payments between genders. The research revealed that female doctors are being paid way less than their male colleagues by a greater margin. The difference could not be explained why it happens like so. The doctors have the same working hours, environment and qualifications, but the salaries between the males and the females were different (Motilal & Nanda 144). The special unrepresented groups have also been recognized by the government in recent times. Special groups like the lesbians, transsexuals, bisexuals and gays have been recognized and gradually gaining respect from the society. The government promotes freedoms and rights to these groups as any other group. They deserve access to equal employment opportunities and social facilities just like any other citizen. The government fines and offer penalties to individuals who disrespect their rights. The society has in the past viewed this special group with suspicion, but nowadays the culture is slowly changing and they are given equal opportunities as others. The government has even passed a law that protects their freedoms and welfares. Further, the special group has formed a nonprofit organization that fights for their welfares (Motilal & Nanda 211). In the management, there has been a different change in leadership styles between genders. The female managers are usually over strict, bossy, unsocial in terms of leadership as compared to the male managers. Most employees prefer working under a male leader than a female. The male managers are indeed strict but social and respectful of other people’s opinions and feelings (Phillips & Charles 77). Analysis It can clearly be noted that there exists a clear difference between the male and female treatments in any environment. In terms of payment majority of women are usually paid less in the workplaces as compared to their male workmates. The difference of payment especially between genders of the same workgroup frequently causes friction and disagreements between employees (Phillips & Charles 107). Male pride is another disease that pollutes the current society. Many men lack interest in occupations which are widely dominated by women. They believe that the job lacks value or the female employees are less qualified and lead to poor pay for the men. The men should take up the challenge that instead of leaving the jobs; they should stand up for the women and fight for their rights (Phillips & Charles 134). It is about time that people should recognize all human beings have different attitudes and behaviors. Men, who are punished by their wives or by any female for that matter, are normally seen as weak or less manly. The wives could be physically strong than the husband and such a situation could arise; therefore, the society should change this perception of ‘weakness’ and understand they are also humans. The nonprofit organizations have started educating the society about the rights of men and women that should apply to all people (Phillips & Charles 189). The special groups have nowadays come openly to declare their status as well as the challenges they face in their day to day lives. Gays, lesbians, bisexuals and transgenders’ all think and go through the same problems as straight individuals. The government felt their concern and formed laws that protect their welfares. The society is slowly changing its negative perspective towards them. The groups are now being offered employment and other social services like others (Phillips & Charles 89). Conclusion The issue of gender inequities still exists in the 21st century. However, the difference in inequalities between the past and the recent time’s is slowly changing. This is due to education from the government and other nonprofit organizations within the society. Gender issues should be handled keenly and equally at any given time to prevent disagreements within an organization. Disagreements bring about strikes; violence and other social problems which in turn slow down an organization and hinder the economy as a whole. Works cited Stacy, Helen. Human Rights for the 21st Century: Sovereignty, Civil Society, Culture. Stanford, Califonia: Stanford University Press, 2009. Print. Motilal, Shashi, and Nanda Bijayalaxmi. Human Rights, Gender and Environment. New Delhi: Allied Publishers, 2006. Print. Phillips, Douglas A, and Charles F. Gritzner. Human Rights. New York: Chelsea House Publishers, 2009. Print Read More