Category: Woman

Women and men have never been allowed to compete against one another at a higher level. They have always been separated into two divisions of competition. Women and men’s basketball, women and men’s tennis, baseball and softball, and women and men’s gymnastics to name a few organized sports that are divided by gender. Why has there never been an instance where women and men have competed against each other? Whether it be one-on-one or on teams, there have been rare occasions where this has taken place. Even then, it was for bragging rights. Most recently Serena Williams competed against Roger Federer. But, why is this not the norm rather than the rarity? “Why?” is the question that I will be working to answer. When I came across this topic I realized that this is something that I feel very passionate about. As a very athletic young lady, I feel as if it is degrading that women are not allowed to compete against men because of the claims of physical advantages and disadvantages. Women have always been underestimated when it comes to sports. Everything females do have to be modified or changed to something simpler than what men do. Consider the fact that a women’s basketballs are smaller than a men’s, however, softballs are much larger than baseballs. I am not certain what the equalizing factor was when hand sizes vary from person to person, not just male to female.

To answer the question, Yes. Women should be allowed to compete against men. For years men have been the ones to say that women are not physically capable of being competitors. They’ve always been the ones to say that it’s too dangerous and sports are about physicality. Men have always been the ones to say “no”. This can be traced back to the days when women had to stay home and do the cooking and the cleaning for the men while they went out to fight for our country or earn for the family. In many areas, gender equality has been improving gradually. But this is not the case in sport, where women continue to be banned for being insufficiently feminine to be permitted to compete.

Sports are not all about physicality. Some sports highlight physical aspects while others highlight skills. Take tennis for example. Players who are stronger and more physically inclined hold an advantage in some areas of the game, but players who are more talented skill-wise are better overall. Roger Federer, for example, isn’t the most physical tennis player, but he is arguably the most skilled player out there. Also, anyone who has ever watched Serena Williams play tennis cannot deny her sheer skill that has awarded her 23 Grand Slam titles (although her muscles definitely help). Her skills are what has earned her the no. 1 spot on the Universal Tennis Ranking.

While men and women may differ in physical makeup or stature, they do not differ in their skills capacity. This is why former tennis star John McEnroe faced backlash when dismissing Williams’s title as the sport’s greatest tennis player and, instead, clarifying her as the sport’s best female player. In professional sports – where the importance of skills outweighs the importance of physicality – everyone should compete equally.

Historically, women have been required to undergo humiliating sex testing procedures in order to compete in a sport. More recently, such bias testing has been suspended owing to the lack of consensus about which traits make someone male or female. This issue reached public consciousness through the case of Caster Semenya, the 2008 800m world champion who was banned from competition for two years on the grounds of appearing masculine and having high levels of testosterone. In 2012, there were cases where women underwent surgical alterations in order to meet the requirements to compete in the women’s events at the Olympic Games, even though they had always identified as women and externally appeared to be women.

Women are not the only group who receive a poor deal in sports. While weight classes in some sports allow smaller athletes a chance at success, there is no such consideration for other traits, such as height. This means that shorter athletes have to face greater challenges to even have the slightest of chances in events such as high jump, volleyball, and basketball. Other athletes are lucky enough to have physical traits that provide an advantage but are not restricted as a result. For example, they have a greater aerobic capacity or greater amounts of fast-twitch muscle fibers which allow for contracting quickly, but the disadvantage remains that the athlete gets tired faster. However, it is not considered unfair for other athletes to compete against them, as it would be if they weighed more or they were male rather than female.

Women and men should be allowed to compete against each other. Physicality and safety should not play a part in the reason they are not allowed to compete. There is no such thing as a safe sport. Sports will risk the safety of the players regardless. Changes are being made in the world and women will continue to push for equality. Allowing men and women to compete against each other is one way they are fighting to gain respect and be considered equals among men.

Adult co-ed teams have also worked to break barriers. By implementing strict roles on how to conduct the came, has allowed women to enter the same arena as the men. Adult volleyball leagues have created rules that force female involvement on the team. Solutions can be found. It is up to everyone to be more openminded about women competing with men.

Abstract

Work- Life balance refers to the competency and successful management of multiple roles both at work and family and also refers to employees balance and contently fulfilled their formal task and accomplished household task to prove their efficiency at both ends. It is a state of well defined well being. Women getting into job after marriage have been increasing substantially in recent decades. This added a married woman responsibility executing multiple tasks at a time apart from parenting and household choirs. The literature reviews explored the general underlying factors responsible for imbalance of work and family of a working mother and the available support system that are enhancing balance of work and family of the working women.

Introduction

Women were confined to be a housewife and were expected to perform and fulfilled family responsibilities like looking after children and household choir but it is not conceivable in today’s world. The participation of women in income generation lends to satisfy their home needs to great extends. For better home environment and well being women are found at work.

It is well considered that women contributions are high in economic development and they are committed and sincere towards work which leads to their imbalance of work life and family life. Work-life balance of working women has become an important concern and subject since women equally shared earning responsibility for the betterment of the family living standard. Work-family balance has been conceptualised as an individual’s orientation across life roles, an inter- role phenomenon, satisfaction and good functioning at work and at home with a minimum of role conflict (Campbell- Clark, 2000).

Work-life balance is an imminent issue due to the recent massive incorporation of women into the labour force, the ageing of societies, the intensification of work and the problems in balancing family life and work life underpin the present trend.Significant progress has been made by women. Since changes in social, economic, and political have introduce new social structure, which opposed women to move out in the limelight of public arena from the confinement of their homes.

Women contribution is divided into paid job and unpaid job. Paid job can be defined as a job that someone does to earn money. The unpaid work activities such as household work and care- giving for the elderly or for children are embraced by women. Women enter into paid workforce due to financial need, social attitude and increasing educational level. Managing work and family together at a time is challenging to women especially for working mother, which become complex because of increasing number of nuclear family. Thus it the root of work-life imbalance and their quality of life is greatly hampered by work-life and work-family conflicts. Working mother striving for financial independence also has the role of caring growing child to accomplish motherhood. These times demanding responsibilities make a stress among working mother and balancing the two poles become a formidable task. The imbalance between the two domains often meets with guilt from husband, family and relatives of the working mother’s.

Review of literature

Shakil, (2011) study on working women work-life conflict among banking sector in Pakistan found that there is a strong correlation between workplace environment and household responsibilities to women work-life conflict while women working potential and workplace environment are negatively related whereas there was a significant relationship on household responsibilities and workplace environment to women work-life conflict.

Rajesh, K. & Nishant, D. (2014) conducted a study on work-life balance and job satisfaction among 150 working women of the banking and educational sector in Bhopal, India. It highlights the working space and women’s perception of work-life balance and job satisfaction. The study examined the impact of work-life balance on the job satisfaction and the institutional help provided by the organizations. The result shows that there is a relationship between job satisfaction and institutional help provided to the employee and the result also shows that employee-oriented policies and social support are the main factors to achieve the work-life balance.

Viveka. G (2015) study among 105 female nurses in a different department on work-life balance and analyzed the type of work-related stress experienced and the major influencing factor of stress experienced. The study also examined the influencing factor of the work-life balance. The result shows that the majority have difficulty in striking balance between work and family. The result also reveals among the stressors the respondents experienced health-related issues due to working for long hours and work overload. The result reveals the need for implementation of family-friendly policies to strike a balance between work and family.

Sundaresan S. (2015) conducted a study on Work-life balance – implications for working women among 125 working women in Bangalore, India. The study revealed that burden of excessive work, the need to fulfil others’ expectations and not having time for they are the prime factors affecting work life balance of working women. As a consequence women suffer from job burn-out, experience high levels of stress and anxiety, are unable to realize their full potential and also do not enjoy harmonious family life.

Khan, A. (2018) conducted a study on quality of life (QoL) among 80 married working women and housewives between the ages of 25 – 40 years at Bijnor, Uttar Pradesh, India. The study shows that there were psychological, environment and social differences in both the group whereas there was no difference found on the physical health of both married working mothers and housewives.

According to the article of Chandel, P & Shekhawat, J. (2019) on Body Image, Mental Health and Quality of Life of Married Working Women in India revealed the major sources of mental stress in working women are long hours of working, lack of family and friends support including heavy workload. The article states the factor that can increase the quality of life of a married working women is the trust and backing from her family, friends, and society

Discussions of literature review

Review of copious literatures reveals that research studies on Work-life balance of working women on various issues and different variables including the psychological factors, work family balance, quality of life and the relationships between work family balance and quality of life of working women etc. The review of literatures at the international level shows that there is a conflict between work family balance and quality of life of working women mainly emphasizing on working time, sparing some time out from day to day activities for interests and relaxation routines, prioritization of responsibilities and attainment of work life balance, contribution of husband and family towards work life balance, having a good friend but no time to spend with them, self-related issues, delaying pregnancy for work related commitments, insufficient quality time to spend with their children and parents and also the unavailability of self-care time.

In order for a woman to gain highest level of quality of life is only by maintaining a substantial amount of balance between work and life, emotional and social support from spouse and colleagues are extremely important factor for a working mother to have a better quality of life. Failing to receive such support increases their stress level and leads to several psychological problems which gradually affect their mental status. Therefore, imbalance in the work and family of a working women can greatly affect the quality of life by resulting in high level of stress, mental illness and further reduce their efficiency at work and at home.

Conclusion

To conclude, working women has the pressure in work life and there is a big challenge to balance both profession life and family life. Universally, work family balance is a contemporary issue of working mothers so as to have an appropriate balance life of both work and family focusing on up-gradation of quality of life. Women are playing a vital role in their life to manage their dual responsibility. Between this dual life style the women suffer with a lot of mental and physical health problems. The analyses of this article attempted to understand factors affecting work life balance of working women and consequences of poor work life balance. In the Indian context, women remain primarily responsible for their family and career is hardly given top priority. Work life balance of working women is affected due to burden of extreme work, the need to fulfil others’ expectations and not having time for themselves, children and family. Due to this, women suffer from job burn-out, experience high levels of stress and anxiety, are unable to realize their full potential and also do not enjoy harmonious family life. In fact, the demand for women employees is increasing day by day and their contribution to nation’s growth and economic progress is significant. Therefore, it is the joint responsibilities of both organizations and the working women’s family to concern the wellbeing of the working women which in turn will pave a way for a modern society. Hence, achievement and enjoyment in all spheres will lead to work life balance.

References

1. Chandel, P. K., & Shekhawat, J. (2019). Body Image , Mental Health and Quality of Life of Married Working Women in India, (7), 111–113.
2. D.S.R.Adikaram. (2016). Impact Of Work Life Balance on Employee job satisfaction in Private Sector Commercial Banks of Sri Lanka, 3(11), 17–31.
3. Khan, A. (2018). Quality of Life Among Married Working Women and Housewives, (July).
4. Lakshmi, K. S., Ramachandran, T., Boohene, D., Care, A. H., & An, I. (2012). Analysis of Work Life Balance of Female Nurses in Hospitals – Comparative Study between Government and Private Hospital in Chennai , TN ., India, 3(3), 213–218.
5. Rangarajan, B. (2017). Work Life Balance of Women Employees, 3(October 2014), 1–5.
6. Shakil, A. M. (2011). Working women work-life conflict : A case study of banking sector in Pakistan Working women work-life conflict. World Applied Sciences Journal 13, 3(May 2018), 623–631. https://doi.org/10.1108/17515631111185923
7. Sundaresan, S. (2015). Work-life balance – implications for working women, (August 2014), 93–101.
8. Viveka, M. (2015). A Study on Work Life Balance of Female Nurses with reference to Multispeciality Hospitals, Mysore City, (Xxviii), 42–46.
9. Yadav, R. K., & Dabhade, N. (2013). Work life balance amongst the working women in public sector banks – a case study of State Bank of India, 7, 1–22. https://doi.org/10.18052/www.scipress.com/ILSHS.7.1
10. Yadav, R. K., & Dabhade, N. (2014). Work Life Balance and Job Satisfaction among the Working Women of Banking and Education Sector – A Comparative Study, 21, 181–201. https://doi.org/10.18052/www.scipress.com/ILSHS.21.181

ABSTRACT

This study is to analyze how women balance their life between the work life and personal life and their satisfactory level in their work. The work life balance is poles apart for each of the women because of different priorities and different lives. To analyze their effectiveness of balancing work and life a well well thought-out questionnaire is designed and 50 samples were chosen randomly for this study. The tools used in this study are frequency distribution, spearman liker scale and chi square test.

INTRODUCTION:

Work–life balance is the lack of opposition between work and other life roles. It is the state of stability in which demands of personal life, professional life, and family life are equal. Work–life balance consists of, but it is not limited to, flexible work provision that allow employees to carry out other life programs and practices. Work-Life Balance does not mean an equal balance. Trying to plan an equal number of hours for each of your various work and personal activities is usually difficult and unrealistic. Life is and should be more fluid than that. Your best individual work-life balance will vary over time, often on a daily basis. The right stability for you today will probably be different for you tomorrow. The right stabilities for you when you are single will be different when you marry, or if you have children; when you start a new career versus when you are looming.

REVIEW OF LITERATURE:

Murphy and Doherty (2011) exposed that it is not possible to measure work-life balance in an complete way as there are personal conditions which persuade the way that is perceived but establishing a harmony that reflects an individual‘s priorities whereas employees must draw a firm line between their home and work lives and be secure that the line is in the right place.

(Dunne, 2007) recruiting and retaining highly capable staff is a defy facing all types and sizes of organizations in the 21st century. It requires taking a tactical approach to the magnetism, assortment, improvement and retention of employees, in order to meet staff, business and societal needs.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

Objective of the Study:

• To analyze the effectiveness of women in maintaining their work and life
• To know the satisfactory level of the women in balancing work-life

Tools for analysis:

• Frequency distribution
• Liker scale and
• Chi square test.

Limitations of the study:

• The time consumption of this study is very limited.
• Some respondents did not respond properly for collecting this data.

DATA ANALYSIS AND INTREPRETATION:

From the above table it is clearly shows that 32% of the respondents were 25-30yrs and 20% of the respondents were below 20yrs and 18% of the respondents were 30-35yrs and above 35yrs and 12% respondents’ were20-25yrs.

RESULT

Since the table value at 5% level of significance is 0.382 As, Calculated value>Tabulated value, null hypothesis is accepted. Hence there is no association between job experience and salary.

FINDINGS

• 32% of the respondents were 25-30yrs.
• The level of satisfaction towards their work is 4.12
• There is no association between job experience and salary.
• strategy for avoiding brain drain, Strategy HR Review, Vol.6 Iss: 6,pp.28-31, DOI: 10.1108/14754390780001014

CONCLUSION:

This study concludes that the level of fulfillment towards their work life and personal life of working women is that they are highly satisfied and also they maintained a good poise between their work and life. In the present mounting world the women’s are evolved equally like men and they achieved their destiny also. This shows that women can maintain both the work and personal life in a healthy way.

REFERENCE:

1. Dunne, H., (2007). Putting balance into business: Work/life balance as a business
2. Murphy, F., & Doherty, L. (2011). The experience of work life balance for Irish senior Managers. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: An International Journal, Vol.30 Iss:4, pp.252-277, Emerald Group Publishing Limited
3. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Work%E2%80%93life_balance
4. https://worklifebalance.com/work-life-balance-defined/

During World War II, the working women of Britain experienced a significant increase in their freedoms and independence, as they assumed the occupations left vacant by the men at war. When the war came to an end there was a dramatic return to domesticity within the family unit. The societal expectations put on postwar women – derived from gender constructs – affected their newly established careers. Many of the women who proved capable of doing a “man’s work” were relieved of their jobs by returning soldiers, and expected to resume their conventional roles as stay at home mothers and wives. In this research paper, I will explore how the roles of British women changed in the workforce after World War II, through a comparison with their roles during the war. This is important for understanding the impact their postwar setbacks in the workforce had on creating the foundations for equal pay and the women’s liberation movements of the 1960s.

When Britain’s able-bodied men were called to war, the highly skilled jobs they traditionally worked needed to be filled, in order to sustain both the economy and war effort. It was that imperative that “in December 1941, women began to be conscripted for war work, when Parliament passed the National Service Act” (“Women at War”: 1). Women were not generally employed in the same sector as men, because the level of difficulty was not considered suitable for them. However, the war took priority over Britain’s gender norms. “All unmarried women

aged 20-30, (later extended to 19-43), now had to either join the armed forces, work in a factory or work on the land with the Women’s Land Army” (“Women at War”: 1). Around 80% of married women worked too (Harris 2011). “State funding was provided to establish about 1345 wartimes nurseries . . . [but] this was always considered a temporary measure . . . [as] a married woman’s place was still considered to be in the home” (World War II: 4). Nevertheless, women were a large proportion of Britain’s workforce during the war – an astonishing 7 million undertook a variety of vital jobs (see fig. 1). They worked “in factories producing munitions, building ships, aeroplanes, in the auxiliary services as air-raid wardens, fire officers and evacuation officers, as drivers of fire engines, trains and trams, as conductores and as nurses” (“World War II”: 2). The most highly employed field was the munitions factories, in which they produced shells and bullets for the war (see fig. 2). “Some munitions workers handled toxic chemicals every day. Those who handled sulphur were nicknamed ‘Canary Girls’, because their skin and hair turned yellow from contact with the chemical” (“Women at War”: 2). One Canary Girl, Eugenie Balderstone, recounts her experience: “I went to work on munitions at British Mark. My job was filling shells with TNT powder. This was,

I thought, my contribution to the war effort . . . I only ever worked on the high explosive (yellow) powder. This stained our hair and skin yellow. It used to burn and sting. We got skin rashes, even though we wore masks and overalls. We worked 12 hour shifts; a fortnight on days then a fortnight on nights” (WW2: 1).

The controversy concerning the poor working conditions of Britain’s women launched the fight for increased union participation and equal pay, since they were in fact doing the same work as their male predecessors. However, only small commissions were made because trade unions “expressed concerns about men’s pay being pushed down and sought assurances that women’s wartime work would only be temporary” (World War II: 1). “Some limited agreement on equal pay was reached . . . when they performed the same job as men had ‘without assistance or supervision’” (World War II: 3). However, women’s work was generally regarded as unskilled, so the average woman received 53% less pay than a man – an aspect that prompted postwar women to push for improved labor rights (Davis).

As World War II came to a halt, so did the progression of women in Britain’s workforce. “Despite the commision, by the end of the war the campaign for equal pay went off the boil as the government and the [Trade Union Commission] concentrated their efforts on persuading women to return to their more traditional spheres of employment – domestic service apparently ranking high on the list of priority jobs” (Davis). Single women were encouraged to stay in the labour market, since Britain was in a period of reconstruction and experiencing labor shortages. However, they were employed under the guise of what the welfare state considered to be “women’s work”. The jobs that fell under this classification were as “nurses, midwives, cleaner and clerical staff . . . banking, textile and light industries . . . secretarial and assembly work” (Post World War II). A sharp contrast from their war occupations.

Married women experienced the most significant setbacks in the postwar workforce. “The Welfare State itself, and in particular the Social Security system, arguably Labour’s finest achievement, was predicated upon the notion that the role of married women in social production was secondary to their domestic responsibilities” (Davis). During the war, British society viewed women’s wartime work as a necessary, but temporary lapse in their traditional beliefs about familial life. So when the war ended, married women were expected to return to their pre-war roles, in both the workforce and home. Various forms of propaganda were used to represent the image that postwar British society wanted to portray of women and domesticity – an inaccurate depiction of how a lot of women felt (see fig. 3). A 1951 report issued by Psychoanalyst John Bowlby to the World Health Organization reinforced this expectation put on women. He argued “that children needed the warm, continuous presence of their mothers in early life to ensure normal psychological development” (Mccarthy 2016: 5). It was believed that the maternal deprivation caused by working mothers created delinquent children. “Bowlby’s ideas informed and lent ‘scientific’ respectability both to government policy on pre-school childcare and to a wider climate of censure towards working mothers with young children” (Mccarthy 2016: 6). The theory was later proven to be false, but its repercussions were already implemented in practice. “The unchallenged acceptance of such views fed the truly reactionary Labour policy of closing the state day nurseries which had been opened to meet the needs of working mothers during the war” (Davis). This discouraged many mothers from participating in the postwar workforce.

For a good portion of the 1950s, a marriage bar was put in place to restrict married women – more specifically, mothers – from working. Women were “routinely sacked when they got pregnant and continued to be paid less than men even if they did the same jobs” (Post World War II: 2). However, despite the opposition they faced, there was an overall increase in women’s employment in the decades following World War II (see Table 1). “The change in women’s work force participation since World War II is almost entirely attributable to the rise in part-time workers” (Wilson 2006: 206). For women, the “solution to the conflict between the demand of paid work and the demands of family and home was the compromise of part-time work” (Davis: 6). It was especially important to married women, whose desire to escape the confines of the home and economic dependency “despite criticism demonstrates the monetary and psychological importance of work for women” (Wilson 2006: 207). Part-time work allowed women to gain autonomy, and have control of the money they earned. However, their wages were often regarded as “extra” – frivolous and affluent – and not integral to the family’s needs. Women argued in defense of part-time work saying “a good mother was not solely one who stayed at the beck and call of her family, but one who nurtured their self-reliance and independence by not being constantly available, as well as by providing goods and pleasures otherwise out of reach of the family” (Wilson 2006: 207). In fact, surveys showed that “of married women who worked found about 15-20 percent of them were the sole or main support of the family” (Wilson 2006: 216).

The advent of women’s part-time work increased the average household income of the British family, and relieved the pressure put on men to be the only source of income – or sole breadwinner (Any source). This encouraged men to be more invested in familial life, and as a result marriages became more egalitarian (McCarthy 2016). The financial autonomy and self-determination that many women experienced through their work led to the “do-it-yourself” ideology of the 1960s. “Organizations like the National Housewives’ Register, the National Childbirth Trust and the Pre-School Playgroups Association emerged from the grass roots in response to the conundrum faced by women who experienced dissatisfaction and frustration in their domestic role” (Abrams 2019: 1). These self-help organizations, as they were called, functioned to increase the intellectual engagement of women in British society – especially, for working women. The National Housewives’ Register was described as “one conduit for the outpouring of frustration . . . amongst women who had formerly been employed in professional and semi-professional roles” (Abrams 2019: 10). Women used the voice these organizations gave them to challenge the patriarchal frameworks of British society, and the notion that a women’s role was purely domestic. The demands for social and economic equality were embodied in the Women’s Liberation Movement that began in the late 1960s, “as a female response to a broad and complex trajectory of social change since the 1940s encompassing women’s education and work” (Abrams 2019: 6).

The momentum of women’s social change overturned much of the gender segregation found in employment throughout the 1950s (Gazeley 2008). During the 1950s, it was easier for British society to see women as consumers and spenders, rather than an economic force that contributed to the livelihood of its family structure (Source). This is because the “welfare system was far cheaper to administer if its benefits were only fully accorded to adult males” (Davis: 5). “The 1950s were a bleak decade for women workers with nothing done to apply the principle of equal pay . . . [and] government and trade unions appeared to accept the dubious argument that the British economy would collapse if women obtained pay parity with men” (Davis: 6). However, the 1960’s brought women’s integration in British society to an all time high, in which they had outlets to implement change – particularly in the workforce. The Ford strike at Dagenham was a critical moment for both women’s mobilization and Britain’s equal pay movement (see fig. 4 & 5). The women machinists employed at Ford Motor company went on strike for 3 weeks and achieved 92% of men’s pay (Source). It was one of the first moments since the war, in which men realized that industries and the economy could not function without them (Post World War II: 8). “Their actions received wide publicity and precipitated wider action in the form of several other equal pay strikes in 1968-69 . . . [and] this mobilisation eventually led to the passage of The Equal Pay Act 1970, the first legislation in the world aimed at ending pay discriminatino between men and women (Post World War II: 8).

Female sports are not respected as much as male sports. Female athletes do not have the same rights as male athletes. There are males coaching female teams but few females coaching male teams in Asia. Female sports are not taken as seriously as male sports in Asia, and in some countries such as; Iran and Saudi Arabia, females cannot watch live male sports (Braunschweiger).

Women are not allowed to go into stadiums to watch male sports in Iran (Braunschweiger). They are not even able to watch from nearby rooftops (Braunschweiger). A lady named Mina was taken out of a men’s volleyball game in a stadium because she is female. When she was kicked out, she went to watch by a nearby rooftop, but soon enough they kicked her off of there too (Braunschweiger). Mina says, “excluding women from stadiums is part of excluding women from society, Iran has to see the consequences for not letting women go to the stadiums” (Braunschweiger). After this happened to Mina, women in Iran started protesting and making signs about women rights (Braunschweiger). They said things such as “I have half the freedom” (Braunschweiger). Iran got a new President in 2013, Hassan Rouhani (Braunschweiger). Mina hoped that he would let women into the stadiums, but he did not (Braunschweiger). Iran has promised that once 35 women are arrested for going into the stadiums, women will be allowed to watch men’s football games (McKernan). This has not happened yet (McKernan). Women have not given up yet, they are still fighting in Iran to be able to go into stadiums (Braunschweiger).

All over Asia, women have always had trouble getting into the Olympics (“Asian women in sports journalism”). In 1900, women were only allowed to play 3 out of 86 events in the Olympics (“Asian women in sports journalism”). In 2008, women played 26 out of 28 sports, without baseball and boxing (“Asian women in sports journalism”). Finally, in 2012 for the first time, Asian women played every sport in the Olympics (“Asian women in sports journalism”). Only 14 percent of Pakistan and Bangladesh women play sports, which is pretty low, in the UK, 36 percent of women play sports (“The unsporting life”). An anonymous writer says, “the most important factor should not be gender, but quality”(“Asian women in sports journalism”). In Islam, there are hardly any Muslim women playing sports because they feel like they are not able to or people do not let them (“Muslim Women In Sport”). There are some barriers also for women playing sports such as; dress code (some places and teams do not allow what some Muslim women wear) and, the lack of women only teams, because of this, there are not as many women playing sports in Asia (“Muslim Women In Sport”).

In some countries in Asia, the government does not allow female Olympic teams, such as; Brunei, United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia (Ahmed). They are not allowed because of government, cultural and religious reasons (Ahmed). If women wanted to play in the Olympics in Iran, they are only allowed to do pistol- and rifle shooting, at the Barcelona, Sydney, and Athens Olympics (Ahmed). The only country in the world that does not let women play any sports at all is Saudi Arabia. That is, until 2012. In 2012, women in Iran were able to play in the Summer Olympics for the first time in history (“Women’s Sport In Saudi Arabia”). In 2018, Saudi Arabia finally allowed women to enter some stadiums, such as; King Fahd Stadium, King Abdullah Sports City and Prince Mohammad Bin Fahd Stadium (“Women’s Sport In Saudi Arabia”). Ali Al- Ahmed says, “Their presence has allowed Saudi Arabia to escape criticism” (“Women’s Sport In Saudi Arabia”).

In conclusion, male sports are taken more seriously than female sports in Asia, and in some countries females are still not allowed to watch live male sports (Braunschweiger). The amount of women in Asia playing sports in the Olympics seems to keep going up. Some stadiums have opened for women to watch live male sports (“Women’s Sport In Saudi Arabia”). Women should be treated equally as men, but in some cultures, that’s just not the case.

INTRODUCTION

In the words of Hillary Clinton, “Life is a mixture of different roles and we all do the best we can to find whatever best balance is… but for me it is the balance between family, work and service.”

Work Life Balance basically refers to the prioritization between personal and professional life. Every individual has life at work, home and a personal space where he has a breathing space for respite. The escalating responsibilities in personal life with everyday up gradation in Technology keeps work life integrated with personal life which results in increasing stress in both personal and professional life, especially in case of women employees.

In this case study, an attempt has been made to identify how Work Life Balance among women employees affects the growth and development of the organization in IT Industry. The data of Top five IT industry- TCS, INFOSYS, WIPRO, HCL TECHNOLOGIES and TECH MAHINDRA has been taken to analyze what the measures are taken by the companies for Work Life Balance among women employees and how it affects in the production and growth of the Company.

WORK LIFE BALANCE AND WOMEN EMPLOYEES IN IT INDUSTRY

The imbalance in the personal and professional life of the women is a major concern because of number of issues related to women employees’ wellbeing especially in IT Industry. Due to this women’s venture and jobs has changed over the years. Today, a woman plays a dual role of homemaker and a salary earner; therefore Work Life Balance has become an integral topic of discussion because it consequently offers benefits to the organization as well. Thus, Work Life Balance is the major concern in IT Industry and management practitioners.

Through this study, an attempt has been made to identify the major Work Life Balance policies and programs and also discuss several benefits earned by the companies, which has been taken for understanding the issue. The data was collected through ‘Annual Reports’, ‘Sustainability Reports’, ‘News Releases’ and ‘Reviews of Women employees’ posted on online platforms of all the Five Companies- TCS, INFOSYS, WIPRO, HCL TECHNOLOGIES, TECH MAHINDRA.

The following Table gives the Introduction of the Companies: Headquarters, Year of Establishment, Revenue, Area of Interest and some other Relevant Information, required having the Overview of the Companies.

HOW WORK LIFE BALANCE HELPS IN THE GROWTH OF ABOVE MENTIONED FIVE COMPANIES (TCS, INFOSYS, WIPRO, HCL, TECH MAHINDRA)?

1. After analyzing data of all five companies, it was found that TCS is the leading employer of women employees which offers good Work Life Balance policies to the women employees; followed by INFOSYS, WIPRO, HCL and TECH MAHINDRA.
2. TCS was awarded for ‘Empowered for Women’ category, praised for their “GO4IT” campaign, Dismantling gender stereotype and employing 10,000 women employees in 2016 which in turn increased the goodwill and production of the company.
3. Sexual Harassment at workplace are part of headlines now days, when women employees file allegations against the company (as happened with WIPRO in 2014), it leads to greater loss to the company; therefore, in such cases companies should go for immediate grievance redressal to maintain the goodwill of the company in the market.
4. From last 5-6 years, it is evident from the data that the IT Industry is showing more interest in employing women in their workforce and for that introducing innovative Work Life Balance policies and programs, especially for women, so that they can have well satisfied women workforce.
5. A satisfied set of Work Life Balance policies not only increases the productive workforce but also reduces employee turnover and absenteeism.

VIEWS OF WOMEN EMPLOYEES WORKING WITH THESE COMPANIES

• “TCS is the best and the most reliable workplace for women in IT” -Current System Software engineer, Mumbai
• “INFOSYS is quite good for women especially for young married women” -Anonymous employee
• “Good place for women employees with less work stress” – Anonymous employee, HCL
• “A family emergency forced me to choose between personal life and profession, instead of accepting my resignation they gave me a role where I did not have to choose between my constraints and growth” –Arathi Subramaniam, TCS

CONCLUSION

After studying all the factors of Work Life Balance in IT Industry through the case study of five companies- TCS, INFOSYS, WIPRO, HCL, TECH MAHINDRA ; it is crystal clear that –India being a male-dominating society, women has both the responsibilities of homemaker and salary earner. Therefore, here comes the responsibility of the organizations to frame women-friendly policies and procedures that would at least decrease the workplace stress and help in overcome the imbalance between personal and professional life.

Today, there is a huge demand for professionals in IT Industry, as a result of which women’s venture and job has also been changed through the years. Because Work Life Balance has become the key topic of discussion in estimating the growth of an organization, therefore all the companies needs to research about this discipline and plan the policies to generate satisfied employees (specially women employees) within the organization.

REFERENCES

1. www.tcs.com/campus commune
2. www.tcs.com/substantial reports from 2003-2015
3. www.infosys.com/annual reports from 2003-2018
4. www.infosys.com/newsroom/international women’s day 2018
5. www.wipro.com/sustainability report 2003-2018
6. www.businessstandards.com
7. www.glassdoor.com/reviews of employees
8. www.hcltech.com/annual reports
9. www.techmahindra.com/about us
10. www.indiatoday.com
11. www.theeconomicstimes.com

It has always been difficult for women to balance a thriving career and a happy family life. This is because being a full-time working woman comes with sessions of stress and guilt for not being able to give sufficient time to family and work.

Work life balance is a term used to portray the balance between an individual’s personal life and professional life. A healthy work-life balance holds great importance for working women particularly in the current environment in which both, the family and the workplace have posed several challenges for women. The dynamics of the work environment have put excessive pressure on working women as they need to cope with two full time jobs – one at the office and the other at home.

Review of literature related to this has revealed that women experience conflict as there is job spill over into the home more frequently than home spill over into work. Besides trying to succeed in one environment, working women are often called upon to make sacrifices in another as both the environments make different demands and have distinct norms to adhere to.

When women try to succeed, they are often reminded that the price of working late comes at the expense of their spouses, children and even at their own expense sometimes. The bottom line is that in most societies around the world, men are given slack that women are not afforded when it comes to defining the roles they should play in life. And when ‘he’ has it all, it is a noble thing, when ‘she’ has it all the woman may be questioned about her values and priorities in life. And there’s also the motherhood penalty to consider.

Today’s career oriented women are challenged continuously by the demands of full-time work and when they are done with the office, they carry more responsibilities and commitments at home. Women these days are often heard saying that their lives are a balancing act which includes multiple responsibilities at work, exhausting meeting schedules, business trips and on managing daily routine of life and home. It is very important especially for women to successfully achieve work life balance because that is really important to create a satisfied workforce that can contribute to higher productivity at the organizations.

With the increase in responsibilities added in the role of women, it has given rise to various challenges that women are facing in their daily life. Performing various tasks and carrying different roles like mother, wife and employee simultaneously are becoming very difficult for women to fulfill. A balance between all the responsibilities is directly linked with the career performance as well as physical and mental wellbeing of women, which results into the need of a proper work life balance.

Female workers have to face lot of social pressures which do not allow them to have late sittings at the work place for official matters or to visit places related to. These restrictions are mostly raised by the members of the family which includes husband, in-laws, brother and parents which creates hurdles in their career progression.

As per the Economic Survey of India 2017-18, the female labour force participation rate has fallen from 36 to 24 percentage from 2005-06 to 2015-16 respectively. This is due to females facing low work life balance issues.

According to the report presented by NSS (National Sample Survey), close to 2 crore women quit work between a period of 2004-05 to 2011-12.

Glass ceiling is also one of the obstacles which hinders women while climbing ladders of hierarchy in organizations because business environment for women is more stressful and not at all easy as compared to men.

As women are in minority and mostly perceived by men as blend of doubt, attraction, respect, confusion, competitiveness, pride and animosity; therefore this mixed perception creates glass ceiling at the time of promotions, which leads to weaker mental health of women resulting in less work life balance.

Senior positions require long hour’s commitment, work related seminars, conferences, workshop and tours which makes it difficult for women to reach due to family responsibilities. Also the fact that creates hurdles in women’s progression is pregnancy and childbirth; because they have to take maternity leaves which results in missing out opportunities for promotion. So, when return to work after their maternity leaves, they actually lack behind in certain manner, which results in demotivation.

Although there are many women who want to achieve career advancement with fulfilling other house hold tasks, but organizations fail to realize that talented and motivated women can be committed to family as well as career and can do best for the middle management, if they are helped by the organizations to achieve work life balance. The organizations however are reluctant to reduce pressure and provide flexibility this leads to recruit other employees rather than providing training to women employees.

CASE BACKGROUND

Women in India face a more problematic work-life balancing act when compared to men. Studies show that there are two factors troubling working women, especially ones with kids and aging family members. They are Family-Work (FWC) and Work-Family (WFC) conflicts. FWC is a measure of how work negatively impacts one’s family and WFC is a measure of how badly home affects ones’ work

According to a study (Indian Journal of Psychological Medicine, 2010) done on 90 urban women employees with a mean age of 38.7 years, with none to two children, it was found out that both the factors are highly affected by their status.

Both the factors depict means reflecting an afflicting pattern of a negative spill over. Women with children have a bad influence coming from their sphere of life. Family expectations, household demands, uncompromising company policies, unsupportive supervisors and the inflexible work schedules add to the grief of working women.

Mrs. Keshmira works in a Private Limited company as a Marketing Director since last 5 years (2014-2019). She got married after serving the company for initial two years i.e. after 2016. As a single woman, she could concentrate on her work and manage her routine life in an efficient manner. She had no issues in balancing her family and work life as a bachelorette. She used to live with her parents and was growing beautifully in her career. Her supervisors and the company was extremely happy with her work techniques and her dedication for the same.

She was even awarded as the “Best Employee” of the company for the year 2015. This was because, when she was a Spinster, she could be very responsive to what her team or employees were going through or expecting from her. If her team had any kind of issues pursuing the projects that were going on, she immediately found out solutions to it after deep analysis as she had more time to concentrate on her work place and performance. She had flexibility to work whenever she wanted to. Being responsive to the projects that she is pursuing is anyway very important being a Marketing Director.

Her this responsive attitude towards projects, raised issues while projects were in process, her team and her work overall made her gain the organization’s as well as coworkers trust. Her team was happy working with her as things were sorted on time and with ease.

All the projects given to her by the company were being completed within the deadlines. This showed her performance to be excellent when company’s view was considered.

Also one major benefit that she had being a spinster was she could work at home, if in any case she could not complete certain things at her workplace. Work load that she had could be divided into doing it at the workplace as well at house, if necessary. She had the flexibility to work where she wants and as she feels as she had the liberty to be a little free at her house considering she had to do household chores less.

Her work life and family life, both were going great, where she could focus completely on her work and go back home to her parents where the house was completely clean, food ready on the table.

She did not have much responsibilities to fulfil at her house which helped her focus and improve at her workplace. She was in the pink of her health and mentally happy, content and satisfied.

Mrs. Keshmira got married in the end of the year 2016. She now has a different house to look after, all the responsibilities to take care of related to the house and her husband. Mrs. Keshmira gradually realized that she is not able to manage her time. She knew that she had to cook, clean, spend time with her husband and family, take care of the house as well. She started facing problems in allocating time for each of these activities. This lead to constant thoughts striking in her mind about how she can manage all these activities without letting her work getting affected and her progress getting slowed down.

Mrs. Keshmira, due to this constant dilemma started facing health issues. Stress levels increased and her performance at work also got hindered. Her family also started complaining about how Mrs. Keshmira was not giving sufficient time to her family gatherings and functions.

Due to all this, Mrs. Keshmira became an average performer at her workplace from being a top performer. She had to face pressure from her work supervisors also as deadlines were not being met at various points of time.

She was trying to balance her both professional and personal life but was not actually able to ace both. Severe pressure and stress piled up on Mrs. Keshmira which led to her facing poor work life balance.

To throw light on her imbalanced work life, below are the details,

Instance 1:

Once Mrs. Keshmira was working on a very important project within a tight deadline schedule. She was finding ways to concentrate on it to the maximum but urgently mid project, a family function got scheduled. The function was equally important for her to visit.

Mrs. Keshmira was then in a dilemma whether to continue with her work, skip the function and meet the scheduled deadlines or ask her superior to extend the project completion time.

Obviously due to prior given commitments of completing the project on time, she could not ask the superior to just extend the project deadline.

However, the function was an important one to attend as well, the family was pressurizing her to visit it. This caused her mental stress about how to manage both the things.

She knew she could not ask for extension in the project completion dates, so she decided to skip the function and work on it.

While she was trying with all her efforts to manage the project and her team to complete the project, she still could not finish it due to the mental pressure and stress she was facing.

This was a “lose-lose situation” or a “no-win situation” for her wherein she could not give time to her family and attend her function and also she could not perform well for the project.

This clearly happened due to less work life balance.

Instance 2:

Mrs. Keshmira was engrossed in an important work at her office. The project she was working on required her to be sitting late in the evening, even after her working hours in order to be completed on time.

This continued for a week or two. This led to her reaching home late by an hour or two every day. Her schedule got messed. Generally, Mrs. Keshmira after reaching home used to cook, clean, do household chores and do her own work.

Due to getting home late for more than a week, she was not able to give time to the things that she used to do after coming home i.e. her routine. As a result of this, to manage her routine, she slept late in the night and woke up early next morning being tired.

This delay in her routine schedule resulted in issues with her health as well as contributed to less productivity at her work place.

This is again a clear situation of low work life balance.

Mrs. Keshmira then decided to have a conversation about the difficulties that she was facing in managing work to her supervisors. She approached her manager to talk about the difficulty she was having working and simultaneously caring for her family. Her manager listened to the whole work life balance issue that she was facing very carefully and decided to help her by finding a way to help her achieve work life balance.

ALTERNATIVES AVAILABLE TO BALANCE WORKLIFE AND PERSONAL LIFE:

1. Flexible working hours: Manager can give her the freedom to choose her own alarm clock. That way women, and men, can choose to divide their work hours to not have them be in conflict with their personal lives. As long as the prescribed number of hours are clocked in, you can choose your own start and finish lines.
2. Time Management: This is a management’s responsibility as well as it is of the employee. Manager can suggest her to try to prioritize her tasks and get a little bit more organized. That way she can have her leisure time actually in its real means.
3. Compressed Work Weeks: Manager can help her in a way that instead of 10 hour schedules for 5 days, the work week can be allowed as 12 hours daily, for 4 days. It comes to roughly the same number of hours a week, but you are left with a three day weekend instead. And then, employees generally work more than 10 hours, even in a 10 hour working day.
4. Job Sharing: Manager can suggest her a format where she can train multiple people working under her and share the work in a manner that she gets their support. However, that doesn’t mean that she has to pressurize her team mates. It is just a more harmonious way to work.
5. Work from home: Manager can allow her to opt for work from home for certain projects that she can manage from home, if she likes and work does not suffer.
6. Know that there is no ‘perfect’ balance: That is something her manager can make her understand that not every day can she wake up easily at 5 a.m., head off to work, just to come home early, cook dinner, do some chores, and finish the day with a nice book in bed by 9 p.m. He can suggest her to not strive for the perfect schedule but strive for a realistic one. Some days she might have to focus more on work, while others she can have more time and energy to pursue her hobbies. Balance can be achieved over time, not each day.
7. The manager can suggest her to use her entire annual leaves every year and take that time off. Manager can advise her to take short breaks in between the work to relax a little, get on call with her family and increase her productivity by keeping her mind stress free.
8. The manager can try and implement various health and mental care facilities at the office or the workplace itself like yoga sessions or exercise rooms.

There are certain things that Mrs. Keshmira can do for herself. She can take few steps on her own to actually have a healthy work life balance. They are:

1) Stick to the core strengths:

Mrs. Keshmira should focus on her strengths and outsource things and work that she cannot do on her own. This can be done by taking help of internal team members as well as superiors.

2) Prioritizing the time available:

Mrs. Keshmira should learn to prioritize her tasks into four categories.

They are:

• Urgent and important
• Important but not urgent
• Urgent but not important
• Neither urgent nor important.

She can then work accordingly.

3) Knowing the peaks and troughs

This simply means that Mrs. Keshmira can think that if she is a morning person and is tend to be more active in the morning then she can set her work tasks accordingly. Keeping the exhausting and mentally consuming tasks in the morning can work better.

4) Plot some personal time

Mrs. Keshmira should take her “me” time, including her family and health. She should know when to sort work for the day and return home.

5) Have set work hours – and stick to them

Mrs. Keshmira should set work hours for herself and do everything in her power to stick to them. Otherwise it becomes very obvious that she might have to work even at the midnight.

6) Manage your time, long term

Mrs. Keshmira should manage time and include family commitments – such as holidays, birthday parties, etc. from the beginning so that the work also doesn’t suffer.

7) Make exercise a must-do, not a should-do

Mrs. Keshmira should try not to cancel the gym, the evening run or the yoga class because a client wants something done the next day.

Instead, she should ensure exercise is given as much priority as her clients and making money. A healthy body means a fresh mind, which means she will function better and complete tasks in less time.

8) Doing something that she would love

Mrs. Keshmira should make time for something that she might love – other than work – and give it the time it deserves. It can energize and refresh her.

9) Managing the mental health

When fear or self-doubt or anxiety creeps in, Mrs. Keshmira can do some work on work on her mental health such as meditation or reading a business book. She can spend time with someone who lifts her up or supports her.

SOLUTION

What I believe can be the solution to such a case is a mixture of various alternatives that I have mentioned above.

To achieve a balanced work life, what can help Mrs. Keshmira is manager’s efforts as well as her contribution to the same.

Manager can allow her flexible working hours. That way she can choose to divide her work hours to not be in conflict with her personal life. As long as Mrs. Keshmira is working in accordance to the prescribed number of hours, she should be allowed to choose your own start and finish work times of the day by the manager.

This will help her mental health to be in peace and contribute tremendously to her productivity at work. Also this will make her feel free to be at home according to the clock that she wants.

Also manager can help her by letting her work from home, if not every day then at least once or twice in the working week days. This can help her stay motivated, focused on her work as she would not feel the pressure of travelling to the office and working there. She can work at her convenience from her house in a better manner. She will feel the freedom of working at her own comfort and most importantly she’ll feel that her superiors trust her. This comfort will stabilize her mental state and would lead her to balancing her work life.

Also what I feel from the case that is prevailing is Mrs. Keshmira to have a better hold on her personal life can take some time out for herself regularly so that she can give time to the family and herself as well.

She can do this by plotting hours for her work. She can also do this by prioritizing her work. She can work for specific hours and then avoid working for that day beyond those hours unless something is urgent.

LESSONS LEARNED

What I learned after analyzing the whole case, providing alternatives and solutions to it is that work life balance is actually a necessary aspect of life. It may seem like a small concern when talked about in general discussions but when it actually comes to studying it in depth and analyzing the various problems surrounding it or the kind of situations a dis-balanced work life puts a woman into are major and cannot be ignored.

The reasons I analyzed about why work life balance is an important matter of study is:

It is necessary to maintain mental health. It’s unfortunate that not all employers place enough importance on mental health in the workplace. But the topic is really prevalent at the minute, as studies show the dangers and risks that could lead to a variety of issues, from stress-related illnesses to depression. A very common issue that is prevalent in women is. This occurs when immense pressure is put onto a person, culminating in “chronic stress.” That stress is caused due to outrageous workloads.

It is necessary to ensure physical health and wellbeing. Regular exercise and eating healthy is required. The stress of dis-balanced work life causes various physical issues in women like menstrual problems, pregnancy issues and many more in addition to problems like high blood pressure and heart disease.

A balanced work life can help in increased productivity. Studies over the years reveal that those who maintain a steady work-life balance are much more productive than those who do not. A positive way of life automatically leads to amazing results.

CONCLUSION

Times have changed. From the time the husband earned, and the wife stayed at home to now the time has come when the husband earns and the wife earns too. But the wife still cooks and washes and runs the house. So, how does she balance her work with life at home is a major problem and cannot be ignored in any case.

I can conclude this case study by drawing the attention towards what exactly work life balance is. It is definitely not about providing equal hours to personal and professional life. It is about how smoothly an individual can, particularly a woman in regard to this case can manage her life personally as well as professionally.

Work/life balance initiatives have the potential to significantly reduce absenteeism, improve employee morale and retain organizational knowledge and staff, especially when women feel like quitting their jobs in spite of them performing well mainly due to issues in family life. Be it any woman, who is married or is a single mothers who is trying to raise her children, balancing her life is extremely necessary and beneficial to her mental and physical well-being.

Management can play the most significant role when it comes to balancing work life for the female employees working at the organization. Moreover, there is a need to make various females aware about this issue, its causes and how they can be dealt with. This will help females themselves act in a manner where they can control their own life and try balancing it out.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

1. https://www.independent.co.uk/lfe-style/how-do-you-achieve-a-more-positive-work-life-balance.
2. a-working-womans-guide-to-maintain-work-life-balance.
3. https://medium.com/thrive-global/.
4. the-double-standard-of-work-life-balance-3516029.
5. https://www.thebalancecareers.com.
6. WORK-LIFE BALANCE-IMPLICATIONS FOR WORKING WOMAN.
7. www.researchgate.net.

Inequality or discrimination of women is that state in which women do not get equal opportunities and rights as that of men. Gender inequality describes the unequal distribution of privileges between men and women when it comes to employment opportunity and wealth. However, women are the mostly affected by this issue of unequal treatment. It is a general fact and observation that there is so much discrimination when it comes to women in the Caribbean. It is evident that, Caribbean women are more likely to be unemployed than men. Trinidad and Tobago are Caribbean islands in which economic studies have shown that mostly women are unemployed. (Lengermann,1990) stated the feminist sociological theory as “a systematic and critical reevaluation of sociology’s core assumptions in light of the discoveries being made within another community of discourse….”. The Conflict theory shows that different groups within a society are competing for limited resources and power. This theory was exposed by German philosopher Karl Marx.

In recent times, there has been debates about the differences in academic performances of boys and girls Trinidad. In an article entitled ‘Gender inequalities in the workplace’, Stamarski & Son Hing (2015), it shows that in a recent study (Moss-Racusin et al, 2012), “The male applicant was rated as significantly more competent and hirable, offered a higher starting salary and offered more career mentoring than the female applicant was.” In the Trinidad and Tobago, this is an issue that has been recurring for many young women who are now entering the workforce and are well educated and are being paid less than men. “Data from the University of the West Indies for at least the past 3 years, puts the number of female students at more than 65% but Caribbean women make 60 to 70 cents for every dollar made by men” (Turner-Jones, 2020). I believe that Trinidad and Tobago may need to implement and enforce more policies and legislations to promote equal benefits for women of human rights, including the right to reap economic and social benefits. Many economists have studied pay gaps when it comes to gender since the 1950s and are challenged to find solutions. With the evidence that I have been provided, I agree that females are not treated equally, when it comes to occupations, education and generally in the Caribbean society (including Trinidad) as observed in the feminist and functionalist perspective.

Although Guyana is one exception for Caribbean islands with a legal framework that encourages equal rights for women and men when it comes to their pay, there is still research by feminist that proves that women are unequally treated. In Trinidad, this issue is still and existing issue in this age. When it comes to education, students from schools in Trinidad and Tobago were questioned on the reasons why they believe that females were most outstanding in high school and the findings from Trinidad and Tobago. (Jackman 2015) provided evidence that Trinidad and Tobago’s CSEC results for the period 2005–2010 reflected an academic achievement gap which favored females over males in several subject areas. (Morris. J,1993) Women who were considered to be successful in administrative areas tended to have been supported by sponsors or mentors, especially in male-dominated environments.

Do you think that Social stratification might influence the support of a woman in a job? Would it encourage promotion? Social stratification refers to the way a society categorizes people into rankings of socioeconomic tiers based on a few factors like wealth, income, race, education, and power. I believe that it may influence less decimation if a woman comes from a family that is of good wealth because it may create a view to society that she can be supported by these persons who are already in high places. These are factors which prove that women are being discriminated despite of their high academic standard and may be deprived of jobs if they are not supported by men. Many Organizations in Trinidad are reluctant and hesitant when it comes to placing women in senior or executive positions.

Culture refers to the shared symbols that people create help them solve real-life problems. According to (E.B. Taylor in 1860s) “culture is the sum total of ideas, beliefs, values, material cultural equipment and non-material aspects which man makes as a member of society”. When it comes to culture and feminism, traditionally women’s roles were to be caregivers in the household while men would be the breadwinners who go out to work. In my opinion, this could be a possible influence on inequality when it comes to women in the workforce. There might still be that impression that women are not suitable for jobs outside of the home and may need to be more family oriented and only dominant in the household.

I believe that the mindset a society has impacts gender inequality. Society may determine the differences in values that male and females should possess in every aspect of life. This encourages future generations to believe or have the perspective that women are only suppose to do certain jobs or only play a specific role in society. This issue may cause demotivation in some women because they may fear rejection or believe that may never get to achieve their desired goals. This is therefore considered as unequal treatment and discrimination within a society and it affects women who actively work as well as those who are searching for jobs.

In my opinion, employers are now looking for ways to employ men because they tend to spend less time away from work due to having less responsibilities such as taking care of children. Also, women of child bearing age usually are required to stay on maternity leave for a period of time. Men may get paternity leave; however, it is not as mandatory as women. It is a given fact that the mentality of employers show that they believe that men are greater risktakers at work and provide more physical support to the companies.

Norms are the means through which values are expressed in behavior and they are generally the rules and regulations that groups live by. They are defined by individuals and societies as they are crucial to the society. It is a norm that persons who undertake presidency are married. Currently, Trinidad is one of the Caribbean islands which is currently governed by a female president who faced backlash for not being married and obtaining presidency. She once quoted in an interview “…women must now take the opportunity to achieve gender balance in all aspects of life” as she endorses gender equality on the island. I believe that that so many women can agree that if it were to be a man in the position of presidency in the Caribbean there would be no big argument about his marital status especially by various religions.

Trinidad and Tobago inherited its voting system and started the franchise in 1832 and all registrations during the 19th century for voting only concerned men, while women had to wait longer to obtain voting rights, until the year 1918. Based on the qualifications of their husbands, women were given the rights in order to vote at local government elections.

Should I think that socialization has much to do with gender inequality? Socialization is the process by which human infants begin to acquire the skills necessary to perform as a functioning member of their society. This is the most influential learning process one can experience since humans need social experiences to learn their culture and to survive. Gender stereotypes can be a result of gender socialization. Girls and boys are expected to act in certain ways which are socialized from birth by parents and members of society. For instance, as the old say goes “girls are to be seen and not heard”, while it is more likely to expect guys to be messy and loud. As these children start to develop into society, these gender stereotypes become more apparent.

In conclusion, the statement “According to feminists’ women are unequally treated, compared to their male counterparts and have fewer promotional prospects in the workplace.” Is in fact true. Too Often, you may find women being reconsidered in positions by society. This issue of women being accepted and promoted in male dominated jobs still exist in Trinidad and Tobago and many neighbouring countries. I believe that this issue of inequality and feminism is faced in my country (Saint Lucia) well. Many theorists have provided factual information which shows that women are still battling with the issue of inequality, whether it may be political, family oriented or education wise. It is of my opinion that there are many reasons why gender inequality and discrimination still exist and many not be solved easily. Research has proven that employer liability schemes work against the interests and fair treatment of women in the workforce by placing the financial burden or strain on their employers because their government does not assist in that area. This creates a possible source of discrimination against women especially women of child bearing age. This issue may sound like one which may be continuous, however, with education and awareness of future generations the issue may lessen in future times.

Many women’s lives changed in various ways during World War II. Women were mobilised in very different manners in the United States and Nazi Germany. The role of women was a contested aspect of the war as perceptions of women’s roles at the time were influenced by ideas and propaganda. In the United States, with a lot less men in the workforce, women were compelled to take on jobs that were primarily done by men both in the workforce and at home. Whereas Nazi Germany, especially Hitler, had very contrasting views regarding the role of women during World War II compared to the USA. During this time, Hitler believed that women were to look after the children and be good wives. Propaganda presented to women in the United States of America reflected the need for women to be liberated and serve the country. While on the other hand, German propaganda largely demonstrated the need for women to take care of their families. In America, due to the wide range of new work opportunities that had never been available to women before, their lives were transformed. On the contrary, it is important to recognise Hitler’s belief that women must not work and must be good wives and take care of the children did not benefit women in the way that the opportunities presented to women in the United States did. Many women were so grateful for this new opportunity that when men returned from the war, they were replaced by the men and lots of women started feeling useless as they were no longer serving their country. Over time, the mobilisation of women during World War II had an effect on deciding whether or not women and men should be equals inside and outside or the workforce, which is a relevant topic today.

In the United States of America and Nazi Germany, the role of women was a contested aspect of the war due to different beliefs and use of propaganda. The United States mobilised women by sending them to war and giving them many jobs in the military such as nurses, radio operators, truck drivers and airplane repairers. Other than factory and home front jobs, approximately 350,000 women accompanied the Armed Services, serving both abroad and at home. Some women served close to the front lines in the ANC (Army Nurse Corps) where 16 were killed due to direct enemy fire. When the men left for war, women took over household jobs such as fixing the car and managing finances. During World War II, the percentage of American women working outside in the workplace increased from 25% to 36%. In the United States, Rosie the Riveter was used as propaganda to help encourage women to take up jobs that men would generally do and inspired them to enter the work industry (Source 1). Using Rosie as propaganda resulted in a 57% increase of female workers from 1940-1944. This resulted in the number of women factory workers to increase to about 20 million. Rosie the Riveter was a figure who the government used to portray this, she was feminine yet tough. The poster depicts Rosie as a hardworking woman yet she still looks very feminine. Propaganda like this was used to assure men that women would not become too masculine due to them working and taking over their jobs.

By contrast, Nazi Germany, and especially Hiter, had very distinct views regarding the role of women while men were at war. The key idea that Hitler made very obvious was kinder, küschen, kirche, (children, kitchen, church) which aimed to control women’s lives and their contribution to the country. Hitler advanced the significance of a steady, customary family. Men were to be in control and protect their family while women were to serve and look after their family. He believed that women belong in the household and raise children so as to achieve a future of the Aryan race. Hitler had a firm belief that those with blonde hair and blue eyes were superior to those of other races. However, women were not strictly housebound and often served as teachers, nurses and welfare workers. These were common jobs that were usually performed by women unlike the women of the United States who took over jobs that were done by men. Dissimilar to different nations, such as the United States, that urged women to go into battle, Nazi Germany constrained ladies into a childbearing part to create the next generation of male soldiers. Propaganda was also used in Nazi Germany to promote the supremacy of the Aryan race and the role of women. Unlike the propaganda in the United States, German propaganda advocated that the role of women was to stay at home and look after the children. As can be seen in the poster Mother of Volk (mid 1930s), there is a woman nursing her child of the Aryan race (Source 2). The text in this piece of propaganda translates to “support the assistance program for mothers and children.’ This poster is promoting a Nazi charity organisation. It demonstrates the role of women as caring mothers and the ideal physical appearance consisting of blonde hair and blue eyes that Hitler was determined to make superior. It is evident that Hitler did not want German women becoming masculine if they were to take over the jobs done by men.

Furthermore, in America, World War II gave women many opportunities in the workforce that were never open to them before the war and thus transformed their lives. 5 million women joined the workplace between 1940 and 1945.More than 25,000 women applied to join the WASP (Women Airforce Service Pilots). Only 1,803 applicants were accepted and just 1,074 completed the required training. The role of the WASPS was to fly planes from factories to military bases. Meda Montana Hallyburton Brendall was a single mother who worked as a welder, seven days a week, during World War II. According to Bendall, an important aspect was that “it’s a good thing that women went [to war]” and “it’s a good thing that they showed the world that they can do things too”. Bendall raises a good point in how allowing women to work during the war helped them to show the world that it is not only men who can do things and that women are just as capable. Additionally, prior to this time it was thought that women were inferior and could not complete jobs that were only considered suitable for men. Violet Hill Askins Gordon was an African American woman who served in the WAC (Women Army Corps). Gordon said that “the Army pushed her in a positive direction” and that her “experiences in the WAC changed her from a shy, introspective person into a leader”. It is clear that the women who served in and outside of the war got a good insight into what it was like to serve your country and experience new things. These jobs helped women to grow and use the skills that they acquired. Women’s employment rates increased during WWII from 5.1 million in 1939 to over 7.25 million in 1943. Giving women the opportunity to go into the workforce helped them to feel as though they were serving their country and what they were doing was having a great effect on the success of their country.

Overtime, the way both countries mobilised women had an impact on deciding whether or not men and women should be considered equals inside and outside of the workplace. In the United States, during World War II, the working conditions for women were quite harsh and were paid up to $23 less than men. To this day, women are paid 19% less compared to men. Around the world, men are still seen as the ones who should work and it is sometimes seen as abnormal if a father does not work in the workforce while his wife does. The way Germany and the United States of America utilised their women has sculpted the idea of what the role of women is. Some countries see that women belong at home and in the kitchen while others believe that women have the right to have jobs and should be able to work. However, women are still regularly paid less than men even when they are completing the same job. Equality between men and women is still a contested aspect of society today. There are many situations in everyday life that demonstrate the superiority of men compared to women. Also displayed today is the stereotype that women don’t work outside of the house and should stay at home and look after the children and prepare meals. This view of women was portrayed in Nazi Germany during World War II which clearly shows that this topic is still a contested part of society in the present.

Gender has been a huge divider in society since time can remember. The way men were raised was completely different than how women were raised. Women were raised to be gentle and also how to be a housewife while men were the ones who were brought as being better than woman simply because they were stronger and could do more. Over the years some of those things have changed however women are still being mistreated and brought up in a different way.This upbringing can also be translated over to the sports industry. For one, the general idea that comes to ones head when sports are mentioned is men. This could be because women have been excluded from sports until fairly recently, or because sports is not a “lady like” thing to do. Due to this women in the sports industry have not been getting equal treatment and have had to work much harder just to get noticed. Women in sports do not get paid as much, do not get nearly as much scholarships, and also do not get nearly as much televised games as the men do. Another issue that needs to be focused on more is the fact that many men don’t believe that activities such as gymnastics and cheerleading should be considered sports.

One aspect of inequality that women face in the sports industry is the pay gap. In recent times it has been well documented that women in sports aren’t getting paid nearly as much as the men. For example, in the WNBA, women are getting paid 20% less than the men in the NBA are. So people might say that for one it’s because there aren’t that many games to be played however, for each game played the average NBA player still makes a lot more than the average female player. There are also people who argue that this is because NBA pulls in more revenue than the WNBA does. However, that explanation can not explain why the estimated WNBA player salaries make up 22% of league revenue, while NBA player salaries make up about 50% percent of league revenues. The highest paid WNBA player is allowed to make only one hundred and ten thousand dollars while NBA players can make up to forty million dollars a year. Even though the WNBA makes less revenue than NBA the NBA players get more of a share in their revenue. This is unfair because there are a lot of expenses on the road and the WNBA players are making a little better than salary of an average human while the NBA players make over 39 million dollars more than the WNBA players. This can be applied to all sports. Another example is the tennis industry. In this industry, the top women player makes 54% less than the top male player.

Even female coaches make less than the average male coach which doesn’t make any sense because no one is paying to see the coaches so they should at least get paid the same amount of money. “Coaches of men’s sports at colleges receive an average annual salary of $1.78 million, while coaches of women’s sports receive on average $850,400.” This is almost a one million dollar difference which just isn’t fair because they are both doing the same job and not making anywhere near the same amount of money.

Even at the collegiate level women still go through a lot of unfair treatment. For instance, women will get less scholarship money which is completely unfair. Today “In colleges across the country, males receive around 55% of the scholarship funds, leaving 45% to women, which does not seem like a lot, but the gap becomes more apparent when looking at budgets.” This gap in very large and it’s unfair because in college women and men don’t get paid however, they are playing the same sports and still don’t get the same amount of scholarship money which is unfair. This is something that is rarely talked about because people don’t see it as them racially discriminating against women. In addition women’s sports don’t have nearly the same budget the men’s sports have when recruiting. “When coaches go to recruit new athletes for their college teams, women’s sports only get 33% of the budget to recruit.” Compared to men females don’t get the same opportunities because there is less money for them to get. No matter how hard women work it will still be very hard for them to be as equally represented as men in sport. This is something that may continue for years to come.

One issue that no one seems to talk about when talking about women is televised sports. Women don’t get nearly as many televised games to show their skills. “SportsCenter devoted a scant 2 percent of airtime to women’s sports, a number that has remained flat since the study began tracking the nightly cable broadcast in 1999.” This number has stayed the same for about 20 years which just shows that they have no care for women’s sports. The whole point of being televised is to show off your skills, promote yourself to be marketed, and also to have people watching you play. Women don’t get to do that nearly as much as men which is just gender discrimination. This is another way of stopping their money because when men get televised games it gives them a chance to market themselves and potentially get sponsors which is where athletes get most of their money.

Another aspect of inequality for women in sports is that for activities such as gymnastics no one seems to see them as sports even though they are both team based competitions just like sports are. Those sports also require a lot of training and athleticism. Many men don’t believe that gymnastics is a sport because it’s not really manly which just an ignorant belief.

“Ballroom dancing is a demanding physical activity that requires an enormous amount of talent and practice. Despite this, it is also is not considered to be a sport. The competition is forced. In football, baseball, basketball, hockey and soccer, anyone watching knows who won. Races—sprints, marathons, you name it—you have a clear winner. If you need judges from seven countries to vote on who won, your activity is not a sport.”

This seems to be ignorant idea because all of the sports listed are mainly sports that are well know for men. Gymnastics may have judges however, so does boxing with that article doesn’t mention. This seems to be a common beliefs amongst other that just because the sport isn’t know for men that means that it isn’t considered a sport.

Another activity that people don’t consider sports is cheerleading. Cheerleading meets all sports requirement which is “An activity involving physical exertion and skill in which an individual or team competes against another or others for entertainment.” Even though those are the requirements some people still believe that it is isn’t sport simply because men don’t do it as much. They believe that they are only there to hype the crowd up which is only true to an extent. They still have to put in hours of practice, and have to train to be in shape to be ready to cheer.

It is 2019, it should be about time that women get treated equally. On and off the field/court. Although America has come a long way than majority of other countries, it still has a long way to go. Women need to get payed the same, get the same amount of scholarships as men, and also get the same amount of televised games. Their activities such as gymnastics and cheerleading should also be considered sports. Women have worked very hard and they deserve more. From this day forward women like Serena Williams have been breaking barriers to make everything more equal and with the help of other women things will hopefully continue to get better and gender discrimination against women in sports will go away. There is still a lot of things to work on however, hopefully over the next few years women will start to get treated as good as the men get treated.