On the day of this article’s release, it is one of the most important days of the year (particularly at Wimbledon High) – International Women’s Day! First observed in 1909 by the UN, International Women’s Day is dedicated to not only raising awareness of women’s issues, but also trying to pinpoint areas of change for the following year. This year’s theme is ‘Inspire Inclusion’, which aims to further women’s economic empowerment, with a particular focus on designing and building the infrastructure to allow economic development for women.
Women are increasingly being encouraged to enter male dominated industries. A report published in 2023 revealed that 42.5% of jobs in the FTSE 350 are held by women, 48% of all licensed doctors are women, and 2023 saw the highest take up of technology degrees by women. However, these statistics do not give the full picture of women’s experience in the workplace – whilst 42.5% of FTSE 350 company jobs are given to women, only ten of those were CEO positions. Women in technology courses have the highest college drop-out rate, at 37%, and only 14.7% of consultant surgeons in the NHS are female. The statistics of women entering male dominated fields continue to rise, but the numbers of women making it to the higher echelons of these jobs remain startlingly low because the infrastructure isn’t there to support them. Thus, we see in action the ‘Broken Rung’ theory.
The ‘Broken Rung’ theory, is a recent theory put forward by sociologists as an alternative to the ‘Glass Ceiling’ theory, and it refers to the barriers women face when taking up high level positions – the broken rungs being the flawed patriarchal systems of work that actively hinder them from being able to get to the top. Women are far more likely to be impacted by the working day itself – the 9-5 corporate schedule was designed with only the unencumbered male in mind. It does not consider women, who continue, globally, to take on 75% of unpaid labour. As a result, women in the UK overwhelmingly make up the part-time career force, at 72.5%. In this sense, the pandemic did benefit some women, allowing greater flexible working hours. Previously, the 2010 Equality Act did not protect their right to claim this in the workforce – but the pandemic catalysed staggering increase in the flexible hour working force, which rose to 3/5 including all genders. This allowed both women and men to take on greater workloads which combined more easily with their unpaid labour demands, creating greater economic equality.
However, post-pandemic, an ideological push back is occurring against flexible working. Supporters of the traditional work hours, such as Piers Morgan, are continuing the rhetoric of physical ‘showing up’ by working long hours, to demonstrate aptitude for higher paying jobs, which fails to take into account many women’s working needs. In Japan, this ‘burnout’ working culture is so intense that only one third of women remain in the workforce after having their first child. There is also push back from those who believe the continued loneliness epidemic, as declared by the World Health Organisaion, is to blame by the far more insular work environment, as young people are far more likely to be working alone.
Parental leave also continues to impede women ascending to managerial positions. Whilst the number of fathers taking up paternity leave is rising; the number remains shockingly low at 32%. Not to mention, many women are forced to return to work early, to gain money for the new baby, only to be saddled with incredibly high childcare costs. The situation is especially egregious in the USA where only 62% of women are entitled to unpaid maternity leave. The rest risk being fired for even having children. Furthermore, only 12% percent of women in the private sector have access to any sort of paid maternity leave. The US remains the only industrialised country to not guarantee any kind of paid maternity leave, and the only one of six countries worldwide that don’t offer unpaid maternity leave on a federal level. On returning to work, American businesses then offer 1% of
childcare costs, causing childcare costs to be one of the greatest outgoing expenses from a woman’s salary, and making part-time work one of the only feasibly cost-efficient ways of covering the new baby’ expenses.
Not to mention, all of these rungs make the assumption that a woman has managed to break into the workforce. 12% of girls worldwide still have no access to even primary education levels. That is why the International Women’s Day theme remains so important. There can never be women’s equality whilst the rungs on the work ladder remain broken. Infrastructure and attitudes towards work have to change to allow women to take the same kind of positions and career paths as their male counterparts.
