Why Women Ask For Less

Business survey 2008 reveals that number of professional graduates passing out each year in
India is 1, 50,000. Among them, !" to #1" are $omen. But only a fe$ of them are able to
reach higher echelons. %s. Indra &ooyi '(hairman and ()*, +)+,I(* ltd- is one such $oman
$ho succeeded in her career. %s. (handa .ochar '()*, I(I(I Ban/- is another such successful
personality $ho fits in the scenario. 0hile Indra &ooyi ta/es a monthly pay of about #.5 crores
of Indian 1upee, ho$ many of other professional graduates from India, are able to dra$ a
monthly pay of 25,000 rupees. 2he survey sho$s that average monthly income of $omen is
around !" as compared $ith that of the men.
2hese are the only $omen $ho $ere able to mar/ their footprints in top level and a fe$ more.
But $hat happens to the rest3
%anagement studies in the $est are no$ focusing on ne$
aspects that are unnoticed by the east. *ne among such topics $as 4056 0*%)& A,. 7*1
8),,9, $hen compared to men, $omen are not li/ely to be selected to a high salary and
position after a certain limit, even though they are e:ually good performers in the scene. 2he
recent recipe that adds $orth is the study by 8isa.A.Barron, Assistant +rofessor at the
;niversity of (alifornia, Irvine<s =raduate ,chool of %anagement, in $hich it $as inferred
that $omen $ho negotiate >ob offers generally as/ for lo$er initial salaries than men do
1
.
0riting in the ?une edition of 5uman 1elations %aga@ine she concludes that this finding is
partly due to different beliefs about $orth, entitlement and proving oneself. In India, these
$omen commonly return to less challenging roles or pro>ects or get lo$er performance ratings.
,uch eAplicitly discriminatory behaviors although they violate company policies, continue
unchec/ed, even though the multinational companies $hose hopes for gro$th are pinned on
the emerging mar/ets.
2his is believed to be the first study to eAamine beliefs lin/ed to
differences in men<s and $omen<s salary re:uests. 2he findings from previous studies that
sho$ed men gain more than $omen from negotiating salaries, and that $omen feel less
comfortable $ith negotiating than men do. In a recent survey, 8" of $omen also said they
need to prove themselves on the >ob, $hile B#" of the men said that proving themselves
should be done during the >ob intervie$ or the performance evaluation process. 2he relatively
lo$ participation of $omen in the $or/force is not due to lac/ of education and high s/ills,
rather, it is more li/ely a result of combination of factors ranging from cultural and religious
sensitivities through the geographic isolation from ma>or employment foci. 2hese limiting
factors, $hich hinder the advancement of $omen and in turn ,negatively affect economic
development, is of ma>or concern.
Another ma>or concern is that $omen eAecutives depart from their positions t$ice more li/ely
than men. About !.2 " of $omen eAecutives left their >obs compared to .8" of men
according to a recent survey

.
2he most common barrier for almost all $omen $or/ers are family and children. 2he second
being the facilities available to the $omen are inade:uate. A range of social and cultural barriers
mentioned in the study related to $omen participation in ne$ generation business relates that
$omen not $ish to $or/ in inappropriate environments, not $anting to $or/ closely $ith
un/no$n males, and the pressure from families and husbands against engaging in >ob seen as a
demeaning or culturally unacceptable to $omen $or/ers from countries such as India
#
.
A survey points out to different vie$s of $omen perception relating to this topic. It states
that $omen as/ for less pay because ma>ority of $omen see >ob as a status factor, rather than an
earning factor. A $oman $ho is $or/ing is more respected than one $ho is not, so compared to
getting a >ob, feeling the income ta/es a bac/ seat. 2here is a general feeling that $hen it comes
to a $oman, she values her personal interest more than company interest. In most of the country,
$omen are treated as second grade citi@ens, even more denied of their fundamental rights and
companies choose this as a situation and priority to eAploit the human resources in such countries
and offer them position and status rather than income. 0hen financial independence is offered to
a $omen , she doesnCt often thin/ about the maAimum she could get, she >ust settles for
something is better than nothing attitude.
2he countries that have large proportions of $or/ing professional $omen tend to
offer more fleAible $or/ing arrangements and more $or/Dbased facilities for $omen. 2hese
arrangements can include partDtime $or/ing, fleAible hours, return to $or/ after maternity
leave, >ob sharing, and soDon. Burdens coping $ith the role of the Eto/en $omenC, lac/ of role
models and feelings of isolation , strains of coping $ith pre>udice and seA stereotyping and
overt and indirect discrimination from fello$ employees, employers , the organi@ational
structure and climate. 2hese stresses on top of trying to maintain a family andFor home are
creating enormous pressure on $omen in management.
Author(s)
Dr.B.Chandrachoodan Nair
'Girector,%anagement ,tudies,&oorul Islam ;niversity,.umaracoil,2amil &adu-
Ram Krishnan.S
'1esearch ,cholar,%anagement ,tudies,&oorul Islam ;niversity,.umaracoil,2amil&adu-
References.
1.9 0hen compared toH..9 pg.I 1- A study by Lisa A. Barron, assistant professor at the
University of California, July 7 2003.
2. With reference to Enterprisin !o"en by Carol .#.$.
%. Another "a&or''"en( p.) *+-Wo"en e,ecutives t!ice as li-ely to .uit &obs as "en, says
study( by /A01 for 2he Econo"ic 2i"es #aily, Chennai34ochi 1upple"ent dated 56-*5-25*5
+.(2he "ost co""on barrier'inade.uate.( p)2- 78a,i"i9in !o"en:s participation in ulf
cooperation council !or-force, the e,a"ple for ho"e !or-in 7 by Chris ;o!ley ,Willia" 1cott
<ac-son , Andre! =roteus,Basher 4arie",A"ira >arb,Effective E,ecutive,/U=
=ublications,Auust 25*5.
5. 0omen )arn 8ess 2han %en, But 0hy3 D httpIFFblogs.payscale.com by .atie Bardaro
1esearch Analyst, +ay ,cale, Inc.
6. $$$.0i/ipedia.com
Indra Krishnamurthy Nooyi - (hairperson and (hief )Aecutive *fficer '()*-
of +epsi(o Incorporated,
Chanda Kochhar - %anaging Girector '%G- of I(I(I Ban/ and (hief )Aecutive *fficer
'()*-.
Lieutenant General Punita Arora - the first !o"an in /ndia to don the second hihest ran-
i.e Lieutant ?eneral of /ndian Ar"ed @orces. and the first Aice ad"iral of /ndian 0avy.