Can women break the ‘glass ceiling’?

Unlike in Asian countries, campaigners for women’s liberation and parity of status with men are very much active and vociferous in the West. Cynthia Good, Editor of PINK magazine in Atlanta, Georgia allegedly spray-painted the letters “Wo” at the beginning of ‘Men at work’ and ‘Men working’ signs. Her campaign against the signs was based on sexism. She claimed that the signs were sexist and urged the authorities to alter them forthwith.

While her campaign gathered momentum, authorities in Atlanta, Georgia agreed to alter the signs. They had to repaint them to say ‘Workers ahead’ or just ‘Workers’ at a cost of 11 pounds per sign. The authorities have also agreed to ensure that all future signs will be gender neutral. Cynthia Good, who won the battle for women’s rights, hopes to convince other cities to remove bias from road signs. “We won’t accept these subtle forms of discrimination,” she said.

Does this mean that women are winning their rights fast and furiously? Certainly not. According to a United Nations study, women will have to wait until the 25th century before they can achieve parity with men in the top echelons of corporate power! This may appear to be wishful thinking for the Women’s Lib, but women are going nowhere fast in the business world. With all the activities for liberation and parity of status, women hold less than two percent of senior management positions worldwide. The figure in Asia is just one percent. According to Andrew Byrne, as associate professor of law at the University of Hong Kong, Asian women are far behind. However, women in the Philippines and Singapore enjoy a significant share of corporate power.

Heads of State

The United Nations Human Development Report says that four percent of ministers in South and South-east Asia are women compared with 11 percent in the developed West. Many women have been elected heads of state in Asian countries. However, none have achieved it without a father’s or a husband’s prominent name. For instance, Sirimavo Bandaranaike became the first woman Prime Minister in the world when her husband S.W.R.D. Bandaranaike was assassinated. Other widows and daughters who came to power in Asia are Benazir Bhutto (Pakistan), Corazon Aquino (the Philippines), Khaleda Zia (Bangladesh), Indira Gandhi (India), Sheikh Hasina (Bangladesh) and Chandrika Kumaratunga (Sri Lanka).

Women in the US have proved their mettle in the business world

Although women share political power and responsibilities, their representation in parliament and local bodies is minimal. Even in Sri Lanka, very few women have been elected to Parliament. Probably the ruthless competition in the political arena has discouraged women from contesting elections. This trend has to change if women are to win their parity with men.

According to The State of Women in the World Atlas, women in the United States have proved their mettle in the business world. For instance, women-owned firms are growing at double the rate of men-owned companies. However, the situation in Asian countries is not so rosy. Even in Sri Lanka, very few companies are effectively managed by women.

Massive change

Women are our mothers, sisters, wives and daughters. However, for women to achieve equality with men will require a massive change in attitude in society. Some Asian countries directly promote women’s participation in politics. Yet, the participation of Indian women in politics is only eight percent. A redeeming factor is that more than 800,000 women are serving local councils in India, known as Panchayats. Pakistan too has doubled the number of women’s seats in municipal councils.

While there is a need to educate men about the place of women in society, many traditional Asian families do not approve of higher education for girls. They use religion and culture as a form of control on women. The gravity of the problem has urged the Singapore-based group ENGENDER to disseminate news about women’s needs. The group wants women to put themselves on the agenda before asking for parity with men. Such a course of action will inevitably mean friction and conflict with men.

That is the price women have to pay for equality. Women asking for parity with men have to fight economic and societal discrimination. Economic discrimination takes the form of differential access to jobs and differential treatment once on the job. As far as jobs are concerned, women still do not have the same employment opportunities as men. On the other hand, women are over-represented in such “pink-collar ghetto” occupations such as secretary, typist, receptionist, nurse and montessori teacher.

How women are treated on the job is another matter to be looked into. Some women are being treated differently in work places. Sometimes, women receive lower salaries than men. There also appears to be a “glass ceiling” that prevents most women advancing beyond middle management positions.