Rosie the Riveter wasn’t kidding. Women can, did, and are doing it!
Women are fast approaching a crossroads in their influence at work in one major way. By June of this year, OECD (rich) nations will have a collective figure where women comprise more than half of the workforce. This fact means that they have gained momentum from the 20th century into the first decade of the 21st impacting decision-making in businesses, upending years of career discrimination, and leveling playing fields while making broad strides setting agendas for corporations and agencies around the world. As women continue to dominate higher education classrooms, this trend will continue worldwide. By 2011, The Economist (Jan 2, 2010, page 7) estimates that there will be 2.6 million more female than male students studying in university in America. This news is riding on the back of what some are calling the “HE-cession,” a significant percentage of males falling from the workforce since 2008, depending upon industry.
Because more women are at work globally, more women are in control of their own lives, making decisions that they feel are important for themselves, their families, and others. An African American woman is currently the CEO of Coca-Cola, one of the world’s most recognized brands. Coca-Cola is a company that plays a major hand in sponsoring progressive initiatives in the United States and abroad, fostering partnerships and development in many areas of human lives. Women systematically use this newfound power in philanthropic ways, leading many campaigns for human rights, gender equality, and promoting safety, education, and overall health for children and neglected groups.
Women are also taking control of the news and media arenas, realizing that it is important to promote their agendas in equalizing success at work and through social change. Sometimes, one can only do this by being one’s own agent for news and information, and Women’s e-News is a fierce frontrunner in providing this service. Since 2000, Rita Henley-Jensen, the founder and editor-in-chief of this nonprofit internet-based news service has helped to build a corner of the media market that addresses concerns of women specifically.
One area that continues to impede women in America and Britain in particular is the disparity between high female workforce participation and setbacks from choosing to rear children. Since there is a general reluctance by both governments to spend public money on childcare, women in America and Britain face the unwieldy juggling act of “having their cake and eating it too,” balancing a successful career, and choosing to raise children. For many women, the choice affects their capacity to maintain a well-paying job that matches the men in their relative positions. In comparison, more than 90% of companies in Germany and Sweden allow flexible work schedules for women.
According to the U.S. Department of Labor statistics, the top five jobs with the highest percentage of women are secretaries/administrative assistants, registered nurses, elementary and middle school teachers, cashiers, and salespersons. Women are still underrepresented in top positions (making up about 2% of the bosses in America and only 5% in Britain). However, many have developed nuanced and perceptive ways to effect change, ensuring a consistent culture of generosity that will continue to improve as they make strides in more equal footing with men as leaders.
Empowerment is intrinsic to women’s interest in and capacity to give time, treasure, and thoughts to helping others and bridging the gaps between political administrations and private social change campaigns. As author and fundraising consultant Kathy LeMay recently said, women are taking on leadership roles in social change efforts through fundraising, board membership, and having deep heart-connections to issues they feel are in need of advocacy. For some, this means direct action, such as handing out food and care packages to hungry, war-torn people in remote villages or even urban poor. For others, their connection is making sure that the organizations that accept private money from corporations and endowments are actually transparent and focused in their use of such generous donations, that these groups stay on target for social change. Diaspora fundraising is another growing tactic that connects small cultural and ethnic groups abroad and encourages them to be a fundraising base for their homeland’s issues. This is an especially successful method for Israeli and Zionist projects.
Overall, women have a long way to go if they intend to fill as many top seats at work as their male counterparts. For many women, the agenda is finding a balance between work and home life, being heart-connected to one’s vocation, and being empowered to give back to the less fortunate in their own capacity. For those women that still struggle to make ends meet in modest or underpaid jobs, the new goals are to find adequate pay and benefits for their labor and close the gaps between their working life and home life. For these women, women’s news sources can reach out and encourage them in the power they don’t think they have to effect change for themselves and even less fortunate women abroad.
Working women today continue a strong legacy in America, Britain, and other prominent countries by finding resourceful ways to help others in their communities and overseas. This can only get better with networking, focused media attention, and empowered, informed efforts. For more information about jobs and family as well as working women in America and worldwide, please visit www.WomenseNews.org and www.aflcio.org.
Sources:
LeMay, Kathy. The Generosity Plan: Sharing Your Time, Treasure and Talent to Shape the World. New York: Atria, 2009.
“We Did It! The rich world’s quiet revolution: women are gradually taking over the workplace.” Editorial. The Economist 2 Jan 2010: 7.
http://www.dol.gov/wb/stats/main.htm
http://www.womensenews.org/about-womens-enews-mission
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Tags: Career Advice, Socially Conscious, Striving for Success
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