国际经贸高级英语13.ppt

Unit ThirteenBreaking Through the Glass Ceiling:Women in Management — Linda Wirth TEXT Women at the Top Research findings around the world underline just how unbreakable is the glass ceiling which prevents more women from reaching top management jobs in organizations and firms. With few exceptions, women’s overall share of management jobs rarely exceeds 20 per cent in most countries, yet they represent more than 40 per cent of the world’s labour force. The higher the position, the more glaring the gender gap. In the largest and most powerful organizations, the proportion of top positions held by women is generally 2 to 3 per cent. In the United States, where women are relatively well qualified and constitute 46 per cent of the workforce, a survey of the 500 largest companies (the “Fortune 500”) showed that in 1996 they only held 2.4 per cent of the highest-level management jobs and accounted for a tiny 1.9 per cent of the highest-paid officers and directors (Catalyst, 1997). In Brazil, a 1991 survey of major corporations revealed that only about 3 per cent of top executives were women (de Avelar, 1994). A 1995 Unit ThirteenBreaking Through the Glass Ceiling:Women in Management — Linda Wirth survey of the 70 000 largest German companies found that only 1 to 3 per cent of top executives and board members were women (Verlag Hoppenstedt GmbH, 1995). Just how difficult it is for women to reach top positions is illustrated by studies showing that women are often better educated and qualified than men in the same job. Having to work harder and perform better than their male counterparts in order to move ahead are also characteristics frequently cited in surveys of women managers. An enterprise survey in Jamaica found that women had more years of schooling before joining the labour force than men, and they advanced more quickly than men at middle-management level, but it took significantly longer for women to reach top-level