Gender Discrimination in the Workplace

Despite the advances and progress women have made in the last forty years, gender or sex-based discrimination is still a stumbling block and obstacle for many women. Gender discrimination occurs in the workplace when an individual is treated differently because of their gender. Gender discrimination is sex-based discrimination. It involves treating a job applicant or employee unfairly because of their sex in terms of hiring, firing, wages and raises, layoffs, and benefits. On the one hand, federal and state law prohibits gender discrimination. Businesses, corporations, and labor organizations typically have anti-discrimination policies and procedures in place to discourage gender discrimination. On the other hand, women continue to struggle with gender discrimination practices and attitudes in the workplace.

Women have fought for equal rights and equal treatment for a long time. The woman’s suffragette movement helped to enfranchise women. The right to vote was secured by the 19^th Amendment to the Constitution in 1920. Women entered the workforce during World War II in order to support the war effort. This was a turning point in the history of liberation. The shift from the June Cleaver days of the 1950s to the civil rights struggle of the 1960s marked a significant shift in the relationships between women and culture. Feminism and the woman’s rights movement developed hand in hand with the overall atmosphere of civil rights. Women made significant advances in the struggle for equal treatment both in terms of legislation and cultural attitudes.

The economic climate, the professional world, and the everyday workplace have seen women make significant gains. The U.S Supreme Court currently has two female members who have followed in the steps of Sandra Day O’Conner, the first female appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court. Hillary Clinton, a former U.S Senator and Presidential candidate, and the current Secretary of State is an example of a highly successful woman. Clinton was not the first woman to serve as Secretary of State. Madeleine Albright and Condoleezza Rice served as Secretary of State as well. These examples of successful women in positions of power are highly significant and symbolic. Their success reflects the overall success of women as a whole in the workplace, the professional world, as well as positions of power. The civil rights movement has helped to issue in a deeper appreciation and tolerance for diversity but, nonetheless, gender discrimination has not completely faded.

Despite the advances and gains that women have made in the last forty years, gender discrimination is still an ongoing problem. A recent high profile case of gender discrimination involved Walmart, the world’s largest retail chain. 1.5 million former and current employees of Walmart filed a suit against the retail giant claiming that they had been denied raises and promotion because of their gender. The U.S Supreme Court issued a controversial ruling that argued that the female workers of Walmart could not be lumped together in a single class action suit. The original plaintiffs have reformulated the lawsuit at the state level. 95,000 women in California and 45,000 women in Texas have filed class actions suits against the retail giant. Despite an official anti-discrimination policy, the Walmart case reveals more insidious influences that continue to shape and color gender discrimination in the workplace.

Another recent high profile case is the fast food chain Chick-fil-A. In 2011 Chick-fil-A became mired down in controversy over because of its popular opposition to gay marriage. The chain is now facing a gender discrimination suit by a woman claiming, that despite satisfactory-to-above satisfactory approval ratings, was replaced by a male employee. Her suit claims that her case represents a “pattern of discrimination against female employees.”

Mitt Romney recently caused a stir in one of the recent Presidential debates by using the phrase “binder full of women.” Apparently, the intention behind the comment was to emphasize his efforts to intentionally give women a more inclusive role in his cabinet as the Governor of Massachusetts. However, the phrasing is awkward and uncomfortable. It is practically inconceivable to think of someone using the phrase a “binder full of men.”

The Fair Labor Standards of 1938, enforced by the Equal Opportunity Commission (EEOC), prohibit sex-based discrimination. The Equal Pay Act of 1963 and the Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act prohibit sex-based discrimination as well. The laws apply to private employers, local, state, and federal employers and labor organizations. The laws also protect people, who file complaints, from acts of retaliation from the employers. These laws address the issue of gender discrimination on the surface but, unfortunately, like other forms of prejudice and discrimination, the issue of gender discrimination goes deeper.