National Women’s History Month has been commemorated every March since 1987, though this year, it feels particularly fresh. The rise of the #MeToo and #TimesUp movements has spurred a new international dialogue about gender equality, diversity and pay party. Women around the world are standing up, and the world is listening.
In honor of these efforts, Comparably took a comprehensive look at how women feel about a variety of workplace topics, from compensation to harassment to work-life balance.
The results come from hundreds of thousands of anonymous employee responses to a series of 20 individual queries. Respondents come from all industries, but predominantly the tech sector. The results and methodology are below.
In case you missed it, be sure to check out Comparably’s 2017 list of the Best Companies for Women as rated by female employees.
1. Women have more faith than men in the #TimesUp movement.
Sixty-five percent of women say the #TimesUp movement will improve the way men and women interact in the workplace. Fifty-eight percent of men say the same, according to a survey of 1,200 people.
2. 1 in 3 women have been sexually harassed at work.
Out of 8,000 women surveyed, 34% say they have experienced sexual harassment at work.
3. Women also have higher rates of experiencing other forms of workplace harassment (verbal abuse, other non-sexual abuse).
Thirty-two percent of women say they have suffered verbal abuse and other types of non-sexual harassment at work compared with 28% of men, according to a survey of 5,000 people.
4. Women report a slower rise in salary over time.
Less than a quarter of women say their salary has risen 50% or more in the last seven years (23%). Another 24% say their salary has stayed the same or gone down. Among men, 34% have seen their salaries rise 50% or more in the last seven years and only 16% have seen their salaries stay the same or go down. More than 8,000 respondents participated in the survey.
5. Fewer than half of all women feel they are paid fairly.
Less than half of women say they feel they are paid fairly. Fifty-five percent of men say the same. The data comes from the responses of more than 130,000 people.
6. Women are slightly less likely to negotiate their salaries.
Women are slightly less likely to negotiate their salaries than men are (64% of women vs. 67% men), according to a survey of more than 30,300 people.
7. Just half of women feel comfortable asking their boss for a raise.
Fifty-five percent of women say they feel comfortable asking their boss for a raise compared to 63% of men, according to a survey of more than 10,000 people.
8. If suddenly given the reins at their job, women say their first priority would be to increase employee pay.
When asked what they would change if they were in charge, women chose “increase employee pay” more than any other option. Among men, the most popular answer was “better vision and strategy.” More than 25,000 people participated in the survey.
9. The reason most women would quit their job tomorrow is because they feel underpaid or unappreciated.
When asked to offer a hypothetical reason for why they would quit their job tomorrow, 44% of women indicated that it would be because they feel underpaid or unappreciated. Nearly 33,000 people participated in the survey.
10. Women feel less certain in their careers overall.
Just 43% of women say they feel they have clear goals and a plan for their career compared with 52% of men. More than 38,000 people were surveyed.
11. 47% of women feel gender has held them back in their careers. Just 19% of men say the same.
In a survey of more than 18,000 people, nearly half of women say gender has held them back in their careers compared with 19% of men.
12. Women more likely to feel that having children holds people back in their careers.
Sixty-one percent of women say they believe that having children holds people back in their careers compared to 55% of men, according to a survey of 1,000 respondents.
13. Women are slightly less satisfied with their work-life balance.
Sixty-five percent of women say they are satisfied with their work-life balance compared with 69% of men, according to a study of 31,800 workers.
14. Women value ‘comfort and familiarity’ and ‘coworkers’ more than men do.
When asked what keeps them at a job, 38% of women chose comfort and familiarity vs. 35% of men, and 17% of women chose co-workers vs. 14% of men. More than 30,000 people were surveyed.
15. Women and men say “unclear goals” are their biggest work stress.
Thirty-four percent of women and 41% of men say having unclear goals is a bigger problem than working long hours, having a difficult co-worker or boss, or having a bad commute, according to a survey of 28,000 respondents.
16. Women don’t feel as comfortable giving their managers negative feedback.
Sixty-four percent of women say they feel comfortable providing negative feedback to their bosses compared with 70% of men, according to a survey of 16,000 people.
17. Women are slightly more likely to have a work BFF.
Sixty percent of women say they have a best friend of work – just slightly more than the 55% of men who say the same, according to a survey of more than 31,000 people.
18. Women say “more communication” is the key to improving company culture.
When asked to choose what would most improve company culture across different companies, women chose “more communication” while men chose “better leaders.” More than 7,000 people were surveyed.
19. Women say the worst bosses are (1) micromanagers and (2) overly critical.
Both men and women say micromanagers are the worst kind of bosses, though for women, the next most popular answer was “overly critical” bosses (25% of respondents). Men, on the other hand, were split equally between “overly critical” and “disorganized” bosses. Nearly 900 people participated in the survey.
20. Nearly a third of women say they believe robots will replace their jobs in the next decade.
Thirty-one percent of women say they think robots will take their jobs in the next decade, compared with 27% of men. More than 19,000 people were surveyed.
Methodology
- Questions were in Yes/No and multiple-choice format. A total of 20 survey questions were included. Each survey was initiated sometime between July 2016 and January 2018. Results are as of February 2018.
- Do you believe the #TimesUp movement will result in progress in relations between men and women in the workplace?
- Do you think having children holds people back in their careers?
- Did you negotiate your salary? ·
- Would you feel confident asking your boss for a raise?
- Have you ever been sexually harassed at work?
- Have you been verbally abused or severely harassed (non-sexual) by your boss at your current job?
- Do you feel that you’ve been held back in your career because of your gender?
- Are you satisfied with your work/life balance?
- What’s the main reason you stay at your current company?
- How much has your annual compensation increased in the last 7 years
- Do you have a close friend at work?
- What do you think would most improve office cultures across different companies?
- What’s the worst quality a Boss could have?
- If you were the boss, what’s the first thing you’d change?
- Hypothetically, if you were to quit tomorrow, what would your reason be?
- What’s your biggest stressor at work?
- Do you feel comfortable giving your boss negative feedback?
- Do you believe you’re paid fairly?
- Do you think your job could be replaced by a robot in the next 10 years?
- Do you have clear goals and a plan for your career?
- Results are based on 495,960 responses from men and women of all ethnicities, experience levels, ages, and educational backgrounds.
- Employees hail predominantly from small, mid-size, and large tech companies (VC-funded, privately-held, and public) and household brands such as Amazon, Apple, Google, Facebook, and Uber.
About Comparably
Comparably is one of the fastest growing compensation, culture, and career monitoring sites in the U.S. With the most comprehensive and uniquely structured data — segmented by gender, ethnicity, age, location, tenure, company size, equity, title/department, and education — the platform gives employees a more accurate picture of their worth and allows them to anonymously rate their workplace experiences and match with their dream jobs. Since its launch in 2016, Comparably has accumulated more than 3 million ratings from employees across 30,000 U.S. businesses and over 5,000 companies who use its employer branding and jobs tools. For more information on Comparably, go to www.comparably.com. For highly-cited workplace culture and compensation studies, including Comparably’s annual Best Places to Work and Best CEOs lists, log onto www.comparably.com/blog.
