A new report on the state of women in the workplace reveals no progress from previous years. The study conducted by LeanIn.org/McKinsey&Company, in fact, reveals that not only is gender bias continuing in the workplace at large, it is growing.
For every 130 men who are promoted from the entry-level ranks to manager, the study reveals that just 100 women are promoted at similar levels.
Here are five takeaways from the report:
Women are still underrepresented at every level
Despite modest progress since 2015, women remain underrepresented in the corporate pipeline. At every step, the representation of women declines, and this does not appear to be the result of company-level attrition. On average, the women and men in this study are leaving their organizations at about the same rate.
Women are less likely to be promoted to manager, so fewer end up on the path to leadership.
Promotion rates for women lag behind those of men, and the disparity is largest at the first step up to manager—for every 100 women promoted, 130 men are promoted. In addition, external hiring is not improving the representation of women. At every level, companies hire fewer women from the outside than men, and this is especially pronounced in senior management.
Very few women end up in line to become CEO
At senior levels, we see women shift from line to staff roles, while the percentage of men in line roles remains about the same. So by the time women reach the SVP level, they hold a mere 20 percent of line roles. This hurts their odds of getting the top job because the vast majority of CEOs come from line positions.
Women of color face even more barriers
Women of color are the most underrepresented group in the corporate pipeline, lagging behind white men, men of color, and white women. Even though they make up 20 percent of the U.S. population, women of color hold a mere 3 percent of C-suite positions, despite having higher aspirations for becoming a top executive than white women.
Women experience an uneven playing field
Women and men are not having the same experiences at work. Women get less access to the people and opportunities that advance careers and are disadvantaged in many of their daily interactions. Women are also less than half as likely as men to say they see a lot of people like them in senior management, and they’re right—only one in five senior executives is a woman.
Access the report here.
