The gender gap is now affecting remote work

Remote working for the last two years have upended our cultural norms — from our work hours, to how we dress, and how we collaborate with our co-workers. However, it has not changed how most women are treated in the workplace.

A survey from management consulting company McKinsey revealed that while 61% of men have been offered the opportunity to work remotely, only 52% of women can say the same.

Such opportunities are even slimmer for transgender and nonbinary people, 32% of whom were offered the chance to work remotely.

Looking further, these statistics are not even matching up to what workers want to have. When given the chance to work remotely, women tend to do so for 3.1 days per week, a more significant number than the 2.9 days for their male counterparts.

This just adds insult to the widening disparity in gender accommodation in the workplace. Women are already paid less and receive different feedback than men.

The good thing is most women are not used to backing down. In a Fortune article, veteran media executive and startup investor Fran Hauser said that “women are in a position, now more than ever, to redefine work on their own terms.” 

“With more than 11 million open jobs in America right now—more than any other time in history—it’s an employee’s market. Companies know they must get women back in the door,” she added.

Last month, nearly 400,000 women joined the labor force, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics jobs report and the National Women’s Law Center. That boost brought women’s labor force participation to 58.3%, just one percentage point below their pre-pandemic levels

This means that women are starting to gain an upper hand in today’s workforce. Companies that are missing this shift are making a critical error of judging them based on their gender and not on their work ethics.

Read more here.