Society

And now… Rahul on Feminism?

As there is a lifecycle of everything, there is also a lifecycle of a blogger. Hence most of us go through very parallel thoughts at times, and write on similar issues. I have never felt any dearth of issues to write on, as you would have guessed till now. But one trend I have avoided so far – to write on feminism. This piece doesn’t exactly fit into that category, but it is close :)

It is said, the biggest enemy of great is good. On similar lines I feel the biggest enemy of women are the ‘supporters’ of women. Here is how.

Often, in the name of proving that women are great or greater, they would make statements like “women are far better at XYZ kind of jobs than men”, or “women are always better suited for ZYX kind of positions”. Women also get to think on that pattern. And hence, a large number of them take up teaching, R&D and HR & Administration jobs, and making use of their ‘proven better’ skills. This is where the trap lies.

Here, I quote a para from my text book:

It is often declared that since women have only recently embarked on careers and entered the managerial ranks, it would take more time for them to rise to the top-executive positions. However, many women in higher middle management positions feel that there are at least two major stumbling blocks to their advancement: gender role stereotypes and inadequate access to critical information (Crosby, 1985, Daniel, 1998; Welch, 2001).

Gender stereotypes or sex-role stereotypes are societal beliefs that women are more suited for taking on nurturing and helping roles, whereas men are better fitted for taking on leadership roles and positions of authority and power (Eagly, 1989; Kahn & Crosby, 1998; Smith, 1999). These beliefs influence the positions that are assigned to organisational members. Whereas capable men are given line positions and developed to take on higher responsibilities and executive roles in the course of time, capable women are assigned to staff positions and dead-end jobs. With little exposure to management of budgets and opportunities for significant decision making, women are seldom groomed for top-level positions. Thus, sex-role stereotypes hinder the progress of women to the top.

I hope you understood exactly what I wanted to convey. Time for some examples... Many of my class-mates during my Chemical Engineering went to work in the industry. And they are doing good. One of them was posted in a plant. Did she find it difficult to work there? Yes. She had to visit onsite in a factory setup. But for how long? As she got a promotion, she got someone else working under her, and she doesn’t need to visit plant sites often. Had she chosen to play a ‘girl’ and asked her company to transfer her to an R&D job, she would have got it easy. But choosing to work in a male bastion, she chose the path where her profile would be as good as any male engineer in her company. Among the many things I respect about her – this decision of hers is most prominent.

I worked in a manufacturing plant for two years. In our Indian plants of our MNC, there were no women employees. But my job position was held by a girl in one of our Malaysian plants. She told us how curious workers were initially, when she removed her safety-helmet to show her long hair :) I believe her decision to play it hard will pay off. As she grows in higher positions, no male would be able to accuse her of having inadequate field experience. She will be as good as any other male officer in her company.

Even among very well educated families, there is a view that girls should take up either teaching/lecturing jobs or some other positions where their physical comfort is ensured. Well, to be honest I would also think on the lines when it comes to the case of my sisters, but that won’t be a final word :) If we accept this as a fact, we won’t have any right to complain that there are few women in top positions in Indian companies.

The cycle would go on like this: women won’t take up positions which would be physically demanding, and then they would be over-looked for promotions. Many years later, they would be still stuck up on their jobs and positions which would never lead to the CEO’s chair. And then the blame-game would start, even to the extent of accusations of sexual discrimination or a demand for reservations for women. The fact is that industry is competitive – and you have to play it game!

Here is my final word – don’t fall into the trap. Check it if you yourself promote gender role stereotypes… If you do – then take care not to. Break all barriers. No one was made a superior or inferior – it is our own decisions that lead us to become like one.

Picture: 'Dare' is the word, not 'Care'