READY TO LEAD?
According to a recent report by the Institute of Women's Policy Research, last year 45% of all union members were women yet women still aren't as likely as men to hold leadership roles in our unions. Our unions reflect the gender gap in leadership roles just as American organizations and corporations do as a whole.
So what can Teamster women do about it? Is there a woman's way to lead? Should we lean in? Are we "sisters in the brotherhood?" Why do we still have to talk about it? Do we really have to work twice as hard? Is there room enough for us? Is it worth it? Is she really doing that? Are women the new face of unions? Can we talk about it? How can we help each other?
I hope you are honored and just as proud as I am to be a Teamster. Our union founders believed in and called for "equal pay for equal work" decades before many other organizations, even before women gained the right to vote. Building on those progressive values is what makes our union strong. I'm starting this conversation series "Ready To Lead" to share and think about leadership. I believe strong Teamster women make Teamsters stronger!
Here's something to think about...
Do gender stereotypes create bias against women?
Have you ever felt someone underestimated you or your performance? Or, a time when you underestimated another? Why do you think this happened?
Shelly Correll, Professor, Stanford University shares;
WAYS GENDER STEREOTYPES CREATE BIAS AGAINST WOMEN
-creates a harsher standard for women
-their performance is more heavily scrutinized
-can lead us to doubt women's expertise
-required to repeatedly prove their competence
-shifts the criteria used to evaluate women in order to justify a more stereotypical
decision
-creates a backlash for women who do not meet our stereotypical expectations
SIX STRATEGIES TO REDUCE BIAS
-educate yourself and decision makers on bias raising awareness
-establish clear criteria in advance of making decisions
-scrutinize the criteria being used, do they unintentionally screen out certain candidates?
-hold decision makers and yourself accountable
-be transparent in progress towards goals
-vouch for the competence of all women, especially women leaders
What are your key takeaways from this video?
What actions will you take?
"Some leaders are born women."
Geraldine Ferraro, Diplomat, U.S. Representative, Women's Rights Activist, Lawyer (1935–2011)
On July 12th, 1984, Geraldine Ferraro became the first female vice-presidential candidate in the history of the United States.
Geraldine A. Ferraro died on March 26, 2011, at the age of 75, in Boston, Massachusetts. In a statement released shortly after her death, her family said, "Geraldine Anne Ferraro Zaccaro was widely known as a leader, a fighter for justice, and a tireless advocate for those without a voice. To us, she was a wife, mother, grandmother and aunt, a woman devoted to and deeply loved by her family. Her courage and generosity of spirit throughout her life waging battles big and small, public and personal, will never be forgotten and will be sorely missed."
