Low Income Women

I have found that when it comes to discrimination in the workforce for women although it is a problem everywhere, low income women get the majority of it. As we have talked about in class, women that work at places such as Wal-Mart have a terrible time getting equal rights. The amount of pay given to a woman is nothing near what they pay their male workers and it is so much harder for a woman to work her way up in the company. Wal-Mart will choose to promote a male worker with less experience and qualifications over a woman with more experience and qualifications that is a problem. The pay that women receive is significantly lower than the men and when attention is brought to this issue women are forced to write down and keep track of their budget and everything they buy or spend money on. The reason given for why men get such a higher pay and continue to get promotions are because they are supporting a family, ironically the majority of women working these low paying jobs are single mothers trying to take care of their kids. Another trick that many companies including Wal-Mart have used is having their employees work long hours that are overtime and not recording this or paying them for overtime, and they also have them work the most possible hours in a week without qualifying for benefits. No benefits for these families means no health care which can lead to very significant problems for these women, they can't afford to take their child to the doctor for something simple they are forced to wait until it reaches emergency level to receive any care. The worst part about this whole situation is that this is a vicious cycle for these women, once they are stuck in the rut of these high hours, low pay jobs they really have no way out because they are desperate for the money. If their job is threatened at work because of new rules or new hours they most likely have to comply because they have no other option if they want to keep food on the table. The sexism that takes place is ridiculous and something needs to be done about it.

Introduction

I chose to pick the topic of women in the workforce because it is an issue than I have read a lot about and soon I will be faced with personally. This topic originated once women really became a significant role in the workforce and they had to start competing with men for different positions and salaries. This is a hot topic to many women out there whether they are employed or not because it shows how women are viewed and respected (or not respected) in our country. Discrimination against women in the workforce has happened ever since the first woman got a job, and women have had to fight their way to the top the whole time. People still argue that some jobs are best left for a man to do. Women have had to prove themselves ten times more than men for the same job and one mistake on a women's part is equal to about five for a man. Not to mention something that is shocking to me is the idea of the "second shift" that women have to take on after their full day or work. It is expected or very common that women come home from a day of working and they have to clean the house, cook dinner, take care of the kids, etc. Studies have shown that most men don't feel this need to help out or be involved they expect to come home from a long day and relax. Not only is this a problem for the women that work, but this also takes a toll on the kids and the whole family dynamics in the home. There are so many issues in the workplace for women that it is astounding and hopefully people will be able to open their eyes and notice this problem very soon so we can make a change.