Driving Progress: Women’s Journey Towards Economic Equality
Driving Progress: Women’s Journey Towards Economic Equality
In this issue dedicated to professional and leadership development, we take a moment to reflect on women’s progress and identify areas where our role in the economic infrastructure can improve. To drive change, we must first understand our past. Change is our goal, as women are the driving force behind the economy, holding significant purchasing power and the majority of stock ownership. As Maya Angelou once said, “If you don’t like something, change it. If you can’t change it, change your attitude.”
The Early Days
Let’s revisit the first women’s rights convention held in 1848 in Seneca Falls, New York. The focus was on political equity, where 68 women and 32 men signed the Declaration of Sentiments, outlining grievances and setting the agenda for the women’s rights movement. Twelve resolutions were adopted, calling for equal treatment under the law and voting rights for women.
The Equal Pay Act, passed on June 10, 1963, made it illegal to pay women less for the same job based solely on their sex. While differences in seniority, merit, and work quality could justify pay discrepancies, gender could no longer be a deficit for women seeking jobs.
The Workplace Evolution
The workplace has significantly changed since the Equal Pay Act was passed nearly five decades ago. Although conditions have improved, women’s pay is still an issue. In 1963, women earned 59% of what men earned; by 2009, this had increased to 77%, according to Census figures. Women of color are also making progress, though the median income for African American women was 67.5% of men’s wages, and for Latinas, it was 58%.
Women as Economic Drivers
Today, women represent 49.7% of the workforce, with 63% of all women working and 54% working full-time, often holding multiple jobs. Women now fill almost half of the country’s managerial positions. Forty-one percent of working women are the sole breadwinners for their households, and 28% have dependent children. Clearly, women are crucial in bringing in income.
We are committed to achieving pay equality at all levels and helping those at the bottom. According to a 2008 study by the National Center for Policy Analysis, nearly 15 million women in the United States earned less than $25,000 a year despite working full-time, year-round jobs. We must eliminate the wage differential.
The Wealth Gap
Younger women are changing the pay differential. As of 2005, women under age 25 working full-time earned 93.2% of men’s salaries, compared to those 25 and older, who earned 79.4% of what men earned. We are aware that one in four working families earns too little to meet basic needs. Working women are in need, with 77% of all mothers with school-age children working.
In 2009, President Obama signed the Lily Ledbetter Fair Pay Restoration Act, allowing victims of pay discrimination to file a complaint within 180 days of their last paycheck. Despite this, discrimination remains.
A Report from the Front: How Are We Doing?
Education
Women hold a slight edge in college attendance, occupying 54% of classroom seats. A 2010 study by the American Council on Education on the gender gap in college shows the widest gap among blacks—63% women to 37% men. Rates are comparable for Hispanics—57% women to 43% men—and for lower-income Caucasians—54% to 46%. An enrollment boom among older women is further skewing these numbers.
The number of women with professional degrees is growing, and women are the majority in both undergraduate and graduate schools. More women than men earned doctoral degrees in the 2008–09 academic year. Women are making swift progress in law, medicine, and accounting, reaching parity with men in law and medical schools. For example, as of 2010, 47% of law school students are women, and women make up 49% of medical school students. Enrollment rates at business schools remain lower, with 39% of test takers being women, according to the Graduate Management Admissions Council. Engineering remains the discipline with the smallest proportion of women, with fewer than one in seven students being female.
Business
As of 2009, women made up only 15.2% and 13.5% of board directors and corporate officers, respectively, in Fortune 500 companies. The United States is not alone in its male-dominated leadership. In 2009, Canada’s Financial Post 500 companies had only 14% women board directors and 16.9% women corporate officers. Similarly, women held only 9.7% of board positions in Europe’s top 300 companies in 2008.
Research shows that companies with at least three female board members and more women in senior leadership roles produce stronger financial and organizational results. However, women of color held only 3.2% of board director positions in 2008, according to a Catalyst study. With new financial reforms from Congress, the SEC is pushing for more women on corporate boards. CALPERS, the Calvert Group, and others are demanding accountability. Some countries are mandating change; for instance, Norway requires that 40% of board seats be occupied by women.
Let’s not forget the trailblazers. We salute the women CEOs who are highly respected leaders of Fortune 500 companies, such as Indra Nooyi of PepsiCo, Ilene Rosenfeld of Kraft, and Ursula M. Burns of Xerox. Burns, the first African American CEO of Xerox, joined the company in 1980 as a mechanical engineering summer intern. Andrea Jung, an Asian-Canadian, is the CEO of Avon, known as the company for women and the largest direct seller of beauty products in the world. Avon is also the world’s largest micro-lender for women, extending some $1 billion in products. Learn more about Avon’s initiatives.
