This week, while reading one of the suggested articles on the topic of Diversity and Inclusion in Innovation and Creativity in Education, I was struck by a description cited in from Virginia Woolf's Three Guineas novel.
Woolf describes a bridge in her book, which connects the private and public, home and professional workplaces - Woolf encourages women to stand on this bridge, "Behind us lies the patriarchal system; the private house, with its
nullity, its immorality, its hypocrisy, its servility. Before us lies
the public world, the professional system, with its possessiveness, its
jealousy, its pugnacity, its greed.". Woolf 's writing is clearly a criticism of patriarchal systems and the challenges and choices women need to make.
Fast forward to 2019, where as a woman I feel like the society I live in has come a long way since the 1930s when Woolf wrote these words. These choices are not so definitive now, with modern conveniences, technology, and concepts such as daycare (!) that facilitate the choices women make between private professional lives.
But have we come as far as we think? The COVID-19 pandemic is showing the cracks in all of the progress we thought we had made, and it is especially evident when we look at working mothers. The burden of childcare and development, and maintaining a household has fallen disproportionately on women during the pandemic.
In a recent article in the National Post, it was written that "It's a mother-focused pandemic, as it's affecting mothers, more than women, more than fathers and more than men. Women are leaving the workforce at alarming rates, and it will have long-lasting consequences". I have experienced this with friends who have chosen to take time away from work to support their children and families during this challenging time, or facing suffering burnout while they care for children and elderly parents while maintaining a full-time job. In some cases, it feels like a push backward for mothers.
The National Post article discusses implications for the economy. I wonder about the longterm effects for women in the workforce - both for the women and for the workforce. This effect could have negative consequences that impact creativity and innovation as perspectives become less diverse in the workplace.
Sources
Martin, J. R. (1991). The contradiction and the challenge of the educated woman. Women’s Studies Quarterly [Special Issue on Women, Girls, and the Culture of Education], 19(1/2), 6–27.
Shah, Zeenya. March 8, 2021. Experts fear the pandemic may have devastating effects on working moms. The National Post. From: https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/experts-fear-the-pandemic-may-have-devastating-effects-on-working-moms?fbclid=IwAR2828nnaga6n18AhgrH2KllIwn60HlDVD4tuJ6MIYzIisk1owRHRQdIsmM
Hi there,
ReplyDeleteI have recently wrote a piece for another class around the topic of issues that women have experienced during the pandemic. I also like to think that we have come a long way since the 1930's but sadly, I think we have not. The gender norms for women in the workplace and the home are still very much present. I wonder perhaps if the issue is that we have not yet normalized the role of men in their families as being more than the provider. We still rarely see men taking time away from work for family being caregiver, it is happening of course but it is not the norm in most professions. A step back from careers is still most often associated with women and I too wonder about the long term consequences of this past year in that regard.
Thanks for the post!
Thanks Jessica! I agree with all of your points. I wanted to add that some workplaces are going out of their way to support women during the pandemic, which is so wonderful. I recently interviewed for a new job and the interviewer made a point of illustrating how supportive they are of working moms. I was impressed that this was brought forward, but wondered if I would have received the same message if I were a male candidate with children.
ReplyDeleteHi Tiffany,
ReplyDeleteI was glad to see you write about this subject! It has come up a lot in my conversations with friends and colleagues lately. I have only started to really feel this pressure myself and have been contemplating the same question of 'how far have we really come?' While we have come far certainly, there is still lots of room for improvement and innovation. Perhaps the pandemic will spur us to take action and improve, again, our lives as working woman and mothers.
Thanks for the thoughtful, and very relevant, post!
Rhea
Thanks for reading and commenting, Rhea! I hope you are right, and that the pandemic makes us question and examine automatic thoughts and actions about gender roles that have resurfaced!
ReplyDeleteHi Tiffany,
ReplyDeleteGreat post. It sad to see that we have not progressed as much as we sometimes appear to. The idea of a pay gap is insane and the disparity of supports for home and daycare definitely presents some challenges that we need to as society find ways to balance and overcome this disparity. It is so telling that these imbalances have not been beaten by a society that would proclaim itself as progressive and fair.