Why Are Men Receiving The Majority Of Pandemic-Era Work Promotions?

As the economy was thrown into a state of flux due to the COVID-19 pandemic, women in the workforce seem to be facing especially unwelcomed repercussions. The wage gap between men and women appears to be growing.

According to a study by Qualtrics and theBoardlist, 34% of men working remotely with children at home said they recently received a promotion, versus 9% of women in the same situation. The study of 1,051 salaried U.S. employees was conducted in early July.

In addition, 26% of men with children at home said they received a pay raise while working remotely, compared to 13% of women with children at home.

According analysis by the National Women's Law Center, of the 1.1 million workers over the age of 20 who left the labor force in September, 80% were women.

Meanwhile, one in four women considered downshifting their careers or leaving the workforce altogether, according to McKinsey & Company's "Women in the Workplace" report.

A Harvard study also shows that women are at a disadvantage when "schmoozing" with their boss. The Harvard study reveals that socially interacting with your boss can help individuals get a promotion or a raise. That study also revealed that women who "schmooze" with a male boss don't typically receive the same rewards as their male counterparts. In addition, female bosses don't reward schmoozing.

Researchers suggest the difference in outcomes lies in the fact that men can more easily banter than women with higher-ranking men. Four out of five women say they feel excluded from relationship-building at work. Many say they aren't able to participate in formal or informal after-work activities and gatherings.

Women are consistently deprived of promotions and higher wages despite the fact they often outperform male employees.

In 2017, the most recent year such data was available, women were 21% more likely to achieve “top performer” status than men, up from 12% in 2015.

Female managers also produced better than males. In 2017 women who were managers were 22% more likely than male managers to be rated as top performers, Market Watch reported.

However, women under 40 years of age said they were less likely to receive a promotion.

The gender pay gap also shows no signs of narrowing. Women under 40 are earning about 79 cents for every dollar men earn, and women over 40 earn about 82 cents for every dollar men earn.