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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License
Article
Why Brazilian Women Are Not on Top: The Work-Life Reconciliation Hypothesis
Author(s)
Marcia Cristina Esteves Agostinho
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DOI:10.17265/1537-1506/2017.01.005
Affiliation(s)
University Estácio de Sá, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
ABSTRACT
The
female presence in middle management is already significant in Brazil. Yet, women
hold only 7% of the board seats. Why are there so few women in corporative top ranks?
Is it possible that prejudice and sexism work selectively, allowing women to ascend
not beyond a certain point in corporate hierarchy? This paper rejects such a perspective
and aims at understanding the dynamics that drive women against the executive suite.
The premise beneath this research is that women are not victims, but autonomous
individuals. In order to test the hypothesis of Brazilian women choosing not to
ascend, the first step was to analyze Brazilian Institute of Geography and Statistics’ (IBGE) data on work force and
employment. Thereafter, the research explores the possibility that organizational
dynamics is a major factor for women to deal with work-life issues. Studies of scientific
organizations show that flexibility helps conciliate work and life. The conclusion
is: if corporations could emulate the scientific organizational environment, probably
they would not only attract more women to the executive suite, but also adapt to
a transforming society.
KEYWORDS
women, top-management, work-life balance, work organization
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