slow steps

[brightlywoven]

This article from the BBC today simultaneously shows what has been achieved for some women in terms of workplace equality, and how far we have to go.

It really is heartening to see that even one of the oldest 'clubs' can be changed by educational opportunity. Even more heartening is the fact that women in medicine don't have to leave in order to have families, and that many specialties are able to accommodate working and family life.

Additionally, the report includes an assessment of how the career opportunities of men and women differ when viewed over time. Too often we get snap-shot data which says 'senior positions continue to be held mainly by men', which doesn't allow us to unpick what factors might contribute to this inequality.

The nub of the problem though is summed up in this sentence:
"A study in the British Medical Journal of UK medical graduates found although a smaller proportion of women than men progressed to senior posts, the career paths of women who had always worked full-time were very similar to those of men."

It's simple! The key to professional success is to always work full time. And if women work like men they will get the same treatment and opportunities. And so we come back again to flawed notions of equality. True equality is NOT treating people the same regardless of what differences exist. Don't get me wrong, if you struggle to get identical treatment (eg the right to vote, the right to equal pay for equal work) then it's a bloody good start, but it always seems to lead back to this impasse.

I wish I had the answer, I don't. But I think at least part of it must lie in recognising that identical treatment is not the road to equality.