The Issue with the Glass Ceiling
The glass ceiling has always been ascribed to women in the workplace. It does, however, apply to minorities as well, or even has a racial inclination. It has, however, been a more prominent occurrence for women. This is an occurrence when there is a semblance of promotion in a company specifically for the woman who is capable of taking on leadership roles. Yet, the promotions are limited to the ranks of lower management such as, an assistant manager, for example. This means that the person could never reach the top structure of a company, which includes being CEO (chief executive office), General Manager, Managing Director, or anyone in charge of company affairs.
According to the Civil Rights Monitor, “women and minorities make up two-thirds of the population” in the USA (Civil Rights Monitor N.p.). Many reports have been written regarding this issue, yet very little has been done about it. The point that many reports make (where the Civil Rights Monitor is an example) is that businesses can only benefit by the diversity of a workforce. That is, that the societal barriers, internal structural barriers, and governmental barriers need to be eliminated I order for women (and minorities) to be able to move up, and for the glass ceiling to be removed.
The barriers that are in place have ensured that the glass ceiling remain in tact. These barriers are kept in place by those in authority of business structures, and other work environments, use “legitimate avenues to prevent people to move up. Some of what I experiences is the fact that they would change your job description, which makes it impossible for you to fulfill the requirement of a particular promotion. Thus, the moment they see you moving closer to a possibility of managerial status, they change your direction, leaving you stranded in another line of development, not able to move through the glass ceiling. Even for those who make it through, it remains closed to others in the company.
References
Glass ceiling commission issues report: Discrimination still deprives women and minorities of opportunities. (n.d.). Civil Rights Monitor, Vol. 8 (1). Retrieved January 23, 2016, from http://www.civilrights.org/monitor/vol8_no1/art7.html?referrer=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.co.za%2F
