Diversity & Discrimination of Women in the Workplace

 Problem Discussion
Due to the significance of equal opportunities to citizens the world over, laws have been passed to ensure that they are available to everyone. These laws have been designed protect anyone from being discriminated against by reason of sex, marital status, ethnic or national origin, color, race, nationality, age, disability, religion, and differing terms of employment, including pay for jobs of equal value.

Progress has its drawbacks. One is people’s resistance to change, refusal to come out of comfort zones to embrace newness and integrate it in the familiar. This may lead to discrimination as a justification of such non-acceptance. Women are especially affected with this, specifically in the workplace.

Working women are usually faced with a multitude of challenges. On top of balancing their duties and responsibilities as members of their families and church or community groups, they need to be efficient workers in their chosen professions.

One main challenge is the issue of equal opportunities afforded to them. Competing with men for opportunities to advance their careers have built-in dilemmas brought about by sexual stereotypes passed on from generation to generation.

“Equal opportunity” is a means by which a person receives equal access in society. “Equal opportunities approach” is premised on the principle that all people can avail of certain rights or privileges such as education, employment, health care or other welfare services without any discrimination or any preference whatsoever.

Different organizations now apply various equal opportunity practices, which consist of a number of means used to provide fair conditions for all their members in the process of employment and work (Equal Opportunities, 2006).

The legislative base for such practices varies from country to country. For example, some governments demand from employers to give equal attention and provide equal possibilities to both genders in the hiring process. However, their opponents believe that employers are not to be forced to take an unbiased position as this assumption itself can be considered as a manifestation of discrimination.

The problem with equal opportunities provision is very controversial as there is no single procedure and no strict definition of the term opportunities itself. Therefore, one can understand the meaning of equal opportunities if considered in its practical application.

People are given equal opportunities when they possess the same abilities, exert the same effort and attain similar successful results with those that precede them. However, in the real life situation, equal abilities and equal conditions are hardly attainable.

The notion of equal opportunities is closely related with the notion of sexual discrimination. The latter is a biased attitude towards a person because of his/her gender, pregnancy or marital status, etc. This is direct sexual discrimination (Equal Opportunities, 2006). An example is a company’s policy of not hiring married women because of possible restrictions their marriages can pose that may affect job performance.