There is no denying that gender discrimination exists in many industries, but nowhere is it more prevalent than on Wall Street. The past 10 years have seen more gender discrimination lawsuits brought by women against financial institutions than any other type of employment discrimination suit. And yet the problem persists.
The high power and high paying jobs on Wall Street are still filled predominately by men. Oftentimes women find it challenging to break into the next level because of the glass ceiling that exists and the inaccurate stereotypes about women that have been perpetuated for many years.
The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) has reported that the percentage of women in senior positions is lowest in the securities industry. The EEOC further indicated that it is more difficult for women to gain entry into management positions than their male counterparts.
Despite the lawsuits and the statistics reported by the EEOC, the demographics of Wall Street firms have not changed much with respect to women. Women continue to be relegated to lower level, more administrative oriented jobs and are denied the opportunities that men are afforded simply because of their gender.