rk ruling throws into doubt all systems of positive action giving priority to job applications from women that are favored by many European states, especially Germany. In the UK, the Equal Opportunities Commission has seen the judgment as support for its resistance to positive discrimination. One implication of the judgment noted by Labour Party critics was the threat to its policy of reserving 1/2 of all its winnable seats for women. (p. 13)
Here in America, the Supreme Court's decision has left many companies unsure of how to go about making sure that they do not under-utilize racial/ethnic/gender groups. In terms of gender concerns in general and women managers in particular, clearly what is needed is a new means of assisting women to not only be hired by a given organization but to resolve those sex-based difficulties she is likely to meet on the job.
One innovative method that has been proposed for meeting the challenges to sex-based problems faced by female managers is the development of programs based on the systems approach (Kandola, Fullerton & Ahmed, 1995). In general, the authors report, the system approach holds that the lack of ethnic/racial or gender diversity in an organization is due to a variety of factors and not just gender. What is needed, therefore, is a resolution to the problems that is based on a holistic approach. Such an approach takes into account a variety of background and career-related factors of female managers.
Based on the systemic model as it applies to fostering diversity in the workplace, including ethnic and gender diversity, the proposed study will undertake the research problem of completing a comprehensive and holistic assessment of female managers' background and career experiences; this assessment will cover demographic, occupational, family upbringing and education related factors.
Further, an assessment will be made of the extent to which managers' perceive several gende...