CONCLUSIONS 9 Occupational sex segregation Over the past three years, women have made marginal gains in their

share of professional and managerial positions. The slow pace of progress still appears to be mainly attributable to vertical and horizontal occupational segregation propagated by firmly-entrenched myths and attitudes about womens ability to perform on a par with male counterparts, and to their presumed lack of commitment to paid work. Sex stereotyping Another factor hindering womens progression in the workplace hierarchy concerns the traditional sex stereotyping of women as passive and timid, which is at odds with stereotypes of leadership where the indispensable qualities for success are seen as predominantly male attitudes (aggression, competitiveness, decisiveness and forcefulness). These stereotypes are formed through observation of successful role models, who have historically been men. However, there is evidence that whatever are often perceived as female attributes (integrity, diligence, cooperativeness and sincerity) are increasingly viewed as qualities that can enhance an organizations image. Corporate culture From womens perspective, corporate culture restricting their career development, particularly the lack of family-friendly policies at the workplace, often obliges them to prioritize their family life over paid work. This has important ramifications for their careers, particularly for those who opt to work part-time as they may be overlooked for promotion even when they return to full-time work. What is perceived as defection of women executives at a time when they are most useful to their employers seems an unnecessary waste of valuable human resources. However, previously inflexible organizational structures appear to be giving way to a less discriminatory view of women in the workplace. Organizations increasing appreciation of the comparative advantage of having a better balance of women and men in management is reflected in the steps they are taking to retain valuable and qualified staff. Diversity management Employers are increasingly committing to diversity management programmes that include a range of family-friendly plans to enable both male and female 59 Over the past three years, women have made marginal gains in their share of professional and managerial positions. Corporate culture restricting womens career development often obliges them to

prioritize their family life over paid work. Sex stereotyping of women as passive and timid is at odds with stereotypes of leadership. Not surprisingly, the gaps in earnings between women and men remain virtually unchanged and, as we have seen in the example of the United States, are widening in some sectors. Women managers consistently earn less than male counterparts. The pay gaps are due to a variety reasons including womens need for work flexibility to meet family responsibilities, occupational sex segregation, lower educational levels, and retreating from the workforce which slows down their earning power. However, the reason women at senior management levels earn less than male counterparts is not clear. It may partly be explained by age and seniority differences between women and men senior managers: women senior managers tend to be younger than men senior managers and thus hold less important positions, which impacts on their remuneration level. Nevertheless, more specific data need to be collected on the extent and causes of this partiality. employees to achieve a better equilibrium between their work and personal lives. If the precept of diversity management is inculcated into all levels of the workplace bureaucracy, women may finally attain parity with men at work in the diversity of the workforce. Women will be genuinely appreciated as important members of the workplace with attributes that complement those of their male counterparts. However, the success of diversity management programmes requires the unwavering support and commitment of management at all levels of an organization; as yet there is limited evidence of its efficacy as a management tool in eliminating workplace discrimination. The use of quotas to ensure female representation in politics is contentious. They tend to keep women locked into a gender social order, whereas the crucial issue is to have balanced representation so that politics can benefit equally from both men and womens special attributes. However in the short term it is clear that in some parliamentary systems, quotas are the most efficient way of guaranteeing womens increased representation in the political arena. But quotas are not the only answer and should be part of a package designed to attract women candidates. Quotas Earnings gaps 60 The gaps in earnings between women and men remain virtually unchanged and are widening in some sectors