In the last ten years imbalances in terms of opportunities are being addressed and women are getting recognition for their good work. But, despite a huge focus on empowering women in the workplaces, progress towards gender equality is relatively slow. Currently, huge focus on women in the workplace has been encouraged to address years of injustice faced by women and to help women understand what is coming in-between their journey as a hindrance that hampers their growth. However, in today’s time a gender-equality bandwagon is rising in the workplace; deeply ingrained sexist prejudices are acting as barrier towards promoting gender equality; similarly, there are companies who claim to focus on gender equality just to receive the prize of ‘empowerment’ by turning it into a good PR tactic. The absolute fact that there are more male CEOs in the top hundred companies than women tells a lot about our current situation.
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Each and everyone of us must get equal opportunities in whatever work we want do. Equal opportunities and equal treatment are all we are asking for; however, this particular demand is becoming way more complex and difficult to be fulfilled. This calls for an urgent need to focus on accepting people on the basis of their capabilities, this also makes us focus on the fact how women are considered less capable than men. The employers have this image of a women as someone who is not competent enough to be as successful as a man, but they forget the fact the because of these problematic predispositions’ women are not able to succeed as men. It has become essential to move towards a new and equal approach towards promoting equality. In this new approach, we put emphasis on how men can also contribute in a big way towards Gender-Equality.
Start Conversations-
It is extremely essential to educate ourselves about different issues that is going on around the world. Men would not be able to relate to women’s issues and the injustices a woman face up until they try being more empathetic. Men must consciously try to educate themselves more about the imbalances we practice in treating different genders, they must start asking questions and initiate conversations about gender discrimination with their colleagues. It is also necessary for men to have these discussions with their women counterparts; women always appreciate these discourses and they would love to share their experiences with men so that both of them can work towards building a tolerant and acceptable environment. Meaningful conversations, also gives rise to the awareness of many important topics which was earlier being neglected. If men start having a healthy discussion about the discriminations faced by women, they would also be able to do-away and unlearn many prejudices they held earlier. Conversation leads to realization of the fact of our own privilege, and how we can use this privilege in a positive way.
Be a good listener-
Women are always cornered and silenced in workplace because they are not equally respected by their colleagues and employers. The myth that women are not capable enough, and have nothing substantial to contribute is so deeply ingrained it our society that the voices of women are always ignored by others. It is important to develop a respectful environment in a workplace where each and every one is considered important and significant members; it is important to create a space where your voices and opinions are not being silenced and you are accepted as an individual.
These are some very few basic necessities that all of us require, unfortunately, women constantly face this problem of not being able to put across their ideas because they are not taken seriously. Mansplaining in workplaces are so evident; it is important for men to understand to not silence the voices of women, to give them a space to speak openly and not interrupt women every time they have something to say.
Equal respect and acknowledgement can make a huge change; creating a space where everyone can express themselves freely, is a significant change which we require is today’s working space. Women are also not encouraged to mention their grievances and plights freely in a workspace; there must be proper grievance center that must deal with different problems of everyone and respect their privacy. Furthermore, there must be awareness about sexual harassment in workplaces and women and men must be encouraged to talk about their experiences without the fear of losing their jobs.
Call out Injustices when you see it-
Gender equality in workplace is not just a women’s issues, but a human issue. Therefore, it is our responsibility to take action against injustices immediately. We must pledge to make this world a better place to live in by uplifting each and every gender by ensuring that nobody is facing any sort of discrimination because of what they identify as. The moment we start taking a stand against the unfair practices and prepare ourselves to be strong enough to raise our voices, these unfair practices will definitely come to an end.
