I am working towards becoming a training and development manager. I harbor the belief that all capable individuals should assist their colleagues to achieve their optimum potentials. Ideally, a fortunate or less informed individual should be willing to assist the less informed or the less fortunate ones. An individual’s weakness should not be a basis for discrimination or despise. Instead, it should be a valuable opportunity for one to build greater and more desirable competencies for another person. Where an individual shows the desire and willingness to develop other people’s talents, they also benefit themselves in one way or another. In most cases, such beliefs and characteristics are compatible with the roles of a training and development manager.
Inferring from the recent statistics and surveys, the field of training and development management comprise of both men and women. However, the number of men slightly surpasses that of women. In total, there are about 42,441 training and development managers. Of these, 51.3 percent (21,790) are men (U.S. Census Bureau). Therefore, the number of females in the field is about 48.7 percent (20,651) of the aggregate training and development management professionals (U.S. Census Bureau). The weekly median earnings for the females and males in this field also provide interesting details. Specifically, the men’s aggregate median earning is $81,439 while that of women is $69,605 (U.S. Census Bureau). Therefore, there is a difference of $11,834. Such a figure portrays that there is a considerable gap in wage rates between men and women. Men earn higher salaries compared to their female counterparts.
There is also the issue of direct discrimination, which often prevails as a result of a lapse in the employment laws. According to Blau and Kahn (17), while anti-discrimination laws, which affect the workplace, have been implemented, the number of employers who still exercise discriminatory practices is high. The gender difference is one of the principal areas that discriminatory tendencies are more prevalent. As such, men and women, despite performing similar tasks that require similar competencies, are paid differentially, with men being provided with a higher value. In 2015, ten companies in 12 states, which were associated with the True Oil LLC umbrella, were sued for administering direct discriminatory wage practices (Covert par. 3). One of the companies was said to employ at least 31 clerks. Of these clerks, 17 were women, all of whom were paid at least 1.5 times less than the male clerks. Covert (par. 3) reported that a male clerk with an experience of 11 years was being paid at a rate of $21 per hour. A female with an experience of 17 years was being paid at a rate of $16.93 per hour. The company practiced this over a span of five years despite the fact that the Equal Employment Opportunity law was in force (Covert par. 3). This clearly shows that, if there is a gap in the employment law, direct wage discrimination might arise.
Another likely factor is differences in negotiations along with promotions. Blau and Kahn (18) revealed that, as a general; trend, women, including the most educated, are often less likely to negotiate their job offers more efficiently than men. This situation is usually facilitated by the lack of transparency in the norms of negotiations, as well as, salary expectations. Citing research by Hannah Riley and colleagues, Blau and Kahn (18) reported that women are more likely to be penalized for initiating negotiations. The scholar explained that female negotiators while they may be technically competent tend to be perceived as socially incompetent. Given such a course, male-oriented negotiations are more likely to bear optimized results when compared to negotiations initiated by women.
Works Cited
Blau, Francine D., and Lawrence M. Kahn. "The Gender Wage Gap: Extent, Trends, and Explanations." Social Science Research Network 12.4 (2016): 16-18.
Covert, B. These Companies Are Paying Women Less Than Men, According To Lawsuit. Think Progress. 19 May 2015. Web. 3 May 2016. From:<thinkprogress.org/economy/2015/05/19/3660503/oil-companies-equal-pay/>
U.S. Census Bureau. Full-Time, Year-Round Workers and Median Earnings. 25 Feb. 2016. Web. 3 May 2016. From:<https://www.census.gov/people/io/files/Median%20earnings%202016%20final.xlsx>
