To gain more insight on this topic, we reached out to Miki Feldman Simon. Miki is an Executive Coach and the founder of IamBackatWork, which was created to empower people with practical advice, tools and skills to accelerate their personal and professional growth. Lucky for us, Miki was kind enough to have a chat with Bored Panda about the ways in which workplaces often prioritize the desires of men over the concerns and needs of women.
"We see this in simple things like office temperature, often set to be way too cold for women, or fun activities aimed towards men, like football games or social events held after office hours when women often need to be home to care for their kids," Miki shared. "Systemically, men are often given more opportunities for career advancement and higher salaries, while women face challenges such as gender-based discrimination, unequal pay, and a lack of support for family responsibilities."
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"I always had extra layers at the office to account for freezing temperatures," Miki told Bored Panda. "As the only woman in the management team, I would often feel like an outsider when the discussion would revolve around sports. For years, I had to decline the drinks after work and go home to my kids. The men bonded and built deeper relationships. They all had kids at home too. It was their wives responsibility to be there for them."
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When it comes to what workplaces should be doing to ensure that women feel comfortable, Miki says they should assess where they are not meeting women’s needs and where they are not providing equal opportunities. "They should prioritize diversity and inclusion initiatives, such as offering flexible work arrangements, providing equal pay for equal work, addressing gender-based discrimination and harassment, providing access to leadership and mentorship opportunities for women, and offering family-friendly policies such as parental leave and child care support," she told Bored Panda.
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"It's essential for everyone to feel equally included in their work environment because it leads to greater job satisfaction, higher levels of employee engagement and productivity, and a more positive workplace culture overall," Miki added. "A workplace that values diversity and inclusion benefits everyone, not just women, by creating a more supportive and collaborative environment."
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"We all need to be invested in making a change and creating an environment that is just as welcoming to women as it is to men," Miki says. "In addition to workplace policies, it's essential for individuals to be aware of their own biases and to actively work to create a more inclusive workplace culture. Everyone can play a role in promoting diversity and inclusion by listening to diverse perspectives, respecting differences, and challenging stereotypes and biases."
If you'd like to learn more about Miki or gain some guidance for how to further your own career, be sure to visit IamBackatWork right here.
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- being touched on the waist in order to get my attention rather than tapping my shoulder or calling my name
- male bosses casually referring to their “b***h” ex wives and their “whore” ex girlfriends to the other men in the room while I have to pretend I’m not there
- when a department that has a female boss or a mostly female team is doing something and it’s “the girls are doing their thing” but every other department is “the team working hard”.
- all the older women in work being mocked and told they’re “getting too old for this job” by men that aren’t that much younger than them
- everything to do with cleaning and tidiness is left for female colleagues, even if it isn’t their job.
- male colleagues coming to ask for advice and emotional support and to listen to their problems but never returning that effort or offering a real friendship. Basically being their free therapist. And if you don’t want to listen, you’re a “cold b***h”.
- when a woman is hard to work with or bad at her job, there’s a smugness amongst the men because they see it as evidence that women aren’t up for the higher positioned jobs.
- when a woman gets promoted, I have to hear all the men have conversations about how she only got it because she’s a woman
- when I make complaints about co-worker harassing me, I’m told to “talk it out” with them, as if I’m the one making a problem.
- co-workers that are old enough to be my dad, staring at my chest non stop and everyone defending him because “he’s a laugh”.
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