Violence against women costs the United States about $4.9 billion per year.  The indirect costs are, of course, exponentially higher. When appeals to fairness and humanity fall on deaf ears, an economic case can be persuasive. A new report released by the McKinsey Global Institute explains that reducing gender inequality in America would net trillions […]

Last month, I wrote about how gender bias in job descriptions can dissuade women from applying for positions. Not surprisingly, bias infects later stages of the hiring process as well. Numerous studies have demonstrated that gender and racial biases can dramatically affect how employers assess candidates’ application materials, leading employers to favor white, male applicants […]

It should come as no surprise that campaigns fall victim to many problems facing traditional employers, like lack of representation of women, pay disparities, and sexual harassment.  After all, campaigns are just another workplace.  A Jezebel study last week revealed serious issues with both pay and representation for women on the major presidential campaigns, and […]

Most often I’d tuck it up the sleeve of my cardigan, turning my wrist in so it wouldn’t slip out.  If I needed free hands, I’d hide it in my waistband.  Dresses posed more of a problem. With no pockets and no long sleeves, I’d have to get creative.  Worst case, it meant taking my whole, […]

It has been known for some time that women suffer from higher rates of depression and anxiety than men. Recently, many news outlets reported on a study that shows that these higher rates are correlated with the pay gap. While women who had similar income to male counterparts had a similar risk of depression and […]

Recently a vibrant debate about increasing the number of women in STEM fields has been taking place in academia, the private sector, and even the federal government. One of the biggest problems is ensuring that young women interested in the sciences stay in STEM fields throughout college and the rest of their careers. Currently, women […]

The New York Times recently published a fascinating and tragic article about a small group of women in rural India who challenged the social order of their village by seeking and obtaining jobs at a meat-processing factory. The women walked 10 miles each way (to save the 7-cent rickshaw fare) to the factory. There, they […]

In any uphill battle, solidarity is often the key to success. Last weekend I had dinner with an old friend, Chloe Safier, who has been an ongoing advocate for women’s rights, both in the US and abroad.  I took the opportunity to talk with her about the global movement for gender justice and how building […]

The Convention on the Elimination of all Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW) is an international treaty adopted by the United States and ratified by almost every country in the world. If you have not heard of it, that may be because the United States is only one of seven countries that has failed to […]

What do the words “ninja,” “rock star,” and “badass” have in common? It turns out that these words, when listed in job descriptions, are major deterrents for women job seekers.  Social science research has called attention to the role of job descriptions in perpetuating gender inequality.  For example, a 2011 study entitled “Evidence That Gendered […]