MORE THAN twice as many women in Ireland are unhappy at work because of a lack of opportunity for advancement compared to men, an international study has found. And over half of women surveyed felt underpaid compared to just over one-quarter of men.
Global research by management consulting company Accenture, also found women were less successful than men when it came to asking for pay rises.
Reinvent Opportunity: Looking through a new Lensis to be launched next week by President Mary McAleese as part of International Women's Day.
The survey is carried out annually by Accenture, but Ireland has been included for the first time.
Just over half of Irish women surveyed had asked for a pay rise compared to two-thirds of men, and of those who did ask fewer women were successful.
Fewer women than men said they asked for a promotion, but it appeared once they did ask, they were more successful than men; only 5 per cent of women were turned down, compared with 22 per cent of men.
Overall, though less than half of women and men said they were satisfied with their job, three-quarters of women and 64 per cent of men said they intended to stay with the same company.
Irish workers ranked 13th for job satisfaction out of 29 countries. Some 3,400 people took part in the survey around the world in medium and large businesses.
The top reasons for dissatisfaction at work were lack of opportunity for advancement, which 62 per cent of women and 27 per cent of men complained of; and feeling underpaid, which 51 per cent of women and 27 per cent of men said they experienced. Only one in five women aspired to reach director level compared to 28 per cent of men and the majority of men aimed for senior management while women were more likely to aim for middle management.
Men were more than twice as likely as women to use networking contacts to advance their careers, the survey found. And half of all women did not network in their local business community compared to 30 per cent of men.
But men and women concurred when it came to work-life balance; both cited it as the most important job aspect.
Paula Neary, senior executive, Accenture, said it appeared from the survey that women were not good at looking for pay rises. They were also less likely to seek promotion, but when they did they were very successful, she said.
“Women need particular support to bring them through to the top of the organisation,” she said.
When appropriate supports were in place, including mentoring and programmes such as “maternity buddies”, it was possible for talented women to come through, Ms Neary said.
