Limits on Femininity in the Workplace

Limits of Femininty in the Workplace: Things You Need to Know

• Culture of Care: Not every woman can Lean In as Sandberg termed it, because they have freaking families. We need to start problematizing the half- assessed maternity and paternity leave.
• Dress Code: We, women, should not be sorry for our beautiful bodies. We should not be compelled to choose between expressing our femininity and risking our sexualities to be emphasized OR become inherently masculine in dress. Why should business women be expected to wear pantsuits? Contrarily men and women of color struggle with the oppression of forced conformation to Eurocentric standards of hair and dress. Again, this would be a great opportunity for policy change to clear the atmosphere of racial hierarchy in workspaces.
• Culture of Harassment: Just because you are our mangers does not mean you can harass us! You can’t ask us for sexual favors in exchange for higher positions or to be left in peace. Companies and Business NEED to start problematizing the culture of rape in America; if policies are being created to defend women and men against sexual predators then a more productive and comfortable environment can be accessible for all regardless of gender, race, or sexuality.
• What about Promotion: Referring to the culture of care, maternity leave acts as sort of a death sentence for women hoping to elevate their career. This whole idea that women want to slow down in their career is absurd and arguably influenced by patriarchy. So what if a women wants to take leave absence at work to take care of her kids? So what if a woman is in her early 30s? Professional workplaces must acknowledge the need for diversity and inclusion in administrative positions.
• Women in Power: Let’s talk about the gendering of positions at work! So often masculine characteristics are attributed to hardworking women. Why? There is a glitch in American culture and society in how we perceive men and women. If a woman is assertive (as she should be) then she is labeled too manly, she is not a team player, or she is simply a BITCH. Alternatively, men are gloried when they take on an aggressive demeanor.
• This isn’t JUST a WOMEN’S issue: Constraints on all women’s expression of femininity is detrimental to everyone! Yes, that means men too. If a woman’s expression of herself is compromised it limits the comfortability of that woman, and if the comfortability of that women is comprised what will happen to the productivity of the workspace? Essentially a comfortable work environment regardless of gender, race, and sexuality equates to a more profitable and productive work space.