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Families andWork: The JugglingAct

Milkie,2006; Parkman,2004).Men and
women of these newer generations have
learned to communicate and negotiate
their contributions in the areas of
household and family management.

The Glass Ceiling

The 2004 elections resulted in a
dramatic turn of events,ushering in
America’s first woman Speaker of the
House.The 2008 elections saw the first
woman making a close run for the
democratic nomination for President of
the United States and another female the
republicanVice Presidential running
mate.While women now have gained
access to most occupations and are
entering the workforce in record
numbers,they still find it difficult to
access top executive positions.In 2007,
the number of female CEOs running
major corporationsgrew from 9 to a
record 12,however,that still represents
only2.4% of Fortune 500 companies
(Jones,2008).Social analysts refer to this
phenomenon as theglassceiling,which is
a metaphor for the organizational,
attitudinal,and societal barriers
preventing women from advancing up the
career ladder (Crutcher,2006).Women
who experience the glass ceiling are
promoted to just below the top level,but
can’t seem to break through the invisible
barrier which limits their success.

Inthepast,menoftenwereseenas

responsibleforthissubtleformof

discrimination.Manymenfounditdifficult

toviewawomaninaleadershiprole(some

stilldo).Therewasanassumptionthat

becausemenandwomendidnotthink

alike,strategizeornetworkinthesame

ways,ortalkthesamelanguage,awoman

couldnevercommunicateeffectivelywith

meninaleadershiprole.Brizendine(2008),

aneuropsychiatrist,refutesthesebeliefs

suggestingmaleandfemalebrainsaremore

alikethandifferent,andtheglassceilinghas

nothingtodowithrawintellect.

Interestingly,womenthemselvesoften

havecurtailedtheirowncareer

opportunities.Forfirst-generationwomen

whoworkoutsidethehome,cultural

socializationencouragedthemtoplace

greatimportanceontheirrolesasmothers

andgrandmothers;thus,manychosenotto

expendthetimeoreffortnecessarytomake

ittothetopof thecorporateladder.They

For women, top management positions are

often lonely and isolating.

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