Sexual Harassment In the Workplace

Posted on 26 October 2011 in Employment, Gender issues

This month marks the 20th anniversary of the landmark case in the United States in which law professor Anita Hill accused then-Supreme Court nominee Clarence Thomas of sexual harassment. This case was a turning point in the USA, bringing attention to the issue of sexual harassment in the workplace and beginning a public dialogue that empowered many women by shining a light on this previously shadowed topic.

The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women has defined sexual harassment as including “unwelcome sexually determined behaviour as physical contact and advances, sexually coloured remarks, showing pornography and sexual demand, whether by words or actions. Such conduct can be humiliating and may constitute a health and safety problem; it is discriminatory when the woman has reasonable grounds to believe that her objection would disadvantage her in connection with her employment, including recruitment or promotion, or when it creates a hostile working environment.”

Sexual harassment often involves unequal power relationships. Since most of the world’s working women occupy lower positions in a hierarchical working market, they are particularly vulnerable to this type of harassment. This vulnerability is compounded for young women, women in small work-places, and women who do not have access to adequate support structures.

The effects on the victim can range from minor to life-threatening, depending on the duration and nature of the harassment. There is also an organizational cost, in terms of lost productivity and diverted resources.

In the last 20 years, the dialogue around sexual harassment has continued in different venues around the world, with a number of results. Some companies and organizations have adopted sexual harassment policies and now provide training and sensitization to their employees. A number of countries have defined sexual harassment and created legal guidelines to address the issue.

Although there has been meaningful progress on this issue, much work remains.  Even in places where sexual harassment is formally recognized as unacceptable, the behaviour remains prevalent. Recent studies in the United States and the United Kingdom show that claims of workplace harassment have been rising. One reason for this may be new online social media platforms, which remove the face-to-face aspect of social interactions and provide a degree of anonymity that can make aggressors more confident. Of course there also remain places where sexual harassment is openly tolerated.

The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women has recommended that States Parties should take all legal, preventative, protective and other measures that are necessary to provide effective protection of women against gender-based violence, which they consider to include sexual harassment in the workplace.

Governments and communities need to adopt a zero-tolerance approach, sending a clear message that sexual harassment will not be accepted.  This approach needs to be reinforced with the promotion of preventative practices, and the maintenance of enforcement structures. Only in this manner will we ensure that women’s right to work in decent conditions is fully realised.

How is sexual harassment perceived and addressed in your community/country? Is there a legal framework in place to address this issue and is it enforced?

For members, a dialogue on sexual harassment is also starting on our new IFUW Members’ Forum. We invite you visit the forums, register, and discuss this and other issues with IFUW members.

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Educational Attainment and Employability

Posted on 15 September 2011 in Education, Gender issues

Education at a Glance 2011: OECD IndicatorsThe Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) this week published its 2011 edition of Education at a Glance. This annual series is one of the leading sources of comparable national statistics measuring the state of education worldwide. This year’s report includes a special indicator looking at how educational attainment affects participation in the labour market. The findings highlight the strong link between tertiary education and employability, particularly in the economic downturns of recent years.

  • In all OECD countries, individuals with a tertiary-level degree have a greater chance of being employed than those without such a degree. On average across OECD countries, 84% of the population with a tertiary education is employed. Overall, employment rates are more than 27 percentage points higher for those with a tertiary education than for those who have not completed an upper secondary education.
  • Full-time work generally increases with higher levels of education. The proportion of individuals working full-time is 10 percentage points higher among those with a tertiary education than among those without an upper secondary education. Across OECD countries, 66% of those who have not attained an upper secondary education work full-time, 72% of those with an upper secondary education do, and 75% of those with a tertiary education do.
  • Education is generally good insurance against unemployment and for staying employed in difficult economic times. In 2009, average unemployment rates across OECD countries stood at 4.4% for those with a tertiary education, 6.8% for those with an upper secondary education, and 11.5% for those who have not attained an upper secondary education.
  • Differences in employment rates between men and women are wider among less-educated groups. Among those adults who do not have upper secondary qualifications, men are 21 percentage points more likely to be employed than women; but among the most highly qualified adults, men are only 9 percentage points more likely than women to be employed.
  • While possessing a tertiary degree is a strong positive factor in employability, it is not a guarantee of employment. Across the OECD countries, 15% of those with tertiary degrees are unemployed. Chile, Hungary, Italy, Korea, Japan, Turkey and the United States were among the countries with the lowest employment rates among individuals with tertiary education.

Good education and skills are essential, particularly in the current economic climate. It is essential that Governments maintain investments in the education sector, including higher education.

Education at a Glance 2011 covers 34 countries: Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovak Republic, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, United States and the United Kingdom

What about other countries? Does a tertiary degree have a positive impact on employability in your country? Are there differences between men and women’s employment/unemployment at different education levels?

For the Full Report:
Education at a Glance 2011: OECD Indicators
http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/61/2/48631582.pdf

 

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Women’s Worlds 2011: IFUW Panel on Widows

Posted on 24 August 2011 in Gender issues, Human Rights

From July 3-7, 2011 nearly 2000 participants, mainly women, from 92 countries met at the Women’s Worlds 2011 Conference in Ottawa, ON Canada. Women’s Worlds is an international event that seeks to advance women’s equality by enhancing women’s leadership skills and organizational capacity, supporting the exchange of knowledge and ideas, and fostering research and action networks on women’s issues.

The 330 sessions held at Women’s Worlds addressed major themes, such as: Breaking Cycles (dealing with oppression, poverty, inequality in its various forms); Breaking Ceilings (the glass ceiling, gender roles, women’s exclusion); Breaking Barriers (the fences of the global village, women’s restricted access to the benefits of globalization) and Breaking Ground (examples of how women are breaking ground today).

IFUW members from all over the world were present as both attendees and presenters.

Widows: neglected women?
What is their position and what roles do they perform in society?

IFUW members Anne Holden Roenning (Norway) and Louise Croot (New Zealand) presented a workshop and panel session entitled “Breaking Barriers Imposed by Widowhood – Enhancing the Millennium Goals”. This was a follow-up to Women’s Worlds in Madrid 2008 where IFUW first took up this issue. It was also a follow-up to the Beijing Platform for Action and the need to include this issue in the UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs).

Key facts

1. The face of widowhood: According to the Loomba Foundation there are 245 million widows, who account for one-tenth of the world’s population. 115 million of these women, and their 500 million children, live in conditions of dire poverty. The number of young widows with families is on the increase due to war and violence.

As the former UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Dr. Mary Robinson stated in 2001:  “Widows belong to all ages. They may be elderly women, but many are young mothers and there are also child widows … The stigma of widowhood can affect not only widows but also their children. Children may be deprived of shelter, food, health, education. They may be vulnerable to violence ….” UN Declaration of Human Rights.

2. Education and Productive Employment: Many widows have not previously worked for pay but have worked within the home, which reduces their employability and their access to financial income.

For this reason, the ability to receive adult education, at whatever level, and to earn an income is essential for widows, especially young widows, if they are ever to climb out of the pit of poverty and become self-supporting.

3. Gender Disparity and the Empowerment of Women: One of the key problems in widowhood is the right to inherit and own property. In many cultures, property passes directly to the male heirs, to the husband’s family, or to other in-laws.

Widows often have reduced or minimum pension rights because of part-time work or looking after the family. Widows are also confronted with the challenge of a single pension income, instead of the two received by couples where both partners still live.

4. Social Discrimination and Security: Many widows face social and cultural discrimination which can take many forms, such as that of being single and alone in a society that prefers couples. Single, older, or widowed women may feel uncomfortable going out alone, especially in the evenings. In some cultures, women are not permitted to leave the house without an accompanying male. Widowers are more frequently included in social arenas than widows.

5. Status of Widows: In today’s society, widows do not necessarily have family to look after them, and their human rights are frequently abused. There is often a discrepancy between customary law and statutory law. Does losing a spouse mean one becomes a single woman, an ambiguous term at best? In cultures where polygamy is practiced, a widow’s status can be even less clear.

Conclusions

The panel discussion revealed that the issue of widowhood and its impact on women is not adequately addressed in the MDGs. The participants requested that  IFUW work to add wording to the MDG’s (1, 2 and 3) and any other appropriate international conventions and documents in order to address the needs of widows and their children.

Question: How can we improve the overall position of this group of women, who form one tenth of the world’s population? What is the position of widows in your country? Is their a difference between the status of widowers and widows? Are widows valued as e.g. wise women, or are they regarded as worthless persons? Have conditions improved for widows, or are they worsening?

Louise McLeod
Member, Status of Women Committee

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Girls’ Access to Secondary Education

Posted on 18 July 2011 in Advocacy, Education, Human Rights

In conjunction with the Economic and Social Council’s (ECOSOC) Annual Ministerial Review, IFUW co-organized a panel with the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPFF) on 5 July 2011.  The panel examined the causes and impact on development of denying girls’ access to secondary education. The panellists’ presentations were compelling, intense and moving. They based their statements on striking facts and figures.

Education as a human right

The presenters stressed that access to quality secondary education for girls is a human right. Excluding girls from education limits their potential and opportunities and leaves them vulnerable. Without an education, girls are denied the knowledge they need to become informed global citizens.

Education and development

There is a definite link between education for girls, especially at the secondary level, and sustainable development.  The lack of education for girls has a negative impact on society as a whole and undermines economic growth.   Research shows that education, especially girls’ education, is a principal catalyst for sustainable growth and increases the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of a nation.  Gender-based discrimination and poverty are a mutually reinforcing double negative that affects women disproportionately, but education can contribute to breaking the circle of poverty.

Education for girls is essential in achieving their economic and political empowerment. Through education, girls have a better chance of accessing decent work and decision-making positions.  Nations gain huge advantages from the empowerment of women.  As one speaker stated, educating a girl contributes to enlightening her whole family and consequently her whole nation.

Education and health

Education for women and girls plays a key role in health issues. Recent research shows that 4.2 million fewer children under age 5 died between 1970 and 2009 because of increased education for women.  Girls’ sexual reproductive health is especially affected by education.  Educated girls postpone childbirth and have, on average, 1.5 fewer children. Girls without access to education often experience early childbirth and have an increased risk of maternal mortality and disability.

The vital link between education and sexual and reproductive health can be seen when we examine the statistics concerning HIV. Currently, there are 33 million people living with HIV, 3,000 people are infected daily and 16,000,000 children have been orphaned. However, only 1 out of 3 14-25 year-olds has accurate knowledge on HIV transmission and has received the education necessary to protect themselves; only 17% actually use protection. Studies show that girls with secondary education have a lower rate of HIV infection.

Barriers to girls’ education

The panellists spoke of various barriers to girls’ education, including financial, social and cultural barriers.

To surmount these barriers we need leadership and political will. We need long-term vision and an approach that is both bottom-up and top-down.  Work is needed at the community level, but also at the national and international level. There is a need for advocacy and cooperation among all the stakeholders.  We also need to explore new and innovative partnerships with the private sector.

As an example of surmounting barriers, Bangladesh shared its successes and the significant progress it has made educating its girls.  Enrolment there at the primary level is almost 100% and at both the primary and secondary levels, girls now outnumber boys. The most successful strategy to get girls into schools has been paying small cash allowances.

What are the barriers to education for girls in your country? What are some of the successful strategies that have been put in place to surmount these barriers? Has your country used any innovative financial incentives to encourage girls’ school attendance?

Download the full report of the panel here.

Morgane Desoutter
IFUW Intern

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AMR 2011: Addressing the needs of young people

Posted on 7 July 2011 in Advocacy, Education

UNESCO, ILO and the World Bank co-sponsored a breakfast meeting during the ECOSOC Annual Ministerial Review on Addressing the needs of young people: education and training for the world of work.

Mr Juan Somavia, Director-General of ILO drew attention to the numbers of young people who are neither working nor studying and emphasized the problems of the exclusion of youth. Those that are studying are not necessarily receiving a useful education that would prepare them to move into the labour market. Given the rapidly increasing numbers of young people chasing fewer and fewer jobs, he pointed out that those who are educated and trained but unable to get jobs have ‘educated frustration’ and he asked ‘how can we get the economy to create jobs that the world can use?’ While the macro-economy may be a great success, unfortunately it isn’t creating enough jobs. We need to look at and adapt growth patterns to produce jobs for young people and to ensure types of education that prepare young people for employment.

H. E. Dr Ahmed Gamal Eldin Mousa, Minister of Education, Egypt said that new policy measures were focusing on freedom and dignity; democracy; and social justice. He pointed out the problems caused by the high birth rate, which means that there are 2 million newborns each year.

While there are some positive experiences of ‘dual education’ involving school and the factory, these needed to be expanded as did the availability of places in technical universities.

Issues were raised by some of the speakers on the importance of involving the private sector in ensuring that education was appropriate for starting work. A ‘time bomb’ is ticking in all countries as far as youth employment is concerned as those who are in neither education nor work pose a major challenge to society. Issues were raised particularly around ‘vocational training’.

The Deputy Minister of Education for Namibia drew attention to the ‘elephant in the room’ in his country – unemployment. He said that students should be trained to go out and create jobs, not just to take existing jobs. Unemployment in Namibia is 51% and most of the unemployed are young people.

Sha Zukang, Secretary-General for Rio +20 expressed his concern that the social dimensions are being neglected in the preparatory meetings for the conference. While economic and environmental issues are being addressed, this third ‘pillar’ is receiving inadequate attention. He also said that green technologies provided better opportunities for employment.

Marianne Haslegrave
IFUW President

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