Women In the Workplace: LA Edition
The largest study of women's labor to date has troubling results on gender equality at work. After surveying 12 million people at 222 companies, Lean In's Women In Workplace study found that women's labor aren't adequately represented and valued.
The bar for gender equality is too low
Women hit the glass ceiling early
Men are more likely to say they get what they want without having to ask
Women get less of the support that advances careers
Women are less optimistic they can reach the top
Men are less committed to gender diversity efforts
Many women still work a double shift
What's our experience in LA?
This July, we asked you what your experience was with negotiating your salary. Out of the 83 members who responded, more than half of them said that their salary history has held them back from being paid what they're worth.
This is what the struggle of fighting for our worth looked like:
A Community You Can Lean On
We share this info not so our members lose hope. We share this so that our members understand that we have a community here in LA of brave women who share the same drive to grow and flourish. These responses come from LILA members who work in many different industries including aerospace, media, healthcare, finance, non-profit, and research. No matter what industry you're in, you have a community you can turn to who can relate with your fight to get adequately compensated for your work.
Advocate for Your Labor
If you want to advocate for your labor, there are women in our community who succeeded through negotiating. These women learned some tough lessons about the need to negotiate for fair pay:
Take Ownership Of Your Support System
We hope this inspires you to advance your goals by turning to the positive and supportive people in your network. Here are ways that you can name and reach out to your allies, peer mentors, and sponsors.
Lean In LA has a workshop on 10/28/2017, Find Your Tribe, to help our members find their accountability partners and learn how to support their peers
Check in With Your Goals Regularly
Join a Lean In Circle and meet regularly with 8-12 peers who motivate each other to achieve their goals.
Split the Work Fairly With Your Significant Other
As the Women In The Workplace Study found, most women are still responsible for the majority of the housework. Communicate with your partner and find ways to make your partnership equal here.
Be an advocate for Women
Reflect on the times where women's work was devalued and where women's confidence is treated as unlikable. Read more on ways to celebrate your peers' work here.
