Why women miss out on promotions

New Delhi: More and more women are getting higher education, but when it comes to promotions they lose out to their male counterparts as they lack family support and get less recognition from their male bosses, a study claimed on Wednesday.

Only a meagre 3.3 per cent women get elevated to the topmost positions in their entire professional career while 17.7 per cent women end up to the middle levels, the study conducted by the Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) said.

The study -- "Women Top in Education .Why Miss Top Positions" -- said over 78.9 per cent which is the largest segment of working women remained at the lowest working level without getting promotions and other facilities.

The real challenges in their professional development came from within the family as 73 per cent women felt that their husbands were not supportive enough and family responsibilities stopped them from giving their best to the work field, it claimed.

Releasing the study, country's first woman IPS officer Kiran Bedi said, "the fear of displacement among men makes them feel threatened towards a qualified woman. Men are good in dinner diplomacy while the women face a weakening support of family."

Awareness should be increased at school, colleges and university level to increase the economic growth of women, she said.

The study claimed that women face an increasing bias at the workplace as the male bosses do not give them the approval compared to the male professionals.

"Despite performing better in the organisation, they receive less approval and recognition from male bosses and were slower to be promoted," the study claimed.

The result showed an unanimous dejection and despondence in the working women. The women also felt that the organisational culture at many organisations was exclusionary and did not support women's advancement, it added.

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Forty-two per cent working women felt that men had a better chance as they could stay late at work and do social networking and liaison which helped them in promotions.

Interestingly, though the working conditions were not very favourable, majority of 58.66 per cent women preferred jobs while only 33.66 per cent wished to remain housewives.

Increase in self-employment was also on rise with 17 per cent women in metros opting for it.

Good salary was the first preference of working women while job security, job satisfaction and job responsibility were ranked second, third and fourth respectively in their marked preferences.

Many women felt that better economic conditions of the families were preventing them to enter in the job markets, the survey said.

The job opportunities were increasing with the formation of new companies, the survey found but added that many large corporations in India had not yet taken simple measure like providing child-care, flexibility in work hours and a women support system within the organisation.

The survey recommended measures like transparency in selection process, gender-fair criteria, training and networking facilities for women.