8 Women Share The Biggest Challenges They Face In The Workplace

The world is constantly evolving but women continue to face big challenges in the workplace.,From pay gap to pregnancy discrimination, the list is endless. Women continue to jump over hurdles that come their way at work and there seems to be no silver lining.

Even women in leadership roles tend to face multiple pitfalls unequal pay, lack of flexibility, no work-life balance, societal pressures, and absence of a support system to name a few. Often challenges in the workplace are believed to eventually allow us to grow, however, for women they do more harm than good.

Tanya Malik from the HZ team spoke exclusively to eightworking women and asked them to share what were some of the biggest challenges they were facing in the workplace.

Salary Parity

“Having been in the corporate world for the last 22 years, there have been a few instances where my gender has been judged and come in the way. Salary parity is one issue that I have faced. Men are still being paid more than women in similar roles. We still live in a society where the woman’s voice is unheard in the boardroom and her opinions are not valued compared to her male counterparts. Hence, when it comes to salary discussions, women are not paid what they deserve." Noopurr Chablani

Pregnancy Discrimination

“Lack of consideration for women during their periods or pregnancy is astounding. Shortly after announcing the pregnancy, many projects that we have earned through our potential are abruptly taken away, just because we choose to grow our family.” - Saumya Kaushik

Inequality At Workplace

“Many offices are male-dominated especially as we go higher in rank. It often feels like an uphill battle to be yourself and get your point across. However, it’s good to see a conscious awareness of inequality in the workplace and the rise of female role models that have broken through stereotypes.” - Sasha Revankar

Barriers For Women In Leadership

" I have observed, if not directly felt, the acceptance of women at work in leadership roles. It is expected that they should be confined by the norms of society here as well. Men will consistently rate working women on various parameters like dressing, drinking, smoking, working late hours, and talking to colleagues to name a few. Society has still not evolved as much to accept the freedom of being a working woman." - Shilpa Arora

Lack Of Flexible Work Hours

“I am a working mother and one of the biggest challenges I face is not having flexible work hours. There are days when my child wants me by his side. However, that is not possible because of my work hours. When I discussed the same with my seniors, I was told that they understood it was tough for working mothers and it is better if I consider quitting the job for childcare.” - Aditi Rao (Name changed on request)

Constant Comparison With Male Colleagues

"We are constantly compared with the efforts made by the male colleagues. I feel that's very unfair because every individual comes with a set of talent and experience. Every individual has a different ability to handle situations. Productivity cannot, or rather should not be judged through the lenses of gender." - Neha Rai

Unfair Judgements At Work

“I had just started my first job, and my boss was a stereotypical misogynist. I always received opportunities in my team after the male teammates had been considered first. He frequently used the justification that it’s easy for men to do it; in particular for opportunities related to travel. To compete, I had to work harder and overcome obstacles. I only went above and beyond because I am a WOMAN. But over time, I learned how to deal with it and mentally prepared myself for such encounters. And rather than being a success as a result of my skills and talent, it was referred to as ‘Ladki hai isliye mil gaya’. My hard work is entirely due to my work ethic and perseverance, not justonly because I’m a woman.” - Shivani Kapila

Stigma In The Workplace

“I am a trans-photojournalist and being at work is not easy for me. My job requires field work and I face a lot of discrimination. Some of my colleagues from the industry often pass comments and it hints at the stigma attached to transgender folks. It hasn’t been an easy journey for me but to pursue my dream, I face all the stigma and discrimination that comes with my work.” - Zoya Lobo

Women clearly still have many more glass ceilings to break because society seems adamant in keeping them in place. Let us know what you think about gender parity at work in the comments