Introduction
Gender inequality is a factor that contributes to the social hierarchy that outlines how people develop, exist, labor, mature, and finally die in a society. The relations of gender to power are composite, varied, and mostly twisted by history, politics of the place and time where they occur. This does not mean that they can not be changed or altered to suit the need or attain certain goals especially when they are biased. These gender relations are generalized and used to oppress women in their daily lives, business and organizations with respect to social hierarchy. This clearly manifests in the norms, groups, conducts and practices that are common in day to day living.
The fight against inequality has been on for a long time now. Certain groups have come up to claim their marginalization in terms of facilities, decision making, and recognition. Human rights organizations have emerged strongly opposing discrimination of any kind with demonstrations, mass actions or even conferences. Among these groups the most vibrant has been the women, who for a long time now they have fought against marginalization and inequality. The fight against gender violence has been initiated on many platforms and though they still marches on gender inequality still remains a cultural imprint in most societies (Wood, 2007 p.57).
Gender and culture
Whenever gender is mentioned men have been accused of dominating almost everything and everywhere. Culture has also had its part in the inequality since stereotypes have been in existence that man is supreme. Culture has instilled a mind of inequality in the children as they grow and this becomes very hard to change it when they are adults. Culture has also portrayed women as an object for use which degrades their status and dignity. Religion is also to blame for the inequality since it has portrayed the boy child as supreme and man supreme over his wife. Some legal and cultural aspects have made women to be downgraded since once they marry they have to transfer legal rights to the husband this gives the women a less chance to control property and make decisions in the house (Wood, 2007 p.60).
The work place is not spared either since when this trends moves from the home it moves to all places the workplace included. Gendered patterns in organizations have been on the spotlight since they have been discriminatory to say the least. The position and role of women have been changing as decades go by, the Beijing conference organized in 2000 sought to limit the gaps and inequalities that were so much oppressing women especially in health and education.
Challenges
Several initiatives like the prioritization of the girl child education were launched in all marginal areas, and encouragement of women to join the labor force and in key decision making positions, but these initiatives have been dawdling and uneven. Neimanis & Tortisyn (2003 p.6) indicate the main challenges that have been identified in the fight against gender inequality, which include:
- A proportion of two thirds of the 876 million populace who are illiterate are female three fifth of the one billion individuals are women and girls;
- The strategies employed to fight poverty mostly aim at men despite women being the minority poor;
- Very few women are in key decision making positions such as parliaments, with only estimates of 11% having been in parliament worldwide in 1999;
- Women are also the group that is hardest hit and the highest population living with HIV/AIDS and stand a higher contracting risk than men;
- Women’s labor has been undervalued and undercounted everywhere. Many women suffer physical abuse and estimates of one quarter of all women are physically abused; and
- Women and children account for a quarter to a half of the worlds refugees.
The fight for equality by women has not quite materialized, with men refusing to let the status quo disappear. They have continued with their dominance and concept of masculinity and manhood, with inequality being experienced in almost all areas including social, political and economic. They have continued to violate the rights of women and other marginalized groups such as the disabled in society. Moreover, men have also continued to amplify their activities in reproductive labor and increased the costs for gender inequality (Neimanis & Tortisyn, 2003, p.7).
The fight against gender inequality has been prioritized by most of the communities to an extent that it has been incorporated as one of the millennium development goals. There has been an effort to make the MDG’s a reality through national and regional involvement with the involvement of governments, civil societies and other agencies all over the world.
Gendered patterns in organizations have been a worrying trend if statistics are to go by. Cases of girls start work at the household level at very early ages especially due to poverty have been prevalent. In some instances, the girl child is forced to drop out of school at the expense of the boy child, and even forced to marry early in some communities. This passes from generation to generation and becomes a vicious cycle. Moreover, many girls are assumed to do the odd jobs such as cleaning and low ranking duties while men move to top positions of decision making and management.
According to Sen & Östlin (2007 p.12) in their report “Unequal, Unfair, Ineffective and Inefficient Gender Inequity in Health: Why it exists and how we can change it” they express gender equality and how it destroys health of females by stating that “gender inequality damages the health of millions of girls and women across the globe; it can also be harmful to men’s health despite the many tangible benefits it gives men through resources, power, authority and control”. The control of power contributes to the main cause of gender inequality. The indicators of gender violence are outright and include; a reduced amount of wealth, land, and property for women yet they have the highest load of work to the society. Females are paid less, are less secure, and discriminated against thus restricted to informal careers. They are seen as the inferior, less capable, and they must respect the male ego that rules and oppresses them each time at the organization.
Even at the workplace, they undergo physical restrictions and sexual harassment, a phenomenon that is seen as a natural scenario which the society and legal systems have been unable to eliminate. This perceived normal behavior and code of behavior have made women look like second hand citizens and individuals. The ruling positions have seen less women being involved since most fear the humiliation and dominance of men positions such as local councils or village elder which are low positions and have been dominated by men (Wood, 2007, p.69). This makes women largely marginalized and excluded in the labor market.
Norms, values and capabilities
People have become accustomed to degrading of the females. The norms are clearly evident at households and societies where values, attitudes and worth attached to the girls vs. boys and women vs. men are totally different. Masculinity and femininity have prevailed in who does what and who takes what. Sen, & Ă–stlin (2007 p.15) identify three strategies to change the norms with regard to gender inequality. These include; formal agreements, codes and legislations at the work place, support for women organizations, and developing the young to change masculinity norms and values that degrade women. This would go a long way in reducing gender inequality.
Women also have less exposure and vulnerability at the organization set up. The social set up has contributed a lot to this factor that makes women inexperienced and incompetent. Many women have also not been much educated as the men leaving them at a very imbalanced position for competing in the organizational set up. This means negative social conditions such as unemployment and poverty will hit women more as compared to men. Gendered vulnerability and experience should be dealt with through a social empowerment to make women more dynamic as they approach life.
Gendered politics is more dominated by a cultural and traditional approach. Since time in memorial men have been said to be the leaders in the society, with women being regarded as objects (Molyneux, & Razavi, 2002, p.47). This degrades their morale when they intend to break the chains of commands. The stigma associated with political wrangles make women opt out. They also have inadequate knowledge on the systems of governance and politics which leave them several steps behind their men counterparts. Lack of goodwill and unaccountable political measures make women deprived off their participation in the political arena and this goes on without check.
By changing the organizational gendered structure to be fair and representative, men will be shaken and moved from their comfort zones that they use to domineer and puppet women as their objects. That is why the process of gender equality is faced with a lot of resistance and opposition. For the overhaul to occur there must be total cooperation with leaders of political arenas, organizations and religion to forge forward together. This requires “effective political leadership, well designed organizational mandates, structures, incentives and accountability mechanisms with teeth; it also requires actions to empower women and women’s organizations so that they can collectively press for greater accountability for gender equality and equity” (Sen, & Östlin, 2007 p.16).
Gender equity has been faced with certain acceptations. First, gender has been used as a social stratifier for a long time now. Women have been separated form men in the social world in feminism and masculinity. Gender has also been a structural process, making it slow to change and under immense pressure since it challenges rooted foundations of power. Shaking this foundation causes tension and resistance, while very few accept and transform. Finally, women have to take a slow but strong structural change that aims to overthrow the status quo and deliver the much expected balance without targeting to win over and dominate the men.
The fate of females
Pessar (2005 p.2) in his report “Women, Gender, and International Migration Across and Beyond the Americas: Inequalities and Limited Empowerment” clearly explains the fate of women in terms of immigration in search of labor. Women have accounted for the mass immigrants in Latin America and the Caribbean. This has been mainly influenced by gendered revolution in agriculture in that, women have been perceived with a decline in craftsmanship and the rise need for women workers. They have migrated to work in agricultural and manufacturing firms. This led to increased cases of feminicide. The women have also faced “neo-liberal policies, heightened female labor force participation and male under-and unemployment, and the tolerance of violence against women” (Pessar, 2005 p.3). They have also been involved in sex work giving rise to sex tourism, making it difficult to establish those who use sex as labor and victims of trafficking. Many managers take on the immigrant women and exploit them as cheep labor or as sexual objects; though male immigrants may also be subjected to labor inequality, the magnitude of their exploitation is insignificant when compared to what women go through.
Theories of gender inequality
The gender equity issues have been countered and fought against using certain theories. Though one can not bring a clear difference between man and woman through and behaviors there still remains an unequal treatment for females at all places. Only biological differences submit a clear difference but this does not justify any unfair treatment. Two theories have been put forward to explain gender inequity. These are; the human capital theory and the overcrowding theory.
The human capital theory makes people believe that “women earn less since they have fewer assets to sell in the labor market; they have less education, generally less work experience and higher turnover rates than men” (Umoh, 2008 p.2). According to this theory, though women may have equal rights, their position remains as delicate since they will earn less. This can be explained by a woman having to work for more days to earn what a man earns and should go to less paying and less prestigious positions. This in its part leads to feminized poverty and more population of women to be poorer.
The overcrowding theory explains gender inequity with fact that women throng into a virtually small figure of occupation hence making a negative influence of the law of supply and demand against them. The social patterns are to blame for the inequality which causes limited chances to women. It gives an example of the hour rule in a company where many women with children will not work at odd hours and most of the women would prefer to work during day hours. This brings competition hence the few firms would want to employ more women. The theory also explains the choice women have to make between their career and developing their homes. Many will choose to develop a home rather than pursue a career hence men may be seen as dominant whereas women just overcrowd at other ends (Umoh, 2008, p.4).
Females and humanity
In the report “religious organizations and gender inequality: the Catholic view point” Umoh (2008, p.5) calls for appreciation of feminine values in the society since they hold a great potential to transform life in many aspects of humanity. He calls for gender emancipation and liberation instead of suppression because it can bring a re-organization in the social life. The woman also has capacity to give life, for she has a unique capability for perseverance and appreciation of the value of each human life.
There are several approaches that can create a difference in gender equality, which include; deal with structural views, change the stereotypes and involve multilevel goals to reverse the trends, reduce exposures and vulnerabilities, change and amend policies that cause gender imbalance and involve mainstream gender equality measures. Above all, women organization should be supported to ensure they are heard and considered in all sectors.
Conclusion
Gender inequality is a vice that is uncouth, disrespectful, uncivilized and most of all, unprofessional. Everyone should unite against this undignified system of discrimination and embrace change that can transform the world to a better place where there is equal treatment for all. This should be done through protection and promotion of women rights that change the norm in the society, empowering the woman e.g. through education and finances, and cushion them from the gender inequality through structural reforms that will encompass gender based infrastructure and broadening the opportunities and capabilities for women.
References
Molyneux, M. & Razavi, S. (2002). Gender justice, development, and rights. New York, Oxford University Press. Web.
Neimanis, A, & Tortisyn, A. (2003). Gender Thematic Guidance Note. National Human Development Report (NHDR). Web.
Pessar, P.R. (2005). Women, Gender, and International Migration Across and Beyond the Americas: Inequalities and Limited Empowerment. Department of Economic and Social Affairs. United Nations Secretariat. Web.
Sen, G. & Ă–stlin, P. (2007). Unequal, Unfair, Ineffective and Inefficient Gender Inequity in Health: Why it exists and how we can change it. Final Report to the WHO Commission on Social Determinants of Health. Women and Gender Equity Knowledge Network. Web.
Umoh, J.O. (2008). Religious organizations and Gender Inequality: The Catholic View point. The Social Sciences. Vol.3. issue.3: 594-600. Web.
Wood, J. (2007). Gendered Lives: Communication, Gender, and Culture. Ed.9. Belmont, CA: Thompson Wadsworth. Web.