Week 1

Considering we just passed the 50^th anniversary of the “March on Washington,” I found it only appropriate to analyze social justice in the United Sates as it relates to career development.

Martin Luther King Jr. spoke not too long ago about the need for an equal and just nation. While our nation has improved, there are long strides ahead of us particularly when it comes to economic equity (Brown, 2012).

The disparity seen in economic equity is largely associated with the digital divide; 30 percent of students who do not graduate (and many others who do) do not have accessibility to computers or internet (Alliance for Excellence in Education, 2009).  These technologies not only provide fundamental skills for work placement in the United States, but across the globe, too.

While Brown (2012) places an emphasis on the financial division among ethnic groups (e.g., lower income for African American and Hispanic individuals when related to the White population), I believe it’s also important to discuss gender and its relation to social justice within career development. It is especially valuable considering the fact that the gender divide was only briefly mentioned in class on Wednesday, August 28.

In a society where few resources are provided to new mothers (other than a limited amount of time for maternity leave), it is not surprising that these new moms can also expect to take home less than their professional equal of the opposite sex. In academe alone, it was found that women’s salaries (at the age of retirement) are 29% lower than men’s (Mason, 2013). Please note that this study related to male and female full tenured professors with comparable credentials and experience. Is it not concerning that the women, many of whom are left to provide for their children on their own when separation and divorce takes place, earn a starkly different wage?

Moreover, women with fewer resources are having more children while women with more resources are having fewer. It was recently found that one in 20 women with low income are childless as compared with one in eight women who have a high income (Sandler, 2013). There is no question that where there is more financial backing there will be more opportunity. The previous statistic supports the research of Brown (2012) who found minorities were poorly equipped to appropriately set their children up for success in the working industry.

The reason I felt the distinct difference in income between men and women was important to discuss, is to drive home the point that inequality is everywhere and that the social injustices are multi-faceted. Not only are varying ethnicities discriminated against, but whole genders are as well. As more and more children are born into poverty, it is safe to assume their resources will be scarce, which feeds into the downward spiral of social injustice. Consequently, this inequality will continue the gap in economic equity and career development. 

So, more women who are less financially equipped (married or not) are having more children and these women are more than likely going to earn less money than their male counterpart. [I forgot to mention it costs approximately $235,000 per child through the age of 18 (Sandler, 2013).] As per the above information, when there are fewer resources, there will be less technology, which in turn will provide fewer opportunities. It is apparent that learning how to appropriately communicate with high risk children of parents -- or single parents -- whom have very few resources when it comes to career choice and career development, becomes even more essential.

-Brielle Elise Valle

Alliance for Excellence in Education (2009). Fact sheet. Retrieved from
             http://www.all4ed.org/files/GraduationRates_FactShet.pdf

Brown, D. (2012).  Career information, career counseling, and career development

            (10^th ed.).  New York: Pearson Education, Inc.

Mason, A. M. (2013, August 5). The baby penalty. Manage Your Career. Retrieved from

            http://chronicle.com/article/The-Baby-Penalty/140813/

Sandler, L. (2013, August 12). None is enough. Time, 182 40-45.