Running Head: INEQUALITIES OF WOMEN IN SAUDI ARABIA VS.

THE UNITED STATES

1

Inequalities of Women in
Saudi Arabia vs. The United States

Emma M. Stowe
South Lyon High School
March 2017
INEQUALITIES OF WOMEN IN SAUDI ARABIA VS. THE UNITED STATES
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Abstract

This papers main focus is to outline and inform society on womens constant

inequalities. This piece in particular focuses on the rights of Saudi Arabian women

compared to American women and the extent to which they stray short of equality

compared to their male counterparts. Within the past few decades, womens rights

have become a very prominent issue all across the globe. Being a young woman, I

believe it is very important for women to possess equally as much power as men.

While it is a tough and controversial situation, I believe with the right steps women

will continue to make progress towards equality as they have in recent decades. While

evaluating American and Saudi Arabian womens freedoms, or lack thereof, I focused

in on two specific categories: womens social morals and their roles in the workforce.

Across my research these were the two most common and disputable topics. Both of

these categories outlined not only the struggles women face, but also the progress

they have made in recent years. I learned that while women have made progress

towards becoming equal, the journey to ending gender inequality is a very slow,

tedious process. With the right, combined efforts, I believe gender equality is possible

in the U.S., Saudi Arabia, and areas all across the globe. The prejudiced view of

women is a very serious and prominent issue in todays society. Women across the

globe deserve the same rights as males, for gender discrimination is cruel and

unnecessary.

Word Count: 248

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Inequalities of Women in the United States vs. Saudi Arabia

Throughout the world, countries portray different morals, cultures, and social

standards. With a multitude of different rights comes many issues and disputable

topics. Gender inequality is a frequently discussed topic that most would consider

highly controversial. Most, if not all of the time, men are treated as superior to

women. Men are often CEOs of large companies and leaders while on the other hand,

many people view women as caretakers and assistants to men. However, in every

country, women have a different multitude of rights based on social normalities.

Across the globe, the rights of women are controversial, but on extremely different

degrees. When comparing womens rights in the United States and Saudi Arabia,

while both inferior to men, women in the United States have many more everyday

freedoms and rights as compared to those in Saudi Arabia. The clear inequalities of

American and Saudi Arabian women can be illustrated through their roles in the

workplace and their social standing in comparison to men. While these

inconsistencies seem inevitable, women have made recent progress and steps

towards equality.

Women of Saudi Arabia and the United States face inequality on different levels;

however, they both face major discrimination in the work force. In the United States,

the term gender pay gap has become very common and well known. According to

recent information from the 2015 U.S. Census Bureau, women make on average 80
INEQUALITIES OF WOMEN IN SAUDI ARABIA VS. THE UNITED STATES
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cents to every dollar that men make (Hill et al., 2017). Women have attempted strong

efforts to close this gap, and it has narrowed, but the progress towards equality has

become slower and more difficult. Across a wide variety of careers, ages and

ethnicities, the gender pay gap remains in place regardless of education, experience,

or college major. With these variations, the pay gap differs slightly, sometimes not as

expected. While the unemployment rate for both men and women decreases as age

increases, the gender pay gap makes a clear growth. From ages 20-34 women make

90 cents for every dollar men make compared to age 65 when women make 74 cents

to every dollar men make (shown in figure 1) (Hill, et al., 2017). Ideally, with more

experience, this gap should reduce as employees become older and more

experienced, but its clearly not the case. As

women grow older, their pay increases, but the

gap increases as well. Unfortunately, in this area,

women are continuing to remain inferior. Another

surprising statistic from The Simple Truth About

the Gender Pay Gap, is women with higher

education, while payed more, still are faced with

an even larger pay gap. Women who do not have

a college education earn 77 cents to every dollar

men make. On the other hand, women with

advanced degrees earn only 74% of what men

make in the same profession. Since the 1960s women have narrowed the gap from

40% to an average of 20%, and women are projected to earn equality in 2059

according to Catherine Hill (2017).

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While American women face the inequality of different pay in the workforce,

Saudi Arabian women face the challenge of not being in the workforce at all. As of

2008, womens unemployment rates were nearly four times that of men, and the

unemployment rate has unfortunately increased overtime (AlMunajjed, 2010). In

Saudi Arabia, there is a much higher level of qualification in order for women to enter

the workforce for women. To accommodate for this, women have been persistent in

pursuing their education at universities. According to AlMunajjed, in 2006, 57% of

university graduates were women (2010). Women are earning higher education

degrees so that they have no reason to be turned down, but this usually doesnt work

in their favor. The fields in which women can work in have been limited in Saudi

Arabia to areas of business and teaching. They have been given opportunities in these

fields only because they are areas with high employment needs. It seems clear that

those with more experience and a stronger education should earn the job first. But, in

both Saudi Arabia and the United States men are favored over women whether it be

the pay they receive or who earns the job. Shown in figure 2, Saudi Arabias

unemployment rate for women with a diploma is higher than the unemployment rate

of illiterate males. This is very unfortunate because now not only are females being

discriminated against, but the workforce is hiring less qualified people, while strongly

qualified people are being turned down. Employment is very important for women,

especially those looking to support their families. As of 2016, Women make up the

only 5% of the workforce in Saudi Arabia, and they are mostly only allowed to work

separately from men (Darlene, 2016, p.1). While inequalities in the workforce have

diminished with time, many are still present. Women deserve to be equal to men,

especially if they are more qualified and more willing to work.

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In the United States, aside from the gender pay gap, there is a limited amount of

controversial inequalities women face. In Saudi Arabia however, women face social

inequalities in their everyday lives. Women are under constant control of their male

counterparts, and sometimes they are even controlled by their children. According to

the Humans Right Watch, a womens life is controlled by a man from birth until

death (Boxed In, 2016, p.1). Some rights that American women have had for years,

Saudi Arabian women dont see as ever becoming privileges. In Saudi Arabia it is a

mans decision for a women to marry, travel, and even exit prison. Therefore, whether

or not a women has served her time, it is her male guardians decision to allow her to

return home. Things American women do everyday are forbidden for women in Saudi

Arabia. Some of these actions include driving, showing off their beauty, and voting.

(Darlene, 2016). While many of these behaviors arent specific laws, they are

considered socially unacceptable. In the United States, on the other hand, issues are

much more broad; therefore they could be commonly considered more difficult to

solve. Some of these issues include a paid maternity leave for women, affordable

child care, reproductive rights, violence, and assault. The United States is one of only

two countries who dont offer a paid maternity leave. Twelve weeks is a very long time

to be left without a steady income especially with a newborn in the house. Today, only

about 12% of well known companies offer any form of pay during a womens

maternity leave (Jablonski, 2015). Without a paid maternity leave, affording care for a

newborn is even more difficult. Aside from birthing rights, American women also face

many challenges in relation to violence. According to Ray Jablonski, From 2001

through 2012, 6,410 women were murdered in the U.S. by an intimate partner using a

gun--more than the total number of U.S. troops killed in action during the entirety of
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the Iraq and Afghanistan wars combined (2015, p.1). Violence is a serious issue all

around the globe in countries including Saudi Arabia. Aside from the obvious, what

makes violence such a horrendous issue is the fact that its nearly impossible to

create an atmosphere where violence is not present. While Saudi Arabia forbids their

women of many common behaviors of U.S. women, they still are faced with the large

issues American women have as well. Whether issues are bound by laws or

considered socially unacceptable, they are both pushing women away from equality.

Women are constantly seen as inferior to men; however, in recent years, women

of Saudi Arabia and the United States have made progress towards equality.

According to an article from The Economist, the number of malls, beaches and gated

communities where women are allowed have greatly increased. In the western part of

the country, women were even permitted to dress as they please and drive in certain

regions, with certain regulations. (One Step Forward, 2016). Women are becoming

stronger forces within Saudi Arabia and are making efforts to become one step closer

towards equality. While Saudi Arabian women have struggled in their country's

workforce, due to womens persistence in pursuing a higher degree of education, the

countrys first female lawyer was licensed in 2012. In Saudi Arabia, there is a clear

sense of change for women, and many of their conditions have improved within the

past decade. In the U.S., many efforts have been made to eliminate these

inequalities, but sadly, not much change has been noticed. According to Hill,

President Barack Obama signed AAUW-supported executive orders to increase pay

protections for women. The provisions collect more wage data and target federal

contractors to protect workers from retaliation and labor law violations (2017, p. 25).

While the U.S. government will be more alert and aware, there is no specific action
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being taken to forbid the gender pay gap, or any broad issues for that matter. A lot of

the gender discrimination that occurs across the world isnt necessarily up for blame.

... gender role attitudes may be deeply intertwined with all aspects of life

potentially being influenced and influencing the creation and maintenance of unjust

social stratification, explains Carlos Siordia (2016, p.229). This explains that the

stereotypes and discrimination women face is just part of society's everyday lives.

The poor treatment women face is not necessarily due to societys behaviors, but

more so due to the beliefs and norms that weve grown up surrounded by.

In todays society ,women in the United States and Saudi Arabia face unfair

treatment in comparison to men in the workforce and their general social standing. In

recent years, while progress remains slow, women have made advances in becoming

equal to their male counterparts. Across multiple atmospheres, women are constantly

undermined by the endless stereotypes that they are faced with everyday. In Saudi

Arabia, women struggle to become a part of the workforce, and in the United States

women are paid significantly less than males with equal or lesser experience. Women

of Saudi Arabia are forbidden from basic behaviors such as driving and traveling that

would have no such harm if they were considered acceptable actions. All across the

globe, women are constantly placed second to men. Men hold a sense of superiority

over women that seems everlasting and inevitable. But with the right initiative, our

society has the opportunity to change daily lifestyles for women. Women have already

made progress in multiple different countries across the globe, and if they continue to

persist towards equality, women will continue to propagate closer and closer towards

gender equality.
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References

AlMunajjed, M. (2010). Women's employment in Saudi Arabia: A Major Challenge

[Electronic

version]. Booz & Company. Retrieved February 27, 2017, from

https://ncys.ksu.edu.sa/sites/ncys.ksu.edu.sa/files/Women002_5.pdf
INEQUALITIES OF WOMEN IN SAUDI ARABIA VS. THE UNITED STATES
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Benson, K., Hill C., & Miller, K. (2017). The Simple Truth About the Gender Pay Gap

(Spring 2017 ed.). N.p.:

The American Association of University Women. Retrieved February 26, 2017,

from

http://www.aauw.org/aauw_check/pdf_download/show_pdf.php?file=The-Simple-

Truth

Boxed In: Women in Saudi Arabia's male guardianship system. (2016, July 16). In

Human

Rights Watch. Retrieved from

https://www.hrw.org/report/2016/07/16/boxed/women-and-saudi-arabias-male-

guardianship-system

Darleen, Y. (2016, September 4). 27 Ridiculous Women in Saudi Arabia Aren't Allowed

to do . In Onedio.

Retrieved March 22, 2017, from http://onedio.co/content/27-ridiculous-things-

women-in-saudi-arabia-arent-allowed-to-do-11567

Jablonski, R. (2015, December 20). Five Reasons Why Gender Inequality is Worse in

U.S. than Anywhere else

in the World. In Cleveland. Retrieved March 22, 2017, from

http://www.cleveland.com/nation/index.ssf/2015/12/five_reasons_why_gender_in

equa.html

One Step Forward, One Step Back; Women in Saudi Arabia. (2016, March 12). In The

Economist. Retrieved from Gale Group (A450872163)

http://go.galegroup.com/ps/i.do?v=2.1&u=lom_accessmich&it=r&id=GALE

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Siordia, C. (2016). On the Relationship between Gender Roles, Attitudes, Religious

Ideology, and Familism in a Sample of Adults in the United States. Journal of

International Women's Studies, Volume 17 (Issue 4), 1-17. Retrieved February

15, 2017, from http://vc.bridgew.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?

article=1895&context=jiws