Women Should Know Their Rights

Women need to be well informed and aware of the rights they have within the workplace. A woman has a right to be given equal pay as her male co-workers, given time off for maternity leave without being penalized, and a right to be heard when she speaks up about being sexually harassed. The Equal Pay Act has been a law since 1963 and requires employers to pay male and female employees the same wages. The Family and Medical Leave Act has been a law since 1993 and requires that a woman be allowed up to 12 weeks of unpaid leave without the termination of her job, but she must have been with the company for at least a year. According to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, if a woman reports to her employer that she has been sexually harassed, her employer is legally obligated to prevent sexual harassment from occuring and to take proper and immediate action to exact the wrong done from the sexual harassment that has already occured. A women needs to know her rights so that she can be properly treated and perform optimally in the workplace.