Ageism is impacting Gen Z and Millennial women in the workplace at far higher rates than older women, a study in the US has found.
LeanIn and McKinsey & Co. released the Women in the Workplace 2024 report, collating ten years of data on women working in corporate America. It’s the largest report of its kind, surveying more than 480,000 people from more than 1,000 companies.
One of the key findings of this year’s report, the tenth anniversary of the study, was the way ageism disproportionately impacts women in their 20s and 30s, compared to not only their male counterparts, but also older women.
Nearly half (49 per cent) of women in their 20s reported that their age has negatively impacted their career, and 37 per cent of women in their 30s said the same.
This is compared to about a quarter (24 per cent) of women in their 40s and 29 per cent of women in their 50s reporting their career was negatively impacted by their age.
According to the research, Gen Z and Millennial women are also twice as likely as their male counterparts to receive unwanted comments about their age in the workplace. This includes co-workers making jokes about their appearance, their lack of experience, and excluding them from promotions or certain leadership positions.
Rachel Thomas, the CEO and co-founder of LeanIn, said there is a culture issue in corporate America that impacts the way young women are perceived over their young male co-workers.
“We tend to promote men based on their potential, and women based on what they’ve already accomplished,” Thomas said. “(Young women) face bigger barriers to advancement.”
Other findings
There was a slight uptick in the number of women in C-suite roles in corporate America. In 2015, 17 per cent of C-suite positions were filled by women. This number is now at 29 per cent.
However, women of colour are not being offered the same opportunities as others. The Women in the Workplace study found that for every 100 men promoted to a managerial role, only 54 Black women are promoted. This rate has actually worsened over time: four years ago, it was 58 Black women.
Companies’ commitments to gender and racial diversity are also going backwards. According to the study, 88 per cent of companies in 2017 said gender diversity is a high priority, and 77 per cent in 2019 said the same for racial diversity.
But in 2024, only 78 per cent are prioritising gender diversity, and 69 per cent are prioritising racial diversity.
Unpaid domestic responsibilities still disproportionately fall on women, and this has gotten worse over time too, according to the study. In 2016, 35 per cent of women with partners said they did most or all of the housework. Today, that number is 39 per cent.
Alarmingly, sexual harassment in the workplace is just as common, if not more common, as it was five years ago, the study found. In 2018, 35 per cent of women said they have experience sexual harassment in their career. That number is now 37 per cent, 2 per cent higher in 2024.
In this year’s data, 14 per cent said they have experienced some form of sexual coercion at work, including being pressured to engage in an unwanted sexual relationship.
According to the study, it will take 48 years for corporate America to reach gender parity.