Women on Top: How to Get Equal Pay and a Promotion

Under the law, it is illegal to discriminate on the basis of gender in any aspect of employment such as including hiring, firing, pay, job assignments, promotions, layoff, training, fringe benefits, and any other condition of employment.

In an article from Forbes.com, the author however, notes that despite the equalization of laws, studies in the United States show that women just get 77 cents for every dollar men are paid.

Also, among the 500 top companies, there are only 15 female executives which head companies like Yahoo!, Xerox, and Pepsi.

While filing a gender discrimination lawsuit under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 or the Equal Pay Act of 1963 are options aggrieved employees may take against their employer for failing to provide equal pay or promote, the author also suggested another way for women to get the salary or promotion they want.

According to the author, a lot of women get bypassed for promotions because they are not as aggressive as some of their male colleagues – women are not pushy enough. In fact, women do not ask for a raise or a promotion as often as men do.

Here are some tips on how women can get what they want out of their careers without resorting to labor litigation:

• Ask for a promotion and a raise – Aside from earning your promotion or a raise, your boss would need to know that they need to give the career advancement to you. You have to sell the idea of promoting you to the bosses.
  
  
  • Arrange a meeting with your boss to discuss how you may earn a raise or a promotion within a certain period of time.
  
  
  • Explain what you’ve accomplished. Try to highlight instances where you’ve been a productive employee as well as situations where you’ve shown and proven that you have leadership abilities.


• Be professional – A lot of times, there is a misconception that women get to the top by sleeping their way to it. But in reality, women who use their sexuality are not often taken seriously.