Women’s History Month 2022
What Is Women’s History Month?
Women’s History Month is recognized annually to celebrate the contributions women have made to our society from early recorded history to present day. These include their contributions to suffrage, equality, racial equality, arts and sciences and contributions to the home and workplace to name a few. This is also a time for affirmation and awareness of more personal issues such as women’s health, gender identity, sexual health and reproductive rights. In all things women related we can use this time to reflect and recognize that we have a lot more work to do in the fight for women’s rights.
A Brief History…
Women’s day can be traced back to the first International Women’s Day in 1911. In 1978 the Sonoma School District participated in celebrating Women’s Week which prompted a fifteen-day celebration by Sarah Lawrence College in 1979. President Jimmy Carter was the first U.S. President to issue a proclamation declaring the week of March 8th, Women’s Week. In 1987 Congress passed legislation declaring March 1987 as Women’s History month. Every President since then has issued a proclamation declaring March as Women’s History Month.
What Are Five Things You Can Do To Make Your Business More Inclusive To Women?
Listen To Women- Even when we have the best of intentions we tend to implement things without input from the people we are trying to reach. Include women in the decision making process whenever possible. Half of the human population consists of women so it is important to have their input in the things that are going to affect their lives.
Be Inclusive- Seek out women in your office or workplace that you can mentor. Seek out women in your office or workplace that can mentor you. Consider and invite women to leadership roles whenever possible. Make an effort to give women opportunities to assist and grow your business. Think about roles such as contractors, inspectors, lenders and other positions that we traditionally think of as men doing. If you make an effort to look you will find many highly trained and qualified women for roles that you may not have considered them for in the past.
Use Gender Neutral Language - Handyman, repairman, salesman, these are terms that we use naturally on a daily basis in our industry to describe work that we think of as “men’s work.” When you think about those terms they intrinsically exclude women from those types of fields completely. Consider using non-gender identifying descriptions such as vendor, contractor or tradesperson to describe the individual doing the job. How many times have you just assumed the plumber or electrician you hired was male only to have a person that identifies as a woman show up for the job? Maybe not many now, but until you change your mindset it’s going to happen more as our industry becomes more inclusive. Until you have been told someone’s gender identity, train yourself to use gender neutral pronouns such as they/them instead of he/him. This is especially important for jobs in fields that have been historically dominated by men.
Pay Women Equally For The Services They Provide- You should not expect to pay women less for the same job that you would pay a man based on their gender. According to the Pew Research Center, women are paid only 84% what their male counterparts are paid. This number decreases even more for minority women. Obviously, businesses have different pricing models based on how competitive the market is for a particular service. But what you should avoid is using a person’s gender to influence your decision as to the amount of their pay. Women are as capable as men for any job.
Don’t Defer To Men- When addressing a mixed group of people give equal attention to everyone whenever possible. Often, we find ourselves giving the focus and attention to men in the situation. In our industry we often work with couples, married or otherwise. It’s vital to your business to respect all parties equally with clients. The dynamic between couples can be difficult to navigate and understand. In addition, human society has given us this notion that men firmly in the driver’s seat and women are along for the ride when it comes to the decision making process. That is the bias in the back of our head talking with its preconceived notion that the male is the person that is going to understand the information and make the decision. A best practice is to treat both parties in the couple equally. Make eye contact with both people when talking to them. Include all parties on all communications unless instructed otherwise. Ask the information you need from both parties. Listen equally and don’t discount what you hear based on gender. Leave the process for making the decision for your clients.
Women have been subjugated since the beginning of time. Throughout history they have been fought hard for the same opportunities to make their contributions to society. Against the odds they have succeeded in breaking the barriers in every walk of life. In their struggle, women have proven to be valued and underused innovators, educators, pioneers, and fighters in every walk of life. Our world has been enriched by their contributions but we still have a long way to go. March is Women’s History Month, but we should all work toward bringing true equality and opportunity for ALL women around the world every day.