Gender Discrimination in the Workplace and Work-family Conflicts in China

Abstract

Despite the rapid development of China in the last decade, it is noticed that Chinese women are currently put in a problematic position under uneven work distribution barriers with the rapid growth and continuous shifts of society. With the widening gender gap, women are not only still expected to carry more duties in taking care of the family, but also with an expectation of contributing economic support for the family as well. On the other hand, the governmental policy indirectly reinforces the gender discrimination problem in the workplace, such as a mandatory extension of maternal leaves. This paper aims to examine the current status of gender discrimination in the Chinese hiring market and workplace through literature reviews and in-depth interviews, to better understand the potential factors contributing to the situation, then to develop potential solutions for the intense situations under an updated analysis. It is found that women are playing double roles in Chinese society, who are expected to take more duties in the family and parenting, which is considered a huge distraction from their commitment to their careers. Hence, the female labor force is often less preferred compared to the male labor force by employers.