2023 Must be Different for Women and Girls
WE CAN ACHIEVE GENDER EQUALITY IN OUR LIVES
2023 Must be Different for Women and Girls
Although global Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth increased by 2.6% in 2022, this increase is not contributing to the advancement of economic equality for women. As a matter of fact, it is having the opposite effect. According to recent research, women are becoming poorer than men as the world becomes richer.
It is encouraging to see women living longer, healthier lives, attending higher education levels, and participating in politics more actively - all factors contributing to narrowing the gender gap. However, if extreme economic inequality remains, this gap will never be truly closed.
In a recent report by the World Bank on gender equality, women worldwide were found to have measurably fewer economic rights than men in every category studied. The earnings gap between women and men has shrunk, but only incrementally. When all compensable factors are controlled, there is still a pay gap between men and women, meaning that women are still paid less than men for no other reason than their gender. According to the World Bank report, there are approximately 2.4 billion working-age women worldwide. Why do women continue to face job restrictions in 86 countries, and a staggering 95 countries do not guarantee equal pay to women?
Academic inequalities exist as well. While teachers are found to discipline boys more severely, they also give them more praise and feedback than they do girls. Females are often praised for their appearance, neatness, cleanliness, or artistic quality rather than their content. It begs the question, why are our teachers not encouraging girls to branch out, even as more than one-quarter of the STEM industry is female?
The question permeates my mind daily as a woman of color who has personally experienced various forms of inequality. The New Year is upon us, and before we return to the grind of work, here are some suggestions for helping reduce the gender pay gap at home and at school.
A woman in a position of authority is typically able to resolve national crises without resorting to violence, promote social benefits for all, and ensure that peace processes are sustained.
1. Raise HER up.
Women in every country are ready and qualified to serve, inform, and improve their governments. Let’s find them and make sure they have a path to power. Please do not confine them to what you believe to be “women’s issues” (what are those even?). Women in positions of authority typically resolve national crises without recourse to violence, promote social benefits for all, and ensure that peace processes last. Furthermore, gender balance in politics is associated with gender balance in the workplace, which in turn could double your GDP growth by 2025.
2. Ensure gender-sensitive education
Despite progress in increasing access to education, improvements regarding gender sensitivity within the education system, including the representation of positive stereotypes in textbooks, have been slow.
3. Provide female mentors for males
Mentoring is another way to improve gender equality at work. There’s no doubt that mentorship can help break down barriers for junior business people. However, according to research on the Social Science Research Network, having women mentor men can benefit both parties and society by helping them learn about different work and leadership styles.
4. Promote Parental Support
Every society needs to support people who care for kids and teens. Offering a bus seat to a pregnant woman, advocating the installation of changing rooms for children in shopping centers (not just the women’s facilities), and asking companies to provide maternity and paternity leave are all necessary steps. According to the most recent UN data, less than fifty percent of countries provide at least 14 weeks of maternity leave. Paternity leave is even less common, as only 48 percent of countries provide it.
“You have to be aware of our sexist assumptions and challenge them,” says Lise Eliot, a neuroscience professor at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science in Chicago.
5. BE AWARE AND REFLECT
A major obstacle to eliminating prejudice is that people do not recognize it exists. Studies show that we all reproduce stereotypes and preconceived notions on various topics, like race and gender. “Brain and behavioral sciences have learned a lot about our unconscious biases. We all have them based on race, religion, sexual orientation, and gender. You have to be aware of our sexist assumptions and challenge them,” says Lise Eliot, a neuroscience professor at Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science in Chicago.
Inequality is a global issue, and it’s essential that we go into 2023 aware, focused, and driven. Can you share some other ideas on how we can bridge the gender equality gap? In addition, please do not limit your responses to gender equality. We live at a time when many people have a voice in society. Feel free to diverge from the subject if you think it can be reinterpreted in another way.
About the Author - Katherine Dollison is a digital marketer, website designer, and voice-over artist. She has created and optimized content and analyzed website, CRM, and social media performance over the past 10 years. In the past, she developed and maintained content for consulting firms, authors, and the gas and construction industries. Currently, she works full-time for one of the world's largest digital marketing companies, Publicis. Aside from that, Katherine has a wide range of voiceover experience. Aside from producing over 75 audiobooks, she also produced commercials for Hefty and other companies.
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