Do you know the common thread?
What links all but one of the following countries?
- In Chile, 75 percent of women in the agricultural sector are hired on temporary contracts picking fruit, and put in more than 60 hours a week during the season. But one in three still earns below the minimum wage.
- In the UK, more women are working as home-based workers, using their homes as their workplaces with little regulation and few protections.
- Fewer than half of the women employed in Bangladesh's textile and garment export sector have a contract, and the vast majority get no maternity or health coverage – but 80 percent fear dismissal if they complain.
- Six million women in the Philippines—20 percent of the working-age population—migrate overseas as domestic workers often working seven days a week for substandard salaries and experiencing abuse and harassment.
- Ninety percent of women workers in India are in the informal economy, working as street vendors, rag pickers and incense rollers with little protection for their rights under labor laws.
- Women in the United States have no right to paid maternity leave, unlike women in every other industrialized country.
- In Pakistan, there are only sixty-four literate women for every one hundred literate men. Men earn higher wages: women's salaries are between 20 and 50 percent of those of men. Men own 92 percent of all property and approximately 84 percent of gross domestic production.
- Women employed as domestic workers in Indonesia confront many of the same spectrum of abuses as domestic workers in Malaysia: long hours, no rest days, low or unpaid wages, restrictions of movement, and mistreatment by the employer.
The common thread? All but one of the above countries has had a woman holding the position of Prime Minister or President. Several of the countries have had more than one.* (**endnote)
So, what do people in the U.S. think about women's leadership?
According to a 2005 study of the US workplace, perceptions of women's leadership are influenced by common stereotypes held by both men AND women. This is despite analytical reviews of over 40 studies on gender differences which indicate there are more similarities than difference in women and men leaders in an organizational setting. The Catalyst study “Women ‘Take Care,' Men ‘Take Charge:' Stereotyping of U.S. Business Leaders Exposed,” women are associated with feminine, less-essential, skills such as supporting, rewarding, team-building, and consulting; where as men are associated with more masculine skills such as problem solving, influencing upward, and delegating. Read more about this and other studies Catalyst in our tools section.
*This is in the spirit of provoking thought and discussion. EDS in no way endorses or supports any potential Presidential candidates.
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Calendar of Events
Upcoming events:
April 29–May 3: The Women's Leadership Forum: Innovation Strategies for a Changing World; Fee: $7,000; Week long course at Harvard Business School. To learn more visit: www.exed.hbs.edu
July 11-27 Save the Date: The Summer Institute for Intercultural Communication (SIIC) has been scheduled. Stay informed by visiting: www.intercultural.org.
- Session I: July 11-13
- Session II: July 16-20
- Session III: July 23-27
February -- Black History Month grew from the annual Negro History Week, fathered by Harvard Scholar Dr. Carter G. Woodson. February was chosen to coincide with the birthdays of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln. The Biography Channel's website has celebrates black history month with 200 short biographies,101 fast facts, an interactive timeline, a quotes quiz, movies and resources that educate and entertain.
March -- Women's History Month. According to the National Women's History Project, to address women's untold history, the Education Task Force of the Sonoma County (California) Commission on the Status of Women initiated a "Women's History Week" celebration in 1978. The chose the week of March 8 to make International Women's Day the focal point of the observance. Test your knowledge of women's history.
New at EDS
Donna Stringer's & Barbara Deane's article “Sage Advice: Developing the Next Generation of Diversity Trainers” was recently published in the 2007 Pfeiffer Annual Consulting . For a copy of this article contact our office.
Thanks for all of those who gave feed back to this newsletter topics. Topics of this year include: Emotional Intelligence, Class/Poverty, Immigration, Generations, and a combination of Religion & Cultural Holidays.
February
18th -- Toni Morrison (1931) Novelist; Pulitzer Prize winner
27th -- Charlayne Hunter-Gault (1942) Writer, journalist, and civil rights activist; Winner of Emmy and Peabody awards
March
7th -- Janet Guthrie (1938) Race Car Driver; First woman to race in the Indianapolis 500
10th -- Harriet Tubman (1820-1913) Emancipator; Led hundreds to safety through Underground Railway; which she established
12th -- Lupe Anguiano (1929) Mexican-American Civil Rights Activist
18th -- Unita Blackwell (1933) Politician; First Black Mayor in Mississippi
Data Dump (Did You Know?)
• In the global economy, women account for 60 percent of the world's 550 million working poor—even though they make up 40 percent of the world's workforce.
• If married women were paid the same as men in comparable jobs, their family incomes would rise by nearly 6 percent, and their families' poverty rates would fall from 2.1 percent to 0.8 percent.
• If single working mothers earned as much as men in comparable jobs, their family incomes would increase by nearly 17 percent and their poverty rates would be cut in half, from 25.3 percent to 12.6 percent.
• If single women earned as much as men in comparable jobs, their incomes would rise by 13.4 percent and their poverty rates would be reduced from 6.3 percent to 1 percent.
• Half of all women with income from a pension in 2002 received less than $5,600 per year, compared with $10,340 per year for men.
• From the AFL-CIO
U.S. Women Owned Businesses -- From the Center on Women's Business Research
An Overall Picture
- Nearly 10.4 million firms are owned by women (50% or more), employing more than 12.8 million people , and generating $1.9 trillion in sales .
- Three quarters of all women-owned businesses are majority owned by women (51% or more), for a total of 7.7 million firms , employing more than 7.1 million people , and generating $1.1 trillion in sales.
- For the past two decades, majority women-owned firms have continued to grow at around two times the rate of all firms.
Businesses Owned by Women of Color
- Women of color own an estimated 1.4 million firms , employ nearly 1.3 million people , and generate $147 billion in sales (as of 2004).
- About 20% of majority women-owned businesses are owned by women of color .
- Women of color own 36% of all firms owned by persons of color (as of 2004).
Kudos for Best Practices for Diversity
This month's Kudos goes to PepsiCo for there recent 2007 Catalyst Award!
PepsiCo is firmly committed to leveraging the diversity of perspectives that its talented associates bring to the company and to fostering a work environment which includes and encourages differing views of the world. A key initiative in that effort is PepsiCo's Women of Color Multicultural Alliance, which serves as a strategic support and resource group, focusing on attracting, retaining and developing women of color in the middle and senior management ranks at PepsiCo. The Alliance has four priorities: enlisting support and awareness; building a sense of community; educating and developing; and increasing representation and improving retention. Major activities over the years have included Power Pairs, a program that builds authentic relationships and advancement opportunities for WOC through facilitated dialogues with immediate and skip-level managers; a national leadership development conference; and regional networking events. The Alliance 's impact has been far-reaching. It has created a culture of authenticity and honesty that permeates WOC relationships with peers and managers, calls attention to the unique experiences and needs of working women of color and showcases workplace dynamics and solutions related to the intersection of gender and race. PepsiCo supports the Alliance by creating accountability at all levels, with specific ties to the bonus pay of senior executives who are involved in Alliance efforts. The tangible success of PepsiCo's Women of Color Multicultural Alliance is clear: representation for women of color on the board of directors has doubled, from 7.1 percent to 14.3 percent; at the senior manager/director/VP level, women of color have increased from 4 percent to 6.8 percent from 2002 to 2006; and turnover for WOC who have participated in Power Pairs is at half the rate of those who have not participated.
Congratulations to PepsiCo for their continued work in Diversity and Inclusion!
Women in the Workplace: Unlike other suggested tools, this month we recommend a source of research articles that often accompany tips and tools for managers. Sections include: Organizational Change & Effectiveness,Women of Color/Visible Minorities,and Demographics/Statistics. Suggesting these resources is meant to stimulate conversation, promote ideas, and lead to shared conclusions how to create more equitable workplaces. For a taste of their materials visit Catalyst.
Maps, Maps, and more Maps! What if countries were drawn to show something other than land mass? Things you might care more about? Check out a map illustrating gender empowerment. For more of these fun mapson a wide range of topics vist: www.worldmapper.org
back to top »Quotes to live by...
“The main thing in one's own private world is to try to laugh as much as you cry.” -- Maya Angelou
"Far away there in the sunshine are my highest aspirations. I may not reach them, but I can look up and see their beauty, believe in them, and try to follow where they lead." -- Louisa May Alcott
“Media mystifications should not obfuscate a simple, perceivable fact; Black teenage girls do not create poverty by having babies. Quite the contrary, they have babies at such a young age precisely because they are poor -- because they do not have the opportunity to acquire an education, because meaningful, well-paying jobs and creative forms of recreation are not accessible to them... because safe, effective forms of contraception are not available to them.” -- Angela Davis
“I am not anti-gun. I'm pro-knife. Consider the merits of the knife. In the first place, you have to catch up with someone in order to stab him. A general substitution of knives for guns would promote physical fitness. We'd turn into a whole nation of great runners. Plus, knives don't ricochet. And people are seldom killed while cleaning their knives.” -- Molly Ivins
"It's so clear that you have to cherish everyone. I think that's what I get from these older black women, that every soul is to be cherished, that every flower is to bloom." -- Alice Walker
"You can tell how high a society is by how much of its garbage is recycled." -- Dhyani Ywahoo
Reel Reviews
We struggled to come up with movies that do not perpetuate gender stereotypes--particularly of women. This comes as little surprise when (using the 250 top-domestic-grossing films in 2004) the Women in Film research team found that the percentage of women working as directors, producers, writers, cinematographers and editors dropped from 17% in 2003 to 16% in 2004—marking it the fourth year in a row for this downward trend.
So this month we encourage you, our readers, tell us about your favorite movies for and about women. Send your ideas to Tera.
The Book Nook
Books by and about women, reviewed and brought to you by Donna Stringer, Ph.D., President of Executive Diversity Services, Inc.
Janice Yoder (2007) Women and Gender Making a Difference, published by Sloan Publishing, Cornwall-on-Hudson, NY.
Although this book is intended as a textbook, it is one of the most outstanding collections of material about women on the market. The author carefully attends to the intersection of gender and other demographic characteristics including race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, different abilities, age and class. Dr. Yoder provides a readable, comprehensive look at the goal of social justice by discussing personal lives and relationships as well as activism that connects the personal to the political environments. Her attention to research and scholarship is impressive—and does not interfere with the “readability” of this book. There is a lengthy glossary and one of the most extensive reference lists available on issues related to women. For anyone wanting to gain understanding of the research on gender and women, and to have that understanding based on solid research, this is an outstanding resource. Donna Stringer
Gloria Anzaldua and Analouise Keating (2002) This Bridge We Call Home. Published by Routledge, NY.
More than 20 years after their groundbreaking anthology This Bridge Called My Back , the authors have compiled a new collection of over 80 articles written by feminists who share their struggles and successes, hopes and dreams, ideas, experiences, and suggestions for cultural transformation. For anyone who wants a greater understanding of the perspectives of people of color who happen to be feminists, this book will provide both information and opportunities for personal reflection. It, like their earlier book, promises to become a classic in the study of perspectives from women of color. Donna Stringer
And for “learning made fun”:
Kiana Davenport (1995) Shark Dialogues published by Penguin Books, NY.
Although this book is a decade old, I just “found” it last year thanks to a Hawaiian friend. This is one of the best reads I have had in a long time: a story of Hawaiian history from the 19th century told from the perspective of a grandmother and her 4 grown granddaughters. Both the information about Hawaiian history and culture are interesting. It is the author's ability to draw you into the story and keep you there, however, that makes this worth reading. The only criticism is that it isn't long enough—I wanted more! More! Donna Stringer
Feedback & Referrals
We have designed this newsletter to share information with our friends and colleagues. We would like to hear from you about what you have found useful, in addition to, referrals of anyone you feel might benefit from receiving this newsletter or our services. Please e-mail us with any comments or ideas to tbianchi@executivediversity.com
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**Answer: All the listed countries, except for the United States, have had a women hold the office of President or Prime Minister
