Workplace Inequality

This document discusses workplace inequality, specifically focusing on gender inequality in the healthcare industry. It explores the causes and effects of workplace inequality and provides insights from social psychology and gender studies.

Running head: WORKPLACE INEQUALITY
Business Environment
-Workplace Inequality
Name of the Student
Name of the University
Author Note

1WORKPLACE INEQUALITY
Introduction:
Workplace inequality is an umbrella term that is used to refer to a number of factors
that can lead to discrimination and marginalization of people causing them disadvantage at
the cost of others (Cunningham 2015).
One example of workplace inequality I faced
Inequalities can exist in many forms in the workplace. One of the biggest inequalities
I have faced in the healthcare industry is a form of gender inequality that exists in the form
of wage gap between male and female physicians and healthcare providers as well as unequal
sharing of workload and responsibilities among them. The female healthcare professionals in
the organization not only had a lower average pay, but also were not represented adequately
in the management as the male employees always got the first preference for promotions to
managerial or administrative roles.
Why that inequality exists
According to social psychology theory, gender inequality is the unequal treatment of
people of the opposite sex which has been learnt through social conditioning and can occur
under several circumstances. The theory explains how through social conditioning and
reinforcements, individuals learn group behavior from others. One such group behavior can
be exclusion of the opposite sex from special privileges and discriminating against them. In
the organization, this can be especially relevant, when the practice of one individual at an
authoritative position can soon convert into a norm with other under them blindly following
the same process (Coy 2016).
The problem of gender inequality can also be related to the stream of gender studies
in which the gender identities and gender representations of people are studied to understand
the differences in perspectives. According to the theory, gender can be broken down as a

2WORKPLACE INEQUALITY
combination of biological, social and identity constructs and therefore is a product of both
conditioning and biology and is influenced and reinforced through observation. Thus shows
how this practice can exist in the organization (Vivar 2016).
Conclusion
From the above study it can be concluded that gender inequalities can occur due
several causes and can be exhibited in many ways. One significant way in which I
experienced gender inequality was a gap in wages between male and female staff. I believe
that such behaviors can be clearly understood under the lens of social psychology and gender
studies.

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References:
Coy, M. ed., 2016. Prostitution, harm and gender inequality: Theory, research and policy.
Routledge.
Cunningham-Parmeter, K., 2015. Marriage equality, workplace inequality: The next gay
rights battle. Fla. L. Rev., 67, p.1099.
Vivar, M.T.H., 2016. Framing intersectionality: Debates on a multi-faceted concept in
gender studies. Routledge.