Women Are Encouraged To Speak Up, But Is Anyone Listening?
Written By WIN Coach and former WIN Summit Speaker, Bonnie Marcus
Since the inception of the #MeToo movement in 2006, women have been encouraged to speak up about the injustices they face in the workplace. #MeToo emboldened us to use our voices and trust that our concerns will be addressed. Though there has been some backlash to this, what’s most important to note is that we’re told it’s in our best interests to speak up, but when we do, is anyone listening? Is anyone taking action on our behalf?
When Simone Biles stated in her emotional testimony before Congress, “we have been failed”, she was referring to the lack of action taken by the FBI who heard her story and those of her fellow gymnasts, yet did nothing. This example of ignoring women who speak up about their injustices is not an isolated event. Whether it’s sexual abuse and harassment, gender bias or ageism, there is a pattern of women speaking up about their experiences, yet having their concerns fall on deaf ears.
Roma Torre and four of her colleagues, all anchors at the prominent news channel, NY1, repeatedly expressed their concerns to the network of a systemic effort to force them off the air in favor of younger and less experienced hosts. But when they spoke up, their concerns were never addressed. In fact, Ms. Torre was told by her employer to stop complaining. As a consequence of being ignored in their work environment, in 2016, they filed a lawsuit against their cable network, Charter Communications, alleging age and gender discrimination.
In 2012, Blair Davis-Garett took a job as a sales associate at Anthrolopologie. Garett, 54 at the time, faced repetitive abuse and age discrimination from her colleagues and her young manager, who told her outright that she was ‘too old’ to work there. Garett was forced out of her position by the company and eventually filed a lawsuit in 2015 when her employer failed to respond to her concerns.
“I have to tell you I did everything that they tell you to do. I called the 800 report an abuse line, I took notes, I wrote texts, I called management. I did all the things and the abuse not just continued but got much worse. I remember feeling so confused and angry”, Garett shared with me recently.
What will happen if we continue to speak up and no one listens? Will we continue to voice our concerns or will we give up, begin to retreat and remain silent, believing it won’t matter?
A recent survey I conducted on gendered ageism in the workplace sheds a light on this issue and is an example of the lack of trust women have for the system as well as the disappointment they feel when they speak up and aren’t heard.
77% percent of the female respondents who experienced gendered ageism at work took no action.
70% stated that they didn’t take action because they didn’t believe it would make a difference.
26% stated that they didn’t trust HR
23% didn’t want to risk losing their job for speaking up.
Of those who did speak up, there was little satisfaction.
44% of those who spoke with their manager were very dissatisfied and 17% somewhat dissatisfied.
71% of those who spoke to HR were very/somewhat dissatisfied.
One thing is clear. There needs to be a shift from the belief that women need fixing to an emphasis on creating systemic change. For there are many examples of women being ignored that have become public whether it’s for sexual abuse or ageism, but these are just the tip of the iceberg. How many women are facing different types of unjust and even illegal situations at work that we don’t know about, because they choose to remain silent, because they fear repercussions or believe it won’t do any good?
What we do know is that when women speak up, the system is failing them. This doesn’t mean we abandon giving women the tools to better communicate and influence action, but if we continue to focus on women being the problem, the gap in communication between women and their employers will persist. Frustrated and undervalued, women of all ages will leave the workforce.
DEI initiatives must include sexism, gender bias, ageism, racism in their unconscious bias training in order avoid failing women who speak up. Companies can no longer afford to risk their reputation or sacrifice their goals of gender equity when the world is watching.
This article was originally published on Forbes.
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More About Bonnie Marcus
Bonnie Marcus
Founder and CEO, Bonnie Marcus Leadership LLC. WIN Coach.
Award-winning entrepreneur, Forbes contributing writer, and executive coach, Bonnie Marcus, M.Ed., assists professional women to successfully navigate the workplace and position and promote themselves to advance their careers. Bonnie shares her message globally through speaking engagements, live and virtual workshops, blogging, and her popular podcast, Badass Women at Any Age.
With 20+ years of sales and management experience, Bonnie’s extensive business background includes CEO of a ServiceMaster company and VP of Sales at Medical Staffing Network and two others national companies in the healthcare and software industries. She has held executive positions in startup companies and Fortune 500 companies.
Bonnie’s book, The Politics of Promotion: How High Achieving Women Get Ahead and Stay Ahead, provides a roadmap for women to navigate the complexities of the workplace and position themselves for success. Not Done Yet! How Women Over 50 Regain Their Confidence and Claim Their Workplace Power, shines a light on gendered ageism in the workplace and gives women the tools and the voice to defy ageist assumptions to stay marketable and keep their job.
A certified coach, Bonnie has been honored by Global Gurus as one of the world’s top 30 coaches in 2015-2020. She has been acknowledged as one of the top 100 keynote speakers in 2018 by Databird Research Journal.
Bonnie received a BA from Connecticut College and a M.Ed. from New York University.
