Running head: WOMEN’S RIGHTS 1

Women’s Rights and Gender Stereotypes

Name

Institution
WOMEN’S RIGHTS 2

Outline

Thesis: Gender stereotypes and harmful social norms are a foundation for gender inequality and

they impair women’s potential and minimize opportunities for women professionally, and in

leadership positions

I. Gender based stereotypes violate human rights and the fundamental freedoms of humans.

A. Gender based stereotypes are ingrained within children at a young age.

B. Gender based stereotypes are rooted in the cultural and social foundations of the

society

C. Gender based stereotypes impact the adult behavior, and decision making of

children who are exposed to them, especially with regard to how the treat and

interact with women.

II. The wage gap that exists between men and women is in part contributed to by the

perceived misconceptions and stereotypes that are held against women

A. The perception of women in the workplace is shaped by the stereotypes against

them

B. Management level leaders hold preconceptions about women that affect how they

are treated and compensated

C. Women are not breadwinners and only work to earn extra finances

D. Women especially mothers and pregnant ladies are denied opportunities for

development within the workplace because they are assumed to give priority to

their duties as caregivers instead of their responsibilities as workers

III. Stereotypes against women are harmful, and they obstruct their recognition, their

development and their progression in their chosen career fields.

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A. women have been bunched into low paying jobs and positions, which are

conventionally termed as female jobs and positions such as secretaries, and jobs

within the hospitality industry

B. The impact of gender stereotypes is evident at all levels of education in the

workplace

C. Only 30 percent of women in the workplace holding managerial positions in the

economy

D. The low wages that are paid to women impact the families that depend on the

salaries of women for sustainability

IV. Organizations nationwide and internationally have been set up to promote gender

equality and to dismantle the commonly held stereotypes against women

A. . International bodies posit the injustice that violation of women’s rights

influenced by stereotypes infers to women.

B. The currently disproportionate legal system has improved in its fight to promote

justice for women who face discrimination due to stereotypes.

C. These institutions alongside the justice system through laws must come together

to combat gender-based stereotypes and the impacts they have on women workers

D. Workers should be allowed to come together to collectively stand up against

practices and policies that are discriminatory and they should demand that the

protections against discrimination are expanded.

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Introduction

Girls and women have made great strides in their fight against discrimination. However,

gender equality remains elusive. Despite being a fundamental human rights issue, different

environments including the workplace, the political landscape, educational institutions, and

within the family continue to face equality challenges[ CITATION Uni14 \l 1033 ]. The greatest

challenge towards equality in all these areas is the problem rooted in gender stereotypes.

Ingrained within the society through the culture, stereotypes held against women continue to

hinder their progress, challenge their recognition, and prevents their enjoyment of their fully

valid human rights. In today’s society especially, gender stereotypes and gender-based roles limit

pursuance of professional careers in women and do not allow women to make plans and choices

about the progression of their lives. Therefore, gender stereotypes and harmful social norms are a

foundation for gender inequality and they impair women’s potential and minimize opportunities

for women professionally, and in leadership positions.

Gender-based stereotypes are wrong especially when they result in the violation of

human rights, and the fundamental freedoms of humans[ CITATION Uni14 \l 1033 ]. These represent

the ideas held by people about individuals from opposite genders, and how these ideas influence

how they interact, perceive, and make decisions about people from the opposite gender. These

stereotypes are engendered within children at a young age and are rooted in cultural and social

foundations[ CITATION Ain11 \l 1033 ]. Children who grow up exposed to these stereotypes grow

with a particular frame of mind regarding women grow up harboring these ideas about women

which impact their behaviors and actions against women in their adulthood. Stereotypes,

therefore, result in violations of equal rights for women which are visible in the lower pay for
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women, few opportunities for promotion and advances at the workplace, and the concentration of

women in low paying jobs.

The wage gap that exists between women and men, is in part contributed to by the

perceived misconceptions and stereotypes that are held against women which shape the

workplace perception of women. Management and fellow employees continue to hold

preconception about women that affect how they treat them, and how the compensate them for

their duties[ CITATION Pow11 \l 1033 ]. Research indicates that stereotypes against women

continue to impact their professional development, especially in the workplace. Essentially,

women in who are in the job environment are stereotyped to be working only to earn extra

finances because it is believed that they are not the actual breadwinners[ CITATION Eng03 \l 1033 ].

This a stereotype that is out of turn in today’s developed and diverse world where a large

proportion of households in the society depend on women to be the sole supporter and to

contribute to the general income of the household. According to the United States Census

Bureau, 23 percent of children under the age of 18 years lived with only their mother as the

single parent as of 2016. This is an increase from 8 percent in 1960. Still, men in the workplace

are believed to deserve higher salaries and wages, and promotion opportunities.

Women especially mothers and pregnant ladies are denied opportunities for development

within the workplace because they are assumed to give priority to their duties as caregivers

instead of their responsibilities as workers[ CITATION OBr08 \l 1033 ]. In most workplace settings,

an assumption is made about women regarding their willingness to travel, to work long or

irregular hours, or to commute to the workplace because they have other duties as parents. It is

perceived that the commitments of parenting take up the largest percentage of the women’s

attention and therefore removes from their obligations as employees. It is for this reason that
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women are denied positions in leadership and managerial levels and they are not assigned tasks

that are challenging.

Stereotypes against women are harmful, and they obstruct their recognition, their

development and their progression in their chosen career fields. Due to stereotypes, women have

been bunched into low paying jobs and positions.[ CITATION DeL07 \l 1033 ]. In addition, women

are constantly excluded from decision-making processes and this is evident in their lack of

challenging assignments within the workplace and lack of visibility especially with regard to

their achievements[ CITATION Hei08 \l 1033 ]. Due to these, women workers are constantly

stagnated in one low paying position when compared to their male counterparts.

The impact of gender stereotypes is evident at all levels of education in the workplace.

Today, women earn 77 percent of every dollar made by their male coworkers[ CITATION Nat131 \l

1033 ]. This is notwithstanding the same educational level, the same skill level and the same level

of appointment in the workplace. Additionally, management positions in the workplace are not

assigned to women. According to the Fortune 500, women comprise 3 out of 10 of all the senior

executives in top positions[ CITATION For17 \l 1033 ]. This translates to only 30 percent of women

in the workplace holding managerial positions in the economy.

The low wages that are paid to women impact the families that depend on the salaries of

women for sustainability. Different households globally do not take up the conventional two-

parent families, and instead, are comprised of single parents who carry the burden of

sustainability of the household. A majority of these single parents are women and the wage gaps

greatly impact their economic conditions. Currently, approximately 85 million households are

headed by single mothers who are the sole breadwinners[ CITATION USC16 \l 1033 ]. Additionally,
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a majority of two-parent families in the society also depend on the salaries of both women and

men.

While the impacts of gender stereotypes on women continue to cause harm to women,

there are institutions, individuals, and groups hold both pessimistic and optimistic views that the

situations will change. International bodies including the United Nations, continue to posit the

injustice that violation of women’s rights influenced by stereotypes infers to women[ CITATION

Uni14 \l 1033 ]. Even the currently disproportionate legal system has improved in its fight to

promote justice for women who face discrimination due to stereotypes. For instance, in a case in

Walmart v. Dukes, women came forward to illustrate the unequal pay between men and women;

another case titled Back v. Hastings on Hudson Union Free School District where a teacher was

denied her job position because she had children and was not expected to perform as

required[ CITATION Nat131 \l 1033 ]. The laws that govern against unequal pay such as the

Paycheck Fairness Act and the Fair Pay Act must be enforced in all employment places. Workers

should be allowed to come together to collectively stand up against practices and policies that are

discriminatory and they should demand that the protections against discrimination are expanded.

Gender plays a major role in determining the worth of an employee. While other factors

including skill level, education level, attitude, and productivity should drive the value placed on

an employee, a large percentage of the working population is judged and perceived according to

their gender and the stereotypes held against that gender. Different stereotypes, ingrained in

cultural beliefs are held against women. These greatly impact the role of women, and how they

are treated within the workplace. For instance, women are not believed to be breadwinners and

are therefore assigned lower paying jobs and are denied positions of leadership. Additionally, by

virtue of being caregivers, women are assumed to hold their role as mothers to a higher regard
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than their role as employees. These stereotypes are prevalent in the workplace and result in the

violation of women’s human rights. The inequality and discrimination present in the workplace

can be attributed to gender stereotypes. It is imperative therefore that these stereotypes are

eradicated and exploits to prevent discrimination against women are expanded.

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References

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