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knew how much anyone else
made. But then I fell in love
with a co-worker whom I’d
hired, trained and had five
years seniority over. Because of
the relationship, I found out he
was making about 8 percent
more than me! But what could
we do? They would have fired
us if we’d said anything. ”
So obviously there is a
problem. Women are not
making as much as men, and
the problem isn’t isolated. The
figures speak for themselves.
“Women’s salaries still lag
about 28 percent behind men,”
Maret says. “This is for women
who work the same amount of
time, in the same types of jobs
as men. If you look at the
overall workplace, the
discrepancy is near 40
percent.”
But wage
discrepancy is only one
problem women face in the
work force.
Another problem is sexual
harassment. Everyone has
heard of the casting couch. That
is supposedly how many
women get parts in Hollywood
movies. But according to the
Cosmopolitan survey, many
women experience harassment
on the job, no matter what the
field.
Several women say they
were told to “bend over” when
they asked their boss what they
could do for him that morning,
some told of being chased
around the copy room and
ingenious solution.
“One man stared at my
boobs so long while speaking to
me that when I finally got a
chance to answer, I bent over
and talked to his zipper! ” the
woman wrote.
o nee women
actually make it into the
working world, they face the
added challenge of
coordinating their home and
work lives.
According to the
Cosmopolitan survey, the
majority of the women
surveyed say working has either
helped (34 percent) or not had
any effect (37 percent) on
relationships.
One woman says, “The
financial strain has been lifted,
so life is more enjoyable now. ”
Another adds, “Working makes
me feel better about myself,
and as a result I have a better
attitude. ”
A third woman concludes,
“Since I am so busy, I am less
inclined to be angry that he (my
mate) travels so frequently. ”
But working out the
husband/wife relationship is
only half the battle. The
working woman must also
consider her relationship with
her children.
Everybody has heard stories
of “latchkey children” and day
care scandals, but of the
women who answered the
Cosmopoliton survey, about
half say their job is beneficial to
their children.
Working mothers say their
some told of being
children learn to be self-reliant,
alone
“accidentally” brushed against
and that they themselves are
al
time and time again.
better mothers because they are
>the
But what are women to do?
happier. Women also say the
they
Many women don’t want to
increased income provides
on.
report “accidental” brushings
more advantages for their
id the
because they don’t want to
children.
“1
sound like babies. Others are
However, the other half of
at had
afraid of losing their jobs. But
the women answered the
one woman who answered the
survey differently.
one
survey came up with her own
Sixty percent of the women
who say working has a bad
effect on their children say they
are too tired at the end of the
day to spend time with their
children. And many worry
about leaving their children
alone or with strangers.
It seems there are
quite a few problems women
encounter when they enter the
work force — problems they
often feel are forced on them.
One woman in the
Cosmopolitan survey puts it this
way: “No female should be
expected to make a choice
between job and family: men
don’t have to.”
But no matter how unfair,
the problems are there, and
Maret says time won’t
necessarily bring a solution.
“I don’t think time is the
answer, ” she says. “I think it will
take some concerted, obvious
effort to correct the inequities. ”
Maret says the answer
doesn’t He in the law, but in
those who are in charge of
carrying out the laws.
“I think the legislation
exists,” she says. “The letter of
the law as well as the spirit of
the law must be upheld by the
people who have the power to
doit.”
Maret says administration is
the key to change.
“Attitudes do not do as much
as one member of
administration deciding to
correct the situation, ” she says.
“As long as the situation exists,
administrators are guilty of the
infraction. It’s not people’s
attitudes that are to blame,
because you and I have no
control over pay scales.
“The administrators have the
control and the responsibility,
and until they are willing to
accept the responsibility and
correct the inequities, the
inequities will continue to
exist.”
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