Earth Charter Awareness at Florida Gulf Coast University:

1. Earth Charter Awareness at Florida Gulf Coast University: Gender and Discrimination Against Women in the Workplace Caitlyn O’Donnell (individual) One online section of ENC 1102 - Composition II, College of Arts & Sciences AND two online sections of EDF 2085 - Intro to Diversity for Educators, College of Education Instructors: Sheila Bolduc-Simpson (SBS) and Dr. Mark Simpson (Dr. S) FINDINGS . After looking over all of the responses, once the interviews were completed, there were no surprises in the results. All of the women stated that at one point or another, while they were working, a male co-worker or male manager, had made a sexual pass at them, illegally paid them less than the male employees, and asked certain tasks to be completed of them but not the women because they were more female- oriented. For example, one of the women, who wishes to remain anonymous, said that women are typically asked to clean the kitchen and mop the floor because, as one of her co-workers allegedly said “that’s a woman’s job.” Another woman, who also wishes to remain anonymous, has been over-looked for a promotion several times and claims that in the entire time she has been with her company, she has yet to see one woman get promoted. She also says that the men who are receiving these promotions are highly under qualified and have only moved up in their career because they are men, but because of their knowledge or skills. INTRODUCTION Since before many of us were born, women have been fighting for equal rights, equal opportunities, and equal respect as men. In 1920, the 19th Amendment was passed so that women are given the right to vote in local, state, and national elections. The 1920s was just the beginning for women gaining their own rights. From there, women were allowed to receive the same education as men, state their opinions publically, work in the same environments as men, fight for our country alongside men, and do what men do. Even though women now have their rights, why are they still being treated unfairly? At a local mall near my home, I interviewed fifteen women, between the ages of 16 and 50, and asked eight simple yet complicated questions in hopes that discrimination against women at work would be brought to light to society. Just because women have gained the right to vote, work, and attend school, does not mean women are still treated fairly and this should be put to a stop. If the situation were reverse and women made the men feel inferior to them every day, the men would raise their hand to the women, or worse. Men may have been given more opportunities in the past to excel in their education, to become skilled in certain aspects of what their life may hold for them, but today, women are being given these same opportunities, so they should be treated like it. ABSTRACT This action research project examined the awareness of discrimination against women inside the workplace and its principle among a handful of women, between the ages of 16 and 35, who were scoped out inside a local mall. The researcher was required to find fifteen women who would answer several questions related to men and their working environment. Of women interviewed, all of them responded alike and discrimination was brought to surface at their workplace. Of this generation, many believe that discrimination is just a myth and do not believe there is such a thing, but when being asked questions that involve discrimination and their responses convey it, the women begin to believe and start to question how it can be stopped. Once conclusion for this issue is that more needs to be done so not only are people more aware of the issue, but so, for those this is affecting, the women can feel safer when they are working. One way to accomplish this would be to keep harassing the managers until something is done. If they do nothing, then go above them and do the same thing. If nothing is still done, the best option is to take legal action against the company. Unfortunately, when dealing with discrimination, the best advice is to see legal counseling and continue moving forward with what is being said until women are being given the same opportunities and being treated fairly and equally. LITERATURE REVIEW In today’s society, gender discrimination is not as obvious as it was back in the 1800s when women could not attend a higher educational institution, could not work where a man worked, and were forced to stay at home to take care of the home and their children. A national research study shows that, today, only 42% of college students are male and the other 58% are female (Harvard independent), yet women still have smaller wages than the average male. It has been shown that women make eighty cents to a man’s dollar yet most women have higher degrees and have worked harder in academia (Harvard independent). Women are also more likely to be passed up for promotions and this is said to be done due to the fact that women get pregnant. Typically, a women reaches wage parity in the middle of the her career, but around that time is when women begin to get pregnant, which means they must take maternity leave, cannot travel as much, if at all, thus leaving a manager to offer the open position to a man, who may be less qualified than the woman (iwpr). Not only is discrimination shown through wages and moving up in their careers, but also based on the way they look (i.e. whether they are too pretty, not pretty enough, wear provocative clothing, etc.) (Women in business). There have been several law suits against companies for the way they have treated their women employees. For example, in April 2012, a woman sued Computer Science Corporations for being fired for identifying and complaining about the consistent patterns of gender discrimination and sexual harassment in the workplace. The Company told her she needed to stop complaining otherwise she would no longer have her position as a high-level executive. Although discrimination against anyone is said to be illegal, many men still seem to be able to practice it while they are working and the company takes no action. For example, Del Laboratories, a New York cosmetics and pharmaceuticals agreed to pay 1.2 million dollars when fifteen female employees went to court on behalf of the chief executive office, who had been sexually harassing them, in ways such as grabbing their breasts, physically abusing them, and indulging in behavior with the zipper to his pants down. When the women had complained to the company and threatened to take the company to court, the company tried to get the women to change their stories of what happened with the CEO (nwlc). As it has been illuminated, women are discriminated against in a number of different ways at work. Even in today’s society, some women do not feel safe when they are working or even when they are applying for a position. Some careers are enforcing the equal rights laws to its fullest by keeping the requirements for men and women the same; women have to meet the same standards a man does when applying for a job that is typically male oriented. For example, in July 2011, a Texas police department required that all men and women must meet their physical needs before being hired, so they must do the same amount of sit-ups and push-ups, and run 300-meters and 1.5 miles under the same amount of time; only 19% of the female who applied for the position passed the physical exam, while 63% of the men who applied passed the same exam (Huffington post). For this case, the court required the police department to back track, hire some of the women they turned away, back pay them, and change the required scores for the physical exam for the women, so the women have to meet their own requirements rather than competing alongside the men. For centuries women have been fighting for their rights, and nearly every time, they have failed. Even though the women are allowed to do a lot of what the men do today, the men still feel superior to the women and will continue to think this way and act on their thought until it is put to a stop indefinitely. Women are equal to men, even though they are different physically and emotionally. METHODS To prove my research and not just read them off the internet, I put this to the test. I went to the local mall, walked around the food court and into the different stores (i.e. JCPenney’s, Victoria’s Secret, Body Central, etc.), and spoke with fifteen different women, of all races, between the ages of 16 and 35. I thought that many women over this age may think back to when they were first starting out in the work world, so I kept the age to around today’s generation. I wrote down their names, their ages, their race, their appearance, the questions for each, and recorded their answers, both on paper and on a tape recorder. Some of the questions that were asked were the following: Are you aware of a pay difference between you and the men at your job? Meaning, do you get paid less than the men? When you are at work, do you feel like you, along with the other women, are treated differently than the men? Are there certain tasks that are asked of the men that you would not be asked nor required to do? CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATIONS In an ideal world, the average woman would be able to go to work, get promotions, have equal pay as men, not be harassed, and would be as free as men are. However, this is not an ideal world; this is the world in which women live in. It would be a cliché to say that this is a man’s world, but this is how men make women feel while they are at work. If discrimination was not able to be stopped way back when, and it is in today’s society, there is a possibility that discrimination against women will forever exist. My findings and research have brought discrimination in their work environment to light and that it lives in various forms. No matter how many law suits there are or will be in the future, some companies will not do anything about it except continue to discriminate against the woman who is identifying the issue. Defeating discrimination is a long term fight and may benefit no woman in the process, but I would highly recommend fighting for equal rights, fighting to be treated like men, and to be seen like an individual. There are some ways to fight, which involve discussing the issues a woman is having with a manager. If that manager takes no action, then I would suggest going above that manager and having the more powerful manager take control of the situation. If nothing gets resolved, then taking legal action is the best way to get the companies attention. Discrimination against women is unfair and unequal. Women are just as intelligent, well-educated, and successful as men. If the women ban together, justice will be served in their favor; discrimination will, eventually, be defeated. . • WORKS CITED • • "Discrimination In The Workplace Against Women May Depend On Men's Marital Stucture (STUDY)."huffington post. Huffington Post, 17 May 2012. Web. 7 Apr 2013. <http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/05/17/discrimination-in-the-workplace-women-gender-revolution-marital-structure-men_n_1525863.html>. • • "Discrimination against women in the work place." Womens legal Resource. Wordpress, n.d. Web. 7 Apr 2013. <http://womenslegalresource.com/discrimination-against-women-in-the-workplace.html>. • • "Ending Employment Discrimination." Women in the Work place. People for the American Way, 23 Jun 2011. Web. 7 Apr 2013. <http://www.pfaw.org/issues/on-capitol-hill/factsheets/ending-employment-discrimination-women-in-the-workplace>. • • "Gender Inequality in the Workplace." Harvard Independent. N.p., 01 12 2011. Web. 7 Apr 2013. <http://www.harvardindependent.com/2011/12/gender-inequality-in-the-workplace-education-does-not-equal-success-1201/>. • • "Hidden Barries: Discrimination." Workplace Fairness. Midwest New Media, n.d. Web. 7 Apr 2013. <http://www.workplacefairness.org/sc/discrimination.php>. • • Mayhew, Ruth. "Hiring Discrimination against Women."small businesses. Deman Media. Web. 7 Apr 2013. <http://smallbusiness.chron.com/hiring-discrimination-against-women-2861.html>.