Elise Nelson/Guest Contributor
Approximately 84 percent of female students at Winona State University believe there is still significant gender discrimination in the workforce, according to an informal survey conducted by a group of mass communication students.
Tamara Berg, the director of women’s and gender studies at Winona State, said there is definite overt and subtle discrimination which is still prevalent in the workforce.
Gender inequality in the workplace has been a popular topic this year, partially due to President Obama mentioning the wage gap during the 2014 State of the Union Address.
This discussion has raised the question universally of why this inequality still exists in the 21st century.
According to the Winona State survey, approximately 62 percent of respondents knew of someone who had been discriminated against or had experienced discrimination themselves due to their gender.
This prevalence of discrimination for these college students has led some respondents to voice a number of concerns about entering the workforce. These apprehensions range from the more general concern of being paid adequately to how to juggle family and career.
Respondents to the survey voiced concerns such as being considered pushy if they are assertive, balancing career and family, and receiving less pay than their male counterparts.
“I am entering a workforce that is pretty male-dominated and am afraid that if I speak my mind, I will be considered bossy,” Kjersten Fisher, a freshman pre-med major, said.
Berg said research shows women have to be seen as aggressive enough but not too aggressive in a job interview in order to be considered hire-able.
Research has also shown that women are more likely to ask for lower starting pay and lower raises partially due to social conditioning.
“A lot of times women don’t negotiate as well for things like initial salary or benefits, which can have long-term effects on pay equity,” Berg said.
According to Berg, men are more socially conditioned to negotiate for things like higher initial wages and find this type of negotiating more socially acceptable than women.
Due to this tendency to not ask for higher wages and raises and other socially influenced choices, some people believe women don’t get paid the same as their male counterparts for good reason.
A common response to discussions about the gender wage gap is women are paid less due to their job choices, their inability to negotiate for higher wages, and less time spent working because of maternity leave and childcare.
Approximately 18 percent of respondents said they believed one reason women make less on average than men is that women work less due to family concerns.
This is a common argument for people who believe the wage gap is a result of women’s choices.
For women with concerns about balancing work and family, Berg advised that they not worry about how their career would affect family life until they have a reason to be worried.
“You just can’t predict long-term when you’re going to have children,” Berg said. “Even if it’s in your plan, you really don’t know what’s going to happen, so investing in your career is probably good advice.”
Another reason that comes up in discussion of the gender wage gap is women choose lower-paying jobs.
In response to this, Berg had a couple theories. She said it is more common to see women in teaching positions and men in higher positions like engineering. She questioned why women choose these types of jobs.
“It’s very complicated because women aren’t just deciding to go into low-paying jobs,” Berg said. “How can we do more so that women don’t feel like they’re just relegated to a certain type of profession?”
Berg said that as more women enter the workforce, she expects to see the value of work change and the gender stereotypes to change with it.
For women currently seeking positions in the workforce, Berg had a few pieces of advice.
She advised women to find an employer with whom they are comfortable and who expresses an attitude of acceptance toward women; she said it is important for women to also seek out mentors in their workplace and to create their own networks. She said she believes this type of support is a necessity. Berg also said it is necessary to be open and honest about salary.
“Knowledge is power in terms of equal pay,” Berg said.