Chinese women complain of discrimination in the workplace
Most companies favour male employees. Discrimination also affects online job platforms, this according to 22 per cent of women applicants. Women have fewer opportunities for career development and promotion.
Beijing (AsiaNews/CLB) – More and more Chinese women are ready to take action against discrimination and gender bias in the workplace.
The rising number of gender discrimination cases prompted China’s Supreme Court to hold a briefing last August.
Guo Feng, deputy-director of the Research Office of the Supreme People's Court of China, said that both individuals and groups of corporations assume civil liabilities for gender equality among workplaces in China.
Speaking about a verdict, the senior judge noted that it not only protects workers on the job market, but also sends a warning to corporations not to break the laws on gender equality.
Guo also explained that most companies are in favour of hiring male employees based on concerns over physical differences between men and women, or worries that women will be less able to fulfil their job responsibilities during their period.
Hence, some companies have become accustomed to using perfunctory reasons to avoid accusations of gender discrimination in rejecting women's job applications.
Incidents of this kind have also been reported with respect to Zhaopin, China’s biggest online employment platform. Despite its commitment to equality, many of its job postings are for men only.
On Monday, Zhaopin confirmed this when it released a new report documenting gender discrimination in employment and advancement in the workplace.
Its ‘2017 Report on the Current Situation of Chinese Women in the Workplace’ collected responses from over 128,500 workers on questions ranging from employment opportunities to career development.
According to the study, 22 per cent of women report severe or very severe discrimination when seeking employment, whilst only 14 per cent of men raised the issue.
Employers across China often state a gender preference in job postings, even indirectly, like when women are asked about family planning when applying for jobs.
The study found that white-collar, college-educated female job hunters like Xiao Zhou don't seem to have an advantage.
Compared to men, higher-level graduates are more than twice as likely to be discriminated against when they apply for jobs, with 43 per cent of female graduates encountering severe discrimination.
A separate 2015 survey [5] by the All-China Federation of Women showed that 87 per cent of women graduates experience some kind of employment discrimination, with the vast majority citing unfair preference for men as the cause.
The odds are also stacked against women when it comes to career development and promotion opportunities. About 72 per cent of Zhaopin survey participants had men as supervisors.
The relative absence of women supervisors is directly linked to discrimination in promotions, with 25 per cent of women experiencing severe or very severe discrimination in promotions, compared with 18 per cent of men.
Despite the statistical evidence, often women have a hard time proving their claims in the legal system, since gender disparities are often subtle and hard to substantiate in courtrooms.
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09/03/2023 13:42
08/03/2023 13:53
