Sri Lanka Students For Liberty hosted a webinar titled “Glass Ceilings and Sticky Floors” on 6 March to highlight women’s struggles to climb the hierarchical ladder in the workplace. Speaking at the discussion was University of Peradeniya Chair Professor of Economics from the Department of Economics and Statistics Dileni Gunawardana, John Keells Group Head of Corporate Communications and Group Leader on Diversity and Inclusion Kumudu Munasinghe, and State Timber Corporation Manager and Justice Force Secretary Kalyani Satharasinghe.
Prof. Gunawardana explained that the phrase “class ceilings and sticky floors” was derived from a research paper she wrote many years ago. Explaining the two terms, she said that the glass ceiling refers to when women’s wages fall behind men’s more at the top of the wage distribution structure rather than the bottom or middle, and sticky floor refers to when the gender pay gap widens significantly at the bottom of the wage distribution structure.
Moving on to understanding these concepts, Prof. Gunawardana stated that women earn less than men. “If we compare men and women who are alike in all the characteristics that matter for their job, then this is what we would call discrimination. Women are like men; just cheaper.” She went on to add that “despite how educated, qualified, and clever a woman is, a man will be seen as above her, thus earning more money than she would”.
What is holding women back?
Speaking on the key issues that are seen in terms of lower female participation in the private sector, Munasinghe said: “I see three main issues; one being the specific industry culture that is inherent to certain jobs in certain industries. Another is unconscious bias; unless the playing field is actually levelled, the concept of meritocracy doesn’t work. The third part is the women’s personal vision.” These problems stem from the gender norms that are ingrained in our society. If there are less women – be it on the factory floor or in a board meeting – there is automatically the thought that these are jobs that young women can’t aspire to have.
Munasinghe pointed out that if we look at our university graduates, more than 50% of them are female, but less than 30% are in our workforce. “This gap could be because women prioritise education, but they don’t have the ambition to become a CEO (Chief Executive Officer) in a company; they want to be mothers, they want to give full-time commitment to their families, and that’s a choice they are making – we can’t judge them for it.”
She observed that there is a lot being done by progressive companies in the private sector, but there is a long way to go: “When we look at increasing women (in the workforce), we have to look at mentorship and sponsorship for women. We also have to give them training and the confidence to take charge; it’s daunting to be in a room full of men to get your point across.”
Women are natural leaders
Satharasinghe noted that both the private and the public sectors face these issues when it comes to the dicriminaton of women in the workplace. “If women have the qualifications and skills required for a certain job, then the fact that she is not a man has to be irrelevant.” She added that at home, women are in charge of their house; they are obliged to do the cooking, cleaning, and also take care of a family, and thus she questions why society feels that women cant take charge in the workplace, when she is already exhibiting strong leadership skills.
Satharasinge stated: “We need to learn to stand our ground and voice our opinions. There is no room for timidity in the workplace. We need to take what we are owed.”
Unfortunately, at times there seems to be an ugly misconception that if a woman achieves a top position, she has slept her way up the ladder, and her hard work and years of dedication are disregarded. Speaking on this in the Sri Lankan context, Munasinghe said: “This has a lot to do with the culture in our country. You can’t stop people from judging you in whatever you do, and the journey to the top is not easy; you have to have thick skin and address these issues and call them out.” She added that this is something men don’t need to worry about. The roles at the top for women are a lot harder and require more work on a woman’s part.
Concluding, she added that all these issues need to be expressed vocally for there to be change. At the very least, if these issues are heard and recognised as valid, then there is room for a better future for the women in our country.
You can watch the webinar on the Sri Lanka Students For Liberty Facebook page: (Insert facebook logo) @SriLankaSFL
