Listening. 6. 4. Gender discrimination in the workplace and at home

6.4. GENDER DISCRIMINATION IN THE WORKPLACE AND AT HOME

Task 1. Metaphors are words that give visual pictures of ideas and make the ideas easier to understand. Read the following list of metaphors about the workplace and their definitions. Discuss any words that you don't understand with other classmates. Check a dictionary if necessary.

a) Glass ceiling: The glass ceiling is the invisible barrier that women often "hit" as they try to get promoted to higher positions within a company.

b) Glass escalator: The glass escalator is the invisible machine that seems to promote men to higher positions.

c) Sticky floor: The sticky floor is the force that seems to hold women back in less important and lower paid positions.

d) Old boys' club: This refers to the all-male groups that men form and the connections they make with each other to help themselves gain power and success.

e) Mommy Track: People often think that working women with children are not serious about their jobs. They say that these women are on the "Mommy Track." That is, they are not on the road - or "track" - that leads to higher positions.

f) Level playing field: The level playing field is like a sports field in which all the players are on the same level and have the same chance to win. Having a level playing field means that no one group has more opportunity to succeed than any other group.

Task 2. Match each of the following situations with one of the metaphors in Task 1. Write the letter of the metaphor next to the situation.

1. A woman talking to her friend about her boss: "Since my baby was born, my boss looks at me strangely every time I get sick and take a day off. I'm sure he thinks that I just want to stay home with my baby."

2. A sales manager talking to another sales manager who was just hired: "Don't worry, Sam, we'll help you with your new position. What about getting together with some of the guys after work tonight?"

3. A company director talking to a personnel manager: "We need to hire a new office assistant. Be sure to tell the people you interview that all employees are encouraged to apply when higher positions become available."

4. Two employees talking about a third employee: "He's gone from sales clerk to assistant manager to manager in eighteen months. That's a record!"

5. An excerpt from a business report: "There are about fifty female Executive Vice Presidents in the largest companies, but only two female Chief Executive Officers."

6. A woman talking to her friend: "Even though I have good skills, everywhere I go, I seem to get offered the lowest paid positions."

Task 3. Discuss the following questions in a small group.

Ø Do you think that the metaphors listed in Task 1 give an accurate picture of the problems that women face in the workplace?

Ø Can you give any examples of these metaphors from your own experience?

Task 4. Interview with Belinda: Gender discrimination in the workplace.

A. You are going to hear Belinda, a successful American entertainer and filmmaker, describe her feelings about discrimination against women in the workplace. Here are some words and expressions from the interview with Belinda printed in bold and given in the context in which you will hear them. They are followed by definitions.

The first answer is yes - that's my gut feeling: deep and immediate

There's this "old boys' club," the support network that men have: groups and connections

I have mixed feelings: feelings that are in conflict with each other

Sometimes I think that I'm just making excuses for myself: finding reasons not to feel bad about myself

It's cool for everyone to be successful: OK

B. Read the following questions before you listen to Part One of the interview. Which answer do you think is probably correct?

1. The interviewer asks Belinda if she has ever been discriminated against because she is a woman. Belinda answers:

a) Yes.

b) No.

c) Yes and no.

d) Not sure.

2. The question that Belinda asks herself is:

a) Should I talk to my boss about getting promoted?

b) Am I as good as the men?

c) Would I be making more progress if I were male?

d) What would my brother do in my position?

3. Belinda's feeling about the current situation in the workplace is that

a) there has been no progress toward gender equality.

b) women should form their own support groups.

c) there is more opportunity for women today than in the past.

d) women will never have gender equality.

4. Belinda thinks that women

a) usually think about themselves more than men do.

b) help themselves and other people, too.

c) work much harder than men.

d) can't make a place for themselves in the business world.

C. Now listen to the interview. Take notes on what Belinda says. Use your notes to choose the best response for each question in B. Circle one choice for each question. Compare your answers with a partner.

Task 5. Interview with Farnsworth: Gender inequality at home and in the workplace.

A. You are going to hear Farnsworth, a social worker who helps people with emotional problems, give his views on gender discrimination at home and in the workplace. Here are some words and expressions from the interview with Farnsworth printed in bold and given in the context in which you will hear them. They are followed by definitions.

a pay disparity: difference in pay

The changes in the last twenty years have been relatively modest: not very large or

important

Ninety percent of my colleagues are women: coworkers

both the CEO and his boss: chief executive officer - one of the most important positions in a company

Men are raised with a sense of entitlement: a feeling that they deserve the best opportunities

if they are divorced and have custody: legal responsibility for a child

Women just assume that they can do it: feel that they can do it even though they haven't done it before

I joined a playgroup with my son: a group of mothers and/or fathers that meets so that their children can play together

He wasn't really an active parent: a parent who is physically involved in caring for his or her children

B. Listen to the interview. Write T (true) or F (false) next to each of the statements. When answering true/false questions, read all parts of each statement carefully. Some parts of a statement may be true, but if any part of it is false, then the whole statement is false. Pay special attention to statements with negatives in them. These statements are often tricky. Remember that a negative statement that is correct is true.

1. Farnsworth believes that there is real equality between men and women now.

2. Women make as much money as men do, so the "pay disparity" that used to exist doesn't exist anymore.

3. Farnsworth believes that the glass ceiling exists because at his job most of the higher paid positions are held by men.

4. Farnsworth believes that there is much more equality between the sexes at home. Men and women tend to share the housework.

5. Farnsworth wishes he had been more active in raising his children. He thinks he should have helped out more when they were babies with tasks like giving them a bottle at night and cooking.

6. Farnsworth says that when divorced men get custody of their children, they often don't feel that they can take good care of the children.

7. When his son was small, Farnsworth joined a children's playgroup. He was the only man involved in this activity.

C. Compare answers with a partner and then with the class. Correct the false statements together.

Task 6. Belinda and Farnsworth talk about the increase in the number of women who work and the increase in the number of men who want to be active parents. One result of these social changes is that new types of arrangements have to be worked out for child care.

Read the following problem situations. Discuss a possible solution to each problem with a partner, preferably someone of the opposite sex. Make notes about your solutions.

1. A divorced father has custody of three young children. When they get sick and cannot go to school, he has to use his own sick days - days that employees are allowed to take off if they are sick - so that he can stay home from work and take care of them.

Possible solution: Employers could allow employees with children a certain number of “sick child days” per year in addition to their own personal sick days.

2. A company often asks its employees to do overtime, that is work longer than the normal workday. One employee doesn't want to do overtime because she wants to spend evenings with her children.

Possible solution: __________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________

3. A young father would like to spend time with his newborn baby. He requests a six-month leave of absence without pay. The company tells him that they cannot guarantee that he will get his job back after the leave.

Possible solution: __________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________

4. An employee has a new baby. She needs to make more money so that she can afford child care because she and her husband both work.

Possible solution: __________________________________________________________

__________________________________________________________

Share your solutions with the class. Are other students' solutions similar to or different from yours and your partner's?

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