Hays Report: How to facilitate women's growth in the workforce

Many studies devoted to women in the labor market indicate the need for solutions that increase the presence of women in the highest positions. At the same time, in almost all sectors of the economy, one can observe a growing share of women, a gradual decrease in the pay gap, an ever lower rate of unemployment and many positive signs of equal treatment independent of gender. In this situation, concentration on pro-female solutions may obscure the perspective of men and the voices of experts who are increasingly perceiving the shadows of parities.

The Hays Poland survey "Women on the labor market 2019" shows that every year job satisfaction, professional ambitions and opportunities for their implementation - for both women and men - are increased. Over 65 percent men are satisfied with their role. Every third occupies a managerial position, every fourth independent, expert specialist position, 12 percent. performs the role of a director, while 10% management or ownership function. Men more often than women manage companies in the area of ​​banking and investment, construction, energy, production and IT.

AMBITIONS AND ASPIRATIONS

Satisfaction with current work, however, does not cause men's aspirations to be smaller than in previous years or to women's ambitions. Men measure high and strive for the position of a director (20 percent), managerial or owner (38 percent). Ambition is not everything, however. Men are planning their professional careers more and more consciously. This year as much as 74 percent of men declare having at least partially worked on development strategy. Men also declare the possibility of communicating their career goals to their present position and open conversation with their supervisor. Over half of the participants in this year's survey confirm that they have the freedom to talk about their ambitions. As a consequence, men have the feeling that their aspirations are heard - they are told by their direct superior or a person who influences their career path. Most of the gentlemen think that he can count on the support of the superior in the implementation of the plan. Most often, this support consists of regular assessment of results and planning of short-term activities, enabling participation in courses and trainings - both organized by the employer and external suppliers - and presenting and discussing promotion prospects.

EQUAL CHANCES

As much as 70 percent men think that employees with similar qualifications have equal opportunities for promotion, regardless of gender. A similar percentage of men also think that employees with similar qualifications are fairly paid, regardless of gender. The conviction of equal opportunities translates into the perception of the Polish labor market by men as a place of increasingly accessible and friendly diversity, working parents and individualism.

Unfortunately, more often than last year, men complain about obstacles in their career resulting from gender. While only one in ten men saw difficulties related to their gender last year, this year it is 22 per cent. The men taking part in the Hays Poland study talk about favoring women, manifestations of discrimination, mounting difficulties in reconciling work and private life, as well as women leaders who block men's careers. They pay attention to depreciating and criticizing selected professions, if they are not perceived as "masculine". Inadequate comments are exposed, among others, pedagogues and assistants.

More clearly than in previous years, men also point to the harming policy of parity and the direction of companies in the need to maintain gender balance in employment. At the same time, they point out that the balance on the labor market and in the organization is very necessary and is a positive phenomenon, but this guiding the competencies of candidates should be the most important. They also recognize that many attractive development programs are available only to women. Similarly, they see the facilitations for working parents - in the opinion of many men, ladies can count on more facilities related to motherhood, while the role of the father is treated as less important.

DAD AT WORK

In addition to gender challenges, men point to difficulties in combining professional and family roles. Nearly half of men (45 percent) declare in Hays that there are such obstacles in their careers. Most often, gentlemen point to a high occupancy, which results in too little time to spend with their relatives. Overtime work and inelastic work mode mean that men emphasize the limited chance of full participation in the child's life. The necessity of choosing between involvement in family and professional life concerns almost all working fathers. 

Men point to a number of difficulties, although the vast majority have the feeling that flexibility at work - highly valued by most employees - is available to them. 72 percent of respondents in this year's Hays study declare that their current employer offers opportunities to take advantage of various forms of flexible work. Among them are mobile working hours, remote work, the possibility of shortening the selected day of work. Particular interest of working fathers is the opportunity to match the start time to their preferences and work from home. The aspect of flexibility at work is very important for men, because only 5 percent. he considers this aspect to be irrelevant in his professional life. On the other hand, almost half of men when choosing an employer and considering changing work give flexibility to a very high priority.

"Striving for a greater participation of women in areas where their number is definitely smaller than the number of men is a positive trend, but the competence should be crucial. What is needed is ambition, aspirations, career plan management, as well as supporting a business environment that does not favor gender, but skills and knowledge," comments Bartosz Dąbkowski, an expert at Hays Poland.

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