The media continues to portray women as being active members of the home, but not contributing members of the working world. The percentage of women in the workforce is much higher than what the image provided by the media implies. Women make up just over 40 percent of the global workforce. In some countries, including the United States, they are even outnumbering men. The perpetuation of traditional female stereotypes in the media is not helping the situation for the global female working population. What are the facts and how can a clearer picture of reality benefit the working women of the world?
Image of Women in the Media Differs from Role of Women in the Workforce
According to the 2010 report by the Global Media Monitoring Project (GMMP), woman continue to be portrayed as homemakers, but not as workers. Of 25 occupational categories examined for the GMMP report, women outnumbered men in only two fields — homemaking and going to school. Of experts interviewed in the media only 20 percent were women. Is this image that the media has provided for the world the truth? Do the girls and women of the world only have an active role in the home? Is the expert input of professional women of so little value that eight men should be consulted for every two women?
The truth is women are active participants beyond the home. They work in the fields, in the factories, and in the office. In the 1990's the labor force was one-third female. By 2000, the International Labour Organization (ILO) estimated that half of global workers would consist of women. As of 2008, the percentage of women in the workforce was 40.5 percent. This does not include the share of work that women do in the home.
How Many Women Are in the Workforce?
There are 1.2 billion women in the workforce. To a large extent they are paid far less then men and work much harder. This is not only the case in the developing world. In industrialized nations women earn 57 percent of what men make. In countries where there is still a gender bias in regards to property and inheritance laws, not only do women face unequal wages, but also an inability to purchase and own the resources needed to earn more.
In some areas of the world, such as Sub-Saharan Africa, women are responsible for 80 percent of all the food produced. Worldwide, female hands contribute more than half of global food production. In the United States, according to Public Radio International, women are now the dominant members of the workforce. Since the recession, where the majority of workers who were laid off were men, a huge shift has occurred in the gender of American workers. There are more men staying home then ever before, and 21 percent of married women have an unemployed husband.
How Women Are Portrayed in the Media Matters
It does matter what the image of the working woman is in the media. Even though women make up a large percentage of the workforce and these numbers continue to grow, the jobs are less rewarding, the conditions are worse, and women face more job insecurity and even violence in some countries. Many global female workers are left to work in the service industry, in informal jobs, and in part-time jobs.
Research done by two sociologists at the University of Virginia shows that female workers also have to work harder and put in more effort in the workplace. Of British and American men and women surveyed, Elizabeth Gorman and Julie Kmec found that because of stricter performance standards women have to put in more effort then men for the same job. The perception is that men do a job the right way, so women have to work harder to prove themselves.
Both in developing countries and in industrialized nations, all women would benefit greatly from a more honest portrayal of women in the media. If the female population of the world were more respected for what they do contribute to society, limiting stereotypes and biased perceptions could evolve. It is true that women take care of children and the home more than men. Perceiving that they are not active outside of the home is a disservice to everyone.
References
" Surveys of British and American Employees Conclude Women Must Work Harder." (UVA Today, November 27, 2007).
Shah, Anup. "Women's Rights." (Global Issues).
"Fair Trade women's work for development and equity." (WFTO, March 5, 2010).
Brenna Coleman - Brenna is a freelance writer focusing on natural health and beauty. She has written hundreds of articles, helping readers find ways to ...
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