Breaking the Glass Ceiling through the Power of 49

Glass Ceiling: A term that creates a rather peculiar mental image of what it could possibly be. A ceiling made of glass, and hence invisible – so why have it at all? But then again, it probably serves the purpose of any other solid ceiling, albeit in a subtle way.

A glass ceiling can be described as an unseen, yet unbreakable barrier that keeps minorities and women from rising to the upper rungs of corporate ladders, regardless of their qualifications or capabilities. The term was originally coined keeping women in mind; it was observed that a large number of women in the corporate sector seemed to have reached the top of middle management but there seemed to be no room for them in executive positions. Some kind of attitudinal or organisational bias was responsible for this phenomenon. Pay scales were also found to be starkly differentiated for men and women working at similar positions and with the same qualifications and experience.

The phenomenon can be extrapolated into non-corporate work sectors, and even society as a whole. In our country, the glass ceiling stares women in the face in nearly every walk of life. In nearly every household, women do the cooking, but the number of women chefs in the country can be counted on one’s fingers, clearly because of a mental block against women making a profession of their skills. Women entrepreneurs find it difficult to get bank loans, people to work with them, and support from their families. Several such instances can be cited.

In the light of this, self-sufficiency could provide a pertinent solution. Several institutions that are run exclusively by women exist in the country today. And in setups which are by the women, for the woman and of the women, there is practically no chance of any gender bias!

Of course, this is not as simple as it sounds. Isolation from those whose attitudes need to be changed, is not a long-term fix. However, this approach highlights yet again, what the power of numbers can do. Several examples of such institutions exist - Right from Lijjat Papad to small NGOs and the Missionaries of Charity, there are enough and more groups of women who got together to make a difference to countless lives, while ensuring dignity of labour, respect and self-sufficiency for themselves.

Jaago Re calls out to the women of India to vote. Vote, because there are several of you out there, and together, you can make that difference.