Heim states that, "what we are taught as children in regards to roles of females and males overflow into the workplace." (Hale p. 14) He adds that, "gender is a culture unto itself, raised with basic rules of conduct "instinctively" known to all adult members of that gender." (p. 3) Managers and employers of today were generally brought up in a time of patriarchy. They were generally socialized to believe that men are stronger and 'bring home the bacon', therefore these behaviors can flow into the work setting. Although skills may in fact be equal, perceptions of those skills are not. In the article Breaking The Glass Ceiling found in Gender In Canada the authors concluded that "[there was] very little difference between the actual competence of women and men managers, the most marked difference found was one of perception: no matter how well they performed, women were often rated less good at their jobs than were men." (Nelson & Robinson p. 266) Generation after generation lessons such as this are taught, women simply are not viewed as equal. "Internalization and identity encompass the learning and socialization processes by which individuals incorporate assumptions, perceptions, stereotypes, and misperceptions and make judgments about themselves based on the way they perceive others judge them" (Hale p. 3). Hale also notes that "women feel they are invisible, isolated and irrelevant within an organization while men see them as emotional." ( p.4) She also suggests that "men do not want to give up their power and are uncomfortable working with women." (p. 1) Women feel somewhat powerless and socially isolated within the labour force. Job segregation is another factor in workplace stratification. Often times women are placed into certain positions only because of their gender. Maume states that, "social closure issues hold that society has defined what jobs are appropriate for males and what jobs are appropriate for females" (p. 3). Jacobs adds that "women are hired into less desirable jobs and once a job becomes associated with women, it is devalued in the organizational context." (p. 24). This devaluation is one of the leading causes for the pay inequity between men and women. "Promotions are variable by sex and class: men have more promotions than women and more of them take place at the top of occupational hierarchies where women are less well represented" (Walby p.25) Staying in lower-status jobs generally means lower pay. Burchell and Scott conclude that, "not only do women earn less than men because of their unequal distribution between occupational classes, but their earnings are lowered further by being located in more 'female jobs' within them." (Burchell & Scott p.127) Also, jobs are ranked by employers and employees differently. "Employers rank them according to skills and commitment and employees rank them according to desirability and rewards" (Maume p. 3). One would think this process would be fair to everyone but, in many organizations there appears to be double standards to judge men and women. Hale concludes that "women most often have to measure up to higher standards than men do to obtain the position" (Hale p. 8). "Women are traditionally segregated into specific jobs; thereby leaving men in their own world to compete with each other for higher paid jobs" (Maume p. 3). "Men traditional have higher status contacts than women which also help them to maintain their positions." (McGuire p. 2) The 'Glass Ceiling' theory will examine the latter in further detail later in the essay. As a result of gender socialization, improper views of men and women are held by many in our society today. The effects of this limit certain people in the labour force, whether it be pay or promotion, women tend to be on the receiving end of this discrimination.

Gender equity is good for business. Faced with increasing competition in

Some common words found in the essay are:
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Approximate Word count = 2603
Approximate Pages = 10 (250 words per page double spaced)