Women's employment issue's

There are many erroneous ideas about women who are trying to get back into the workforce after a long gap in employment. Many employers believe that these women are low-grade applicants who lack motivation and dedication and who are more likely to be poor employees. They often do not take into account that many of these women in actuality are mothers and housewives who work very hard at their “volunteer positions”. As a result, women who have been out of the workforce for a number of years often have difficulty finding a good job.

The skill requirements for the majority of jobs can be a challenge for women who have not been in the workforce for some time. These women usually are not up-to-date on the latest technology that the average employee encounters in the workplace. For example, in order to get hired on at a job they may have to know how to use a computer and the internet, type at least forty words per minute, and demonstrate proficiency in using office software such as Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. They must also have good verbal and written communication because the ability to listen, write, and speak effectively is critical in business. There are many other crucial skills that she must have as well. She must be adaptable, flexible, interpersonal, a team player, as well as professional.



When they do not have these skills, they are forced to take a low paying,
dead end job with zero benefits, or to go back to school to learn the new technology.
This places the woman in a catch twenty-two situation.
If she chooses the dead end job, she will not have enough money to live on,
let alone to save enough to pay for updating her education.
On the other hand, although electing to return to school will help her to land a
good paying job in the future, it does not meet her immediate financial needs.

Women that have gaps in their employment also have a difficult time proving their
abilities to perform to potential employers.
Although she may have gaps in her work history, or even no traditional work history,
it does not mean that she does not have experience.
Many of these women are new single mothers,
perhaps recently divorced or widowed ex-homemakers,
who simply find themselves in a situation that they need to start
being the breadwinner for their family.
Although they do not have the work history that employers are looking for
they have strengths that are crucial in the workplace.
A homemaker, for instance, is a chef, hostess, nurse, financial manager,
amateur psychologist, teacher, caregiver and good planner.
A stay at home mom has experience with multi-tasking and follows a strict daily routine.
She has to wake up the kids, get everyone bathed and clothed, make and serve breakfast
and then take everyone to school.
She must then clean the house and do what ever else that needs to get done before
the kids are home from school.
She also has to delegate chores to the older kids, or even perhaps to repair people
when something goes wrong that she has not the knowledge or time to fix.
As a new single mom, she may also have to do all this while also searching for
work and interviewing candidates for the new babysitter, which she will need,
so women have mastered a variety of skills in their day-to-day lives that are highly
needed in the workplace. Though perhaps not traditional, their skills are nevertheless
very relevant to the workforce. However, it is still very tough to get employers
to recognize these strengths.

Employers often do not understand the hard work, sacrifices and assets that women
bring to the workplace and it is time they become more aware of these skills.
Although these women may not be technologically literate, their prior life skills
should count more than they do and should be enough of a basis for hiring them
and supplying them with on the job training to bring their tech skills up-to-date.
Employers may end up finding a “diamond in the rough” if they looked more closely at
these women and give them a shot at a good paying job.