How Our Overwork Culture Keeps Women From Getting Ahead at Work
Recent studies show that, although we are a culture that seemingly loves to work more than your average 40 hours a week, it appears that it’s mostly men doing so.
But with women fighting tooth and nail to be equal to men in the workplace -- and struggling in their fight -- why is it that only 7% of American women are overworked while 16% of men in this country are finding themselves in the office late at night? And, if that’s true, then why are women still struggling to keep their lives in balance and finding themselves largely unable to do so?
The answer, it seems, can be found in the division of labor -- not just paid, but also unpaid. According to worldwide estimates from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, men on average spend 141 minutes per day doing unpaid work, while women “spend 237 minutes per day cooking, cleaning or caring.” Because women are spending so much time being homemakers, mothers, and wives on top of building careers or, at the very least, earning enough money to make ends meet, they’re unable to spend the time needed actually building those careers and getting ahead in their jobs.
It’s only in recent years that American attitudes towards working mothers have turned generally positive, and it wasn’t until the year 2000 that the amount of people who believed that the “traditional” family set-up (where women are at home and men earn the money) was the ideal one dropped below 50%.
So most women are unable to or feel uncomfortable spending so much time away from home when they’re expected to take care of their families and homes. And this, in turn, leads to the pay gap between men and women. According to a widely overlooked study published in the American Sociological Review, when women are unable to spend extra hours in the office, “proving” any love for their careers as many require, they are also unlikely to be the ones their superiors turn to when it’s time to hand out bonuses, raises, or promotions. The “overwork culture,” then, is a major player when it comes to figuring out why women can’t seem to get ahead.
“These trends may have encouraged some couples to revert to a more traditional division of labor, by increasing the likelihood of wives’ quitting their jobs and prioritizing husbands’ careers,” explained Youngjoo Cha, assistant professor of sociology at Indiana University Bloomington and main researcher on the study.
Because of the emphasis placed on the “overwork culture,” those who are unable to keep up with the pace of work are seen as lazy or less productive. And though there are plenty of men struggling to balance being a parent with being a worker as well, the social penalties are far greater for “bad” mothers than for “bad” fathers.
We all struggle with decisions about what our priorities should be, but really, it looks like the only people we have to blame are our bosses, right? If Office Space taught us anything, it’s that we should all just steal from them, quit our jobs, and be happier people.
[Pic via Flickr - Alex]
