Tuesday, January 7, 2014

The Importance of Gender Diversity in the Workplace

Today I'm presenting a webinar for a community college in Virginia on how to increase recruitment and retention of males and females in classes/programs that prepare them for nontraditional careers. Nontraditional careers are those where one gender makes up less than 25% of those employed in that field or occupation. So why is gender diversity important?

Gender diversity helps build a diverse workforce. Females and males bring different talents, different ways of thinking and problem-solving to the workplace. All of these things are valuable to a company. Nontraditional careers typically pay 20 to 30% higher wages than the traditional jobs many women pursue which can help females achieve a high socioeconomic status. It's important to base career choice on interest and aptitude not gender stereotypes. For some males, a career in the service or helping field may bring greater career satisfaction. And, some females may find working in a nontraditional career a better fit for them.

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