Female Workers A review of workforce planning for female workers within an organization.

Introduction: Female workers Current status Challenge / Barriers Industrial Issues Discrimination Future strategies Retention / Development Approaches Summary

Current Status – S.A. Female workers Part-time Almost 48% are female Approx 17% are male Full-Time < 35% are female Earning $600 or more each week? Nearly half of all male workers Less than 33% of female workers Less hours worked = less pay? It may not be that simple Social or cultural barriers Trade off for flexibility - responsibilities Salary bargaining performance What difference can women leaders make? Australian Bureau of Statistics, Table 07. Labour force status by Sex - South Australia

Challenges / Barriers Generational Differences Industrial Issues for women Need for flexibility

Generational Differences Baby Boomers ( ) Generation X ( ) Generation Y ( ) Inflexible to Change Idealistic Strive for interesting meaningful work More Competitive Less CompetitiveWant to know companies culture & people – not just the job More Involvement Question Authority More Comfortable with Loyal Less Loyal Self starter’s Less Entrepreneurial Entrepreneurial Result’s Driven – not hours Question authority less Team environment

Industrial Issues for Women There are a range of industrial issues that are important to women. These include:- Equal Pay Access to training and career paths The right to keep a job when pregnant, and after taking time off for the birth and care of baby (maternity leave) The right to work part – time to accommodate family responsibilities Child care services Leave to care for sick family members Sexual harassment Discrimination / Equal employment opportunity

Type of Discrimination that Women may face in the workforce Age Discrimination Marital Status Pregnancy Discrimination Sex Discrimination Homosexual Discrimination Disability Discrimination

Type of Discrimination that Women may face in the workforce Age discrimination: A women was told that she was dismissed from work because his employer wanted someone younger. This happens allot in industries such as; hospitality, retail boutique (especially high end brands) if the look doesn’t fit the target grout the company is promoting to the employee may be at risk. Marital status: when you are treated unfairly or harassed because of your particular marital status for example, because you are single, or married, or living in a de facto relationship Pregnancy discrimination:– when you are treated unfairly or harassed or not given the same opportunities because you are pregnant. It is very common when a female worker tells her boss that she is pregnant, the position she has held all of the sudden gets retrenched, or “moved to another state” instead of just being replaced for the time of the maternity leave, ( personal experience). Sex discrimination – when you are treated unfairly or harassed because you are a woman Homosexual discrimination – when you are treated unfairly or harassed because you are lesbian or gay, or someone thinks you are lesbian or gay. Disability discrimination – when you are treated unfairly or harassed because you have a disability or someone thinks you have a disability. It is also against the law to treat you unfairly or harass you because you had a disability in the past, or because you will or may get one in the future. Disability includes physical, intellectual and psychiatric disabilities, learning and emotional disorders, and any organism capable of causing disease (for example, H.I.V.).

Future Strategies Change in the approach of retention and recruitment of female workers. Female workers should not be discriminated against in any way shape or form regardless of age, marital status, pregnancy, sexual preference, race, religion, appearance, political views, disabilities, transgender. (If these issues were less likely to be prevented in an organization or if the organization had developed position description and policies to reduce the possibility, the organization would definitely retain more of their female employees) Offering paid maternity leave would show that the organization values family culture. Organization offers adequate maternity leave policy for birth and adoption of children. Organization offering adequate dependent care leave policies (e.g. compassionate leave; sick leave for childcare). Has procedures to monitor and keep work demands within reasonable limits. The Organization provides flexible arrangements, so staff can better balance work and personal life responsibilities (e.g. flextime). Organization has explicit policy and grievance procedures regarding sexual harassment.

Future Retention/Development Culture Development Flexible Work Environment Career Development Attractive Recruitment Practices

Culture Development A company’s culture is simply described as being its personality. With this in mind-if it is a goal to attract and retain female employees, the company needs to ask itself if they are promoting and projecting a safe, comfortable and inclusive culture for women. Are there clear and transparent policies around EEO (Equal Opportunity Employment)? Does the culture allow women to feel not only safe and comfortable but also included and valued at all levels of the organisation?

Flexible Work Environment Due to the competing demands of family and career development, modern workforce planning is faced with new challenges of being able to provide and plan for an environment where employees, are able to provide a valuable contribution to the organisation whilst maintaining a good work life balance. Good Initiatives in this area can include; flexible working hours, providing the ability to perform certain duties from home and paid maternity leave. Providing an environment that caters for and understands the needs specific to female workers will assist a company looking to retain and develop their female workforce. This also provides a competitive edge against other employers in the market.

Career Development It is a well-known fact that women are continuing to increase their presence in the workforce, including at senior and executive levels. In order to retain female employees, an employer needs to be seen as committed to the development of all staff equally. The company should look to develop employment and promotion practices that encourage female participation and retention. How many women do you see in senior management positions of the organisation? This is a good indicator of whether or not the current practices in place are successful in the career development of its female workforce. If improvement is required in this area, learning and development should be promoted. Programs around leadership, skill managements and improvement are a good option to look into to develop this within an organisation

What do companies need to do to competitive To be competitive in attracting, recruiting and retaining their female workers. From research undertaken many women in the workforce have indentified the following key area: * Flexible work arrangements * Work life balance * Maternity Leave * Child Care * Innovative Salary packages with options to meet family and individual needs.

References Grunig, Linda Childers Hon, Toth, Elizabeth L. Pg 217, Women in Public Relations Hamble, Brian, Women do best in women-led companies issues.com/2006/8/24/researchwww.management- issues.com/2006/8/24/research Harrison, Chris, 2006, Women’s Workforce Participation Initiative Australian Bureau of Statistics, Aug 2008, Employee Earnings and Hours, Australia Australian Bureau of Statistics, Table 07. Labour force status by Sex - South Australia Union Teach Lesson for a Fair Society Article (Woman in the Workforce) Retaining Women In the Workforce (AIM Survey) Discrimination