More than a woman? A new approach to gender
Employers need to stop regarding women as one homogenous group in designing gender equity programs and come to grips with the true diversity among women if employment opportunities and attitudes towards fairness for women in the workplace are to really change.
To mark International Women's Day on 8 March 2011, Diversity Council Australia launched an Issues Paper, ‘More than a woman? A new approach to gender’, that identifies the way diversity amongst women has been largely overlooked in Australian workplaces, with women being treated as one group, as a major obstacle to change.
Nareen Young, DCA’s CEO, explained that not only has the focus on women as an homogenous group promoted gender-based stereotyping, it has also meant organisations have failed to fully capitalise on their diversity initiatives:
“To borrow the line from the Bee Gees song, ‘More than a woman’, a women’s working life should be about so much more than just being female. Employers who make generalisations about women as a group, based on stereotypes, rather than making fact-based assessments about the individual woman at hand are in danger of misrepresenting the true talents of women.”
International Women’s Day is a time to honour the progress made in improving outcomes for women in Australian workplaces. While there have been improvements in women’s employment statistics and, in recent times, a strong spike in enthusiasm around women in leadership, we still have a way to go when it comes to ‘levelling the playing field’ between men and women in Australian workplaces.
DCA argues there should be a new approach to gender where there is greater recognition that each individual has a distinct, multifaceted identity that reflects the intersection and interaction between his or her age, ethnicity/race, family situation, gender, parental and care-giving responsibilities, religious affiliation, sexual orientation and so on. This concept is known as ‘intersectionality’. Treating women as a uniform group is also likely to have negative consequences for the diversity of Australia’s executive workforce.
Click here for a copy of the DCA Issues Paper, ‘More than a woman? A new approach to gender’.
EOWA amendments will bring better outcomes for Australian women, men and organisations
DCA welcomed the March 2011 announcement by the federal government that it will retain and improve the current federal Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Act with a new name and expanded function.
Nareen Young, DCA’s CEO, said, “We are absolutely delighted to see that the federal government has taken up numerous recommendations that DCA made in its submission to the inquiry. This will enable Australian employers to deliver better outcomes for women in their workplaces, while also generating business and productivity benefits.
“DCA is also pleased to see that this reform will broaden coverage of the Act to encompass women and men in relation to caring responsibilities. Our workplace structures are stuck in the 1950s and don’t reflect what’s happening out there. The change will encourage and enable Australian men to take an increased role in care-giving in their family, including taking on the primary care-giving role, as they tell us they want to. We hope this brings a ‘new normal’ to Australian society where men as primary care-givers are regarded as normal.”
Click here to see more information about the changes.
DCA announces new EOWA network for members
Following on from the overwhelming popularity of DCA's ASX Diversity Governance Network, DCA is establishing a new Workplace Gender Equality Network to assist organisations in preparing for the proposed amendments to Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Act.
This network will serve three purposes:
- Strategic government liaison: DCA has written to the federal Minister for the Status of Women, the Hon. Kate Ellis MP, seeking a meeting to discuss the proposed amendments to the Act. The network will provide the Minister, and the Equal Opportunity for Women in the Workplace Agency and its incoming Director, with ongoing DCA member feedback on how the proposed legislative amendments can be best implemented to generate positive outcomes for women and Australian business and workplaces.
- Knowledge sharing in a confidential forum: At the network, DCA members will be able to discuss how they will meet the new legislative requirements, particularly in relation to demonstrating progress against the proposed gender equality indicators and industry-specific benchmarks.
- Access to leading practice: Network participants will hear from leading thinkers and practitioners in business and academia about gender equality-related issues, specifically in relation to pay equity and workplace flexibility for women and men (i.e. the two new focuses for the Act and EOWA).
If you are interested in participating in this network and you are a DCA member, please email us at sydney@dca.org.au.
DCA is uniquely positioned to assist employers:
DCA has identified key areas where we can work with government to achieve the best possible outcomes. Visit http://dca.org.au/News/News/DCA-announces-new-EOWA-network-for-members/165 to read more.
