The Glass Ceiling and the Glass Escalator

Megan Tompsidis, Katie Stuart and Jill Sales

Glass Ceiling-Defined● “The Glass Ceiling is a concept popularized in

the 1980s to describe a barrier so subtle that it is transparent, yet so strong that it prevents women and minorities from moving up in the management hierarchy” (Miller 219)

● Not valuing the success of women as much as men

● Underrepresenting women and minorities in management positions

Review From Previous Classes

● What percentage of women currently hold management positions?○ 35-50%

● What percent hold TOP management positions?○ 3%

● How many minorities hold top management positions? ○ 4.5%

Factors that lead to the glass ceiling effect for women and minorities?

● Lack of role models/mentors● Exclusion from social networks● Stereotypes● Prejudice● Tokenism● Raising Children- taking time off

Case Study: Women Executives in the Drug Industry (Deman)

• There is no glass ceiling in pharma careers, it is strictly cement. There is not one female CEO in a drug company in Europe OR America

• (which is ridiculous considering Woman are top execs in IBM, Xerox,WellPoint and DuPont...as well as a few others)

• Women make up nearly half of all medical school graduates and 73% of medical and health services managers, but only 4% of CEOs at healthcare companies, according to a data “slideshare” released in January by RockHealth

• “A 2007 study from the Healthcare Businesswomen’s Association and Booz Allen found that women filled 34% of middle management positions at life sciences companies, on average over a five-year period, but the number plummets to 17% when you look at senior management”

• Possibly because of lack of mentorship from the men who hold upper level positions (even with the general support from each company)

• Though there is a lack of data and upward mobility for women in life science companies as far as executive management is concerned

http://www.forbes.com/sites/matthewherper/2012/04/13/guest-post-the-drug-industrys-cement-ceiling-for-women-execs/

Women have a greater presence in the workforce than in the past

“Interestingly enough, demographic trends show that the United States workforce is shifting to include more women than men, and slow steady growth for people of color” (Jackson and O’Callaghan 461)

But are still affected by motherhood

Compare Mothers and Fathers- 2011Estimated number of fathers: 70.1 million

Stay at home dads: 176,000

Estimated number of mothers: 85.4 million

Stay at home mothers: 5 billion

https://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/facts_for_features_special_editions/cb12-ff11.html

https://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/facts_for_features_special_editions/cb13-ff11.html

Minorities in the workforce

Source: spreadsheet by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of

Civilian labor force by age, sex, race, and ethnicity, U.S

Department of Labor

The Glass EscalatorThe concept that men excel faster in female dominated fields (like nursing or teaching) than women do in same female dominated fields (Goudreau).

The Glass Escalator- Continued

• “This imagery of a glass escalator emphasizes subtle processes that push men up the occupational hierarchy into administrative and supervisory positions” (Green et al 272)

● “When you look at senior management, you tend to see men disproportionately represented. So while there may be less than 5% of all nurses who are male, you see a much larger percentage than 5% in senior-level positions like hospital administrators.”(Goudreau)

● It is believed that because women have a much higher potential to have career interruptions, that contributes to the fact that men are fast tracked to the top.

People started to notice these issues in the 1980’s • The Glass Ceiling Commission

o Established in 1991 by the Civil Rights Act to study the barriers that keep women and minorities from advancing to higher positions.The commission was made up of 21 bipartisan members.

• This commission conducted federal studies of the challenges presented by a lack of women and minorities in management (Wrigley 27).

• In 1991 U.S. Labor Secretary Lynn Martin released the findings of a special government study entitled, “The Glass Ceiling Initiative.”

http://www.dol.gov/dol/aboutdol/history/reich/reports/ceiling2.pdf

Solutions in the 90’s• A 1995 study found that solutions enacted by

this commission at the time were only band aid solutions (Buzzanell 327)o Hiring more women

o Training women ● Still focused too much on gender differences

Current Solutions to These Issues

● Recruit and promote based on talent and potential

○ Managers need to cultivate talent and give women and minorities a chance to work in nontraditional sectors.

● Eliminate evaluation bias

○ Make a new standardized and modern system

● Encourage mentoring relationships

○ Give females an outlet to share their successes

● Promote gender-neutral networking

○ Choose an atmosphere that all can feel comfortable in (no paintballing/cigar bars/ etc)

● Adopt a zero tolerance policy

○ No harassment or discrimination will be acceptable at anytime ever.

● Provide flexible time options for all

○ Family friendly (family leave, onsite preschool, etc)

https://www.americanexpress.com/us/small-business/openforum/articles/6-ways-to-shatter-the-glass-ceiling-from-above/

Summary● The glass ceiling is a transparent barrier that

keeps women and minorities from excelling in the workplace

● Conditions have improved, but only slightly since the 80’s

● The glass escalator describes the way men quickly rise to seniority in female-typical professions

● Currently, there are solutions in place to make things more equal

Questions & Thoughts?• Do you think the current solutions are

working? If yes, why? If no, what can be done to remedy these issues?

• Do you think that the glass ceiling will always exist?

SourcesBuzzanell, Patrice M. "Reframing The Glass Ceiling As A Socially Constructed Process: Implications For Understanding

And.." Communication Monographs 62.4 (1995): 327. Communication Abstracts. Web. 5 Mar. 2014.

Fishman, Margie, and Joan Lloyd. "6 Ways To Shatter The Glass Ceiling From Above." OPEN Forum. American Express, 04 Aug. 2011. Web. 10 Mar. 2014.

Jackson, Jerlando, and Elizabeth O’Callaghan. "What Do We Know About Glass Ceiling Effects? A Taxonomy And Critical Review To Inform Higher Education Research." Research In Higher Education 50.5 (2009): 460-482. Academic Search Complete. Web. 5 Mar. 2014.

Snyder, Karrie Ann, and Adam Isaiah Green. "Revisiting The Glass Escalator: The Case Of Gender Segregation In A Female Dominated Occupation." Social Problems 55.2 (2008): 271-299. Academic Search Complete. Web. 11 Mar. 2014.

Wrigley, Brenda J. "Glass Ceiling? What Glass Ceiling? A Qualitative Study Of How Women View The Glass Ceiling In Public Relations And Communications Management." Journal Of Public Relations Research 14.1 (2002): 27-55. Communication & Mass Media Complete. Web. 5 Mar. 2014.

Goudreau, Jenna. "A New Obstacle For Professional Women: The Glass Escalator." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 21 May 2012. Web. 10 Mar. 2014.

Herper, Matthew, and Denise Deman. "Guest Post: For Women Execs In Pharma, The Glass Ceiling Is Cement." Forbes. Forbes Magazine, 13 Apr. 2012. Web. 10 Mar. 2014.

http://blogs-images.forbes.com/jennagoudreau/files/2012/05/0521_man-escalator-2_416x416.jpg

http://www.bls.gov/emp/ep_table_301.htm

http://www.dol.gov/wb/stats/facts_over_time.htm#wilf

https://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/facts_for_features_special_editions/cb13-ff11.html