Women’s participation in high positions, both in companies and in governments, has been increasing throughout the last few years. In part, this is due to a massive campaign for more representation, spearheaded by women, of course, and in part is due to a world that is constantly changing, though too slowly, unfortunately. And this disparity can be noted in a lot of other areas, such as education, conquests and inside their own homes. The reasons for this are deep in our societies, and solving them could be the key for humanity’s survival.
Although women’s participation increased, the proportion still falls far short of the ideal. Women are 52% of the world population, but they represent only 23% in decision-making positions. Regarding salaries, women receive on average 30% less than men for doing the same jobs. Recently in Brazil, the center-left government enacted a law to address this problem: employers are prohibited from paying different salaries for women and men in similar positions. Notwithstanding this law’s good intentions, company owners, mainly men, are protesting against it, and the parliament, again, a majority male, is threatening to repeal it. That is a symptom that the problem is cultural, and a solution may have to start at home.
Moreover, women have been marginalized throughout centuries. Men were often trained for being brave and leaders, while women were left with domestic jobs. It is still a reality today. At home, women continued to be the primarily responsible for routine tasks, in an unfair division that left men with more free time to dedicate to their careers, hobbies and network, consequently. Childcare often demands more from women, too, who not only a few times have to put their careers aside to take on this task full-time. When they want to return to the job market, the time they spent at home usually is faced as a problem to reassume their careers at the previous point.
Furthermore, despite women education isn’t a hurdle, it not reflects in good job positions. In Brazil, women often outnumber men in colleges. While at a first sight could be good news, this representation does not translate into professional equality. In universities, for example, even being a majority in postgraduate courses, women are a minority in teaching. These contradictions can be noticed in other areas: usually with their better educational level, women are a minority in public conquests, such as in diplomacy, where only 23% of Brazilian diplomats are female. And it is a reality in almost every country. Usually known for their better negotiation capacity, the world would be entirely different if women diplomats were a majority.
Although it is not difficult to understand that the world needs to value women better, it is imperative to create more opportunities for them, since the issue isn’t their education or capabilities, which often surpass those of men. Such change could make a significant difference in the future: countries with better decision-makers will advance more in economic and social growth, and this could reflect in more peaceful societies. Advancing in this area could mean the difference between a more integrated, cooperative world and a one that is catastrophic and self-destructive.