According to the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) sexual discrimination is defined as unfair or unfavorable treatment of an individual on the basis of their sex. This includes occupational sexual discrimination in the form of lower wages, promotion obstacles, hiring, training, firing and benefits. It also involves sexual harassment which involves sexual harassment in verbal or physical form. (n.d) Despite numerous advances, sexual discrimination still exists in the form of sexual harassment, occupational discrimination and financial discrimination. The victims are mostly women regardless of numerous laws and acts that have been passed to protect them.
In her article Su highlights the occupational discrimination that is prevalent in Australia while providing data on the current gender pay gap worldwide. She notes that men continue to earn more salaries than women who are in similar professions and positions. The pay disparities in Australia are at 16.4% with those in the US at 23%. Australia has a very sexist labor market where women are constantly underpaid and have fewer chances of promotions. She reports that even in professions that are dominated by women such as nursing and teaching, they are still underpaid. (2013)This article shows that even with increased literacy levels among women they still face discrimination in the workplace on account of their gender. This is a very unfair practice that needs to be rectified immediately through the legislation and implementation of protective laws.
Sexual harassment in the military increased by about 50% in the year 2012 according to Steinhauer(2013) as there were 3,553 cases reported. The harassment consisted of inappropriate touching of private parts, rape and sodomy. These cases involve instance of harassment by a military officer to a civilian or by a civilian to a military officer. The department of defense stated that these increase in the number of reported cases indicated that more victims are bold to come out openly and that they are also receiving treatment. Steinhauer also reports that Congress was considering making changes in the military justice system to allow for more justice for the victims. This article only points out sexual harassment in one section of the society; this indicates that this goes on in other places such as in school, at work, at home and in the streets. It is therefore important to put in measures that will curb this vice as it has numerous negative effects on the emotional health of the victims.
An article by The Economist reports about the financial discrimination that women face in the form of access to bank accounts and loans especially in developing countries. In south Asia only 25% of women have savings accounts as compared to 41% of men. The author attributes this difference to gender biases such as lack of formal employment for women therefore eliminating the need for a savings account. There are also legal obstacles such as the fact that a woman is required to have her husband co-sign a loan for her and in Pakistan a woman has to have two male guarantors who are not her family members before she can get a loan. (2013)These discriminatory laws are however being done away with in many of the affected countries. This laws and culture condemn women to financial slavery and are indeed a form of sexual discrimination. All countries should get rid of these laws not only to free women but also to improve their economies.
The retail giant, Wal-Mart was sued by its female employees in 2012 on the grounds of sexual discrimination. In her article Li reports that the female employees were complaining because of lower salaries as compared to their male counterparts and also being passed up during promotions. This lawsuit was blocked by the Supreme Court and the employees forwarded their case to the EEOC. The Supreme Court stated that the case lacked concrete evidence as statistics do not count as evidence. Wal-Mart on its part denied having any discriminatory policies towards women. (2012)This article points out the struggles that women undergo when fighting sexual discrimination in the workplace and the challenges that they face. It is sad that even after the enactment of various laws such as the Equal Pay Act women cannot have their day in court when fighting against sexual discrimination.
In their paper Neumark and Stock (2001) seek to find out the effect of the Equal Pay Act that was enacted in 1960s. Their aim is find out if the act has made the situation in the workplace better for women as compared to men. They found that whereas the pay of women increased, though not to a similar level with men, the rate of their employment decreased. They noted that it was as if women traded their right to equal pay with employment opportunities. The authors suggest that laws should also set the number of women that should be employed alongside with their salaries. This paper highlights the fact that enactment of laws is not enough; they must also be implemented to the letter. It also shows the need for affirmative action as laws alone are not enough to change the situation of women.
REFERENCES
Steinhauer, Jennifer. (2013). Reports of Military Sexual Assault Rise Sharply. The NewYork Times. Retrieved from:
http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/07/us/reports-of-military-sexual-assault-rise-sharply.html?ref=sexualharassment&_r=0
Su, Reissa. (2013). Sexism and Gender Discrimination? Australian Women Still Earn Less Than Men.International Business Times. Retrieved from:
http://au.ibtimes.com/articles/500688/20130822/sexism-gender-discrimination-pay-gap-australia-new.htm#.UrJLotVMqZT
C. W. (2013). Discrimination abounds. The Economist. Retrieved From:
http://www.economist.com/blogs/freeexchange/2013/11/gender-and-finance
Li, Shan. (201). Female Wal-Mart employees file sex-discrimination claims. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved From:
http://articles.latimes.com/2012/feb/02/business/la-fi-mo-walmart-women-suit-20120202
Neumark, David & Stock, Wendy. (2001). The Effects of Race And Sex Discrimination Laws. National Bureau of Economic Research. Retrieved From:
http://courses.washington.edu/pbafadv/examples/neumark%20and%20stock%20diff%20in%20diff.pdf
Sex-Based Discrimination. (n.d) Equal Employment Opportunity Commission. Retrieved From:
http://www.eeoc.gov/laws/types/sex.cfm
