Here’s one article that I found today hope you will like it :)

The purpose of the research was to explore the status of women in the US workforce including (1) a brief history of women’s entrance into the workforce, (2) a comparison of men and women’s pay, work positions, and promotion possibilities, (3) a review of women entrepreneurs, and (4) an examination of obstacles facing women in the workplace.

Historical highlights reveal women’s entry into the workforce and US demographics and projections are used to bring attention to “perhaps the most significant change in the history of the American workplace—the gender shift;” women now make up 46 percent of US workers. Women are becoming better educated and single moms who serve as the head of households are fast becoming the new norm.

Although tremendous growth in numbers of women participating in the workforce is evident, equal treatment is not. Women continue to make 72.2 percent of the Caucasian male and fill only 6.2 percent of top management positions. Barriers such as stereotypical attitudes, “good ole boy networks”, and the “glass ceiling” continue to stifle women’s achievements and contributions to the corporate world.

As a result, many women are electing nontraditional careers such as engineering and science technicians, computer specialists, and starting their own businesses. Women have also invaded and proven themselves successful in traditional white male bastions—architects, economists, pharmacists, lawyers, and journalists.

A plethora of articles has been published addressing the significant changes in US society and workforce demographics. Massive changes have been documented by the U.S. Census Bureau, (2000), indicating the change in Caucasian population in 1950 of 89 percent, to the predicted 60 percent of 2050, revealed in Table 1.

Each decade manifests a decline in numbers of Caucasians in the US population and increases in minority numbers, especially since the 1990s. A significant growth in the Hispanic population is forecast, from 6 percent in 1990 to 20 percent by 2050. Although the total percentage of Asian Americans is small, this demographic group is currently the fastest growing in the US (U.S. Census Bureau, 2000).

Additionally, as indicated in Table 2, the number of older workers is forecast to increase significantly, graying US society and the labor force. The percentage of the US population of 45-54 year olds is predicted to increase from 19 to 24 percent, and of 55-64 year olds from 9 to 12 percent, and will significantly impact organizations, insurance costs, and social security and medicare benefits. Perhaps, however, the greatest demographic shift is the influx of women into the workforce; their proportion is expected to increase from 46 to 48 percent by 2005.

In general, these demographic changes are already reflected in today’s work environment, but the effect will continue to increase through the first half of the Twenty-first Century. However, the “gender shift may be the most significant change in the history of the American workplace” (Judy & D’Amico, 1997, 52). According to the US Department of Labor Women’s Bureau (2000), 62 million women were participating in the US labor force, i.e., six of every ten women 16 years and over were employed in 1999.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this research is to explore the status of women in the US workforce including (1) a brief history of women’s entrance into the workforce, (2) a comparison of men and women’s pay, work positions, and promotion possibilities, (3) a review of women entrepreneurs, and (4) an examination of obstacles facing women in the workplace.

WOMEN ENTER THE US WORKFORCE

Historical beginnings of women entering the workforce provide a foundation for evaluating growth, participation, capabilities, and contributions of women in the US workforce and in the economy. The number of women in the workforce steadily increased during the 1800’s (The Effect, 1996). Predominantly, jobs for women included domestic work, selling hand-made goods and food, and positions in lower class situations. However, a small number of women enjoyed employment in gender-specific positions as teachers and nurses or in low-end jobs in mills and sweatshops (Judy & D’Amico, 1997). Additionally, some women worked as domestics during this time period. Both women and children entered the workforce during the 1929 depression, working along-side men. Still, men dominated the workplace and upper level positions. World War II, however, was a catalyst for women entering the work world during the last half of the Twentieth century.

World War II

During the early 1900’s women’s participation in the workforce gradually increased but made up a small percentage of the total workforce—in 1900, the percentage of female workers was only 18.1 percent and had risen only to 20.4 percent by 1920 and 21.9 percent by 1930. During the Civil War and World War I, women entered the job market as men left to fight the wars. However, most women returned home after these wars ended (Kay, 2000).

On the other hand, World War II served as the conduit of major change in the demographics of the US work force. Many women entered the job market, working on farms and in factories to take the place of men who had gone to war (Judy & D’Amico, 1997). During this difficult time, women’s traditional role took on new perspectives as they became the head of the home, held full-time jobs, and educated their children. Generally, women did not return home after World War II and made up 57 percent of the workforce in 1945 (Kay, 2000). This demonstration of women’s strength is only one indication of women’s ability to contribute to the US economy (The Effect, 1996).

Nature of Work Changes

In addition to the impetus of World War II requiring women to fill men’s work positions, the nature of work performed began to change. Much of the work during the first half of Twentieth Century involved agriculture and manufacturing, and many jobs were labor bound and more easily completed by men because of their size and strength. American women proved themselves, however, as adept factory workers during World War II. Since the 1940s and 1950’s, the number of women entering the workforce has increased, and especially so as the US economy changed from a manufacturing economy to a service economy during the last few decades (Judy & D’Amico, 1997). Most jobs, now, may be performed as easily by women as men. However, women had to fight for their status and place in their expanding role in society.

Women’s Rights Movement

Women’s battle for equality, both in the home and work place, in the US began in 1848 at the first Women’s Rights Convention. However, it was not until 1920 that women gained the right to vote universally—144 years after the founding of the US. It was a struggle that took much picketing and conviction (National, 2002), but the adoption of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution guaranteed women the right to vote, among others. Although women’s right to vote did not radically change politics, as was hoped, it did open the door for women to have a greater voice in shaping American society (Murrin, et al.,2002).

Another contributing factor to women entering the US work place was the Women’s Rights Movement of the 1960’s. In 1961, President Kennedy established the Commission on the Status of Women; the commission investigated discrimination against women and produced documentation that women were being treated as second-class citizens (National, 2002). The Commission also made recommendations on how to eliminate discrimination. Their work prompted the enactment of the Equal Pay Act of 1963 that provided women equal pay with men for performing the same work (Kay, 2000). Also, in 1964, the Civil Rights Bill was amended to include sex. Although sex” was added to the bill as a joke to “kill” the bill, the bill was passed, and women (sex) came under the same protection from discrimination as race, age, handicap, or national origin.

Since the 1960’s, the role of women has drastically changed in the US. The passage of the Equal Pay Act and The Civil Rights Bill have provided women the impetus to enter the US workforce in much larger numbers (Kay, 2000). Additionally, women no longer see themselves as a reflection of a man (husband) or children. Most women see themselves equal to men and are interested in pursuing careers, as opposed to jobs, and independent lifestyles (National, 2002). Women have fought for equal opportunities in the workplace for many years and continue that struggle still today.