A third of working women say they're discriminated against
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Version 0 of 1. New research reveals that one in three working women in the UK admits to feeling disadvantaged in the workplace. The report, from recruitment consultancy Badenoch and Clark, revealed that 31% of respondents believe that men are offered greater opportunities at work. The issue was noticeably more prevalent in the private sector: almost a quarter (20%) of private sector respondents believed they had been passed over for promotion due to gender. In the public sector the figure was just 8%. All respondents cited a number of factors holding back aspiring female managers, including the perception that women need more flexibility (54%) and a lack of female role models (26%). However, over half of the women surveyed (57%) felt that unconscious bias is the greatest barrier facing women in the workplace. The majority of respondents felt that a better programme of training and support was necessary in order to fight this bias, with 55% favouring leadership training and development, while 43% believed that mentoring programmes were a preferable alternative. Just 7% were in favour of quotas. Nicola Linkleter, managing director of Badenoch & Clark believes that companies should lead by example, encouraging others to follow their lead by demonstrating that diversity is good for business. “We must look to businesses and sectors that are successfully changing the status quo and creating a culture of gender equality and learn from them and their methods,” she says. “Ultimately recognising and challenging gender biases in the workplace will have dramatic and positive implications for businesses. Those that manage it will not only be better at attracting and retaining top talent, they will be more successful.” Diversity, inclusion and change leadership specialist Charlotte Sweeney says that there isn’t “one silver bullet” for eliminating gender bias. She does however believe that the right training can have a significant impact. “Making managers aware of their own bias, which we all have, is one factor. Equipping them with the skills and know-how to act and think differently is quite another,” she explains. Sweeney outlines a number of steps that companies can take to keep the impact of bias in check, including “reviewing people data such as recruitment and appraisals to identify if bias is playing a part in the decision making” and “encouraging employees to talk to others when making decisions to gain different perspectives and insights.” “Everyone has bias, without exception,” adds Rebecca Gregory, head of workplace communications at Business in the Community. “Tackling it requires individuals to acknowledge their own biases and be actively aware of these during decision making and in their leadership. To really tackle bias, organisational behaviour needs to change. And this requires, and depends on leadership. There has to be an organisational move towards inclusive behaviours that is driven by an accountable leader.” |