Topics: Gender Equality Specifically in Work and School and Avoiding Violence Against Women

Committee: ECOSOC

Topics: Gender Equality Specifically in Work and School and Avoiding Violence against Women.

Head Chair: Michaela Borthwick

Vice Chair: Christian Fan

Legal: Kevin Cardenas

Welcome to the 31st annual MVHS MUN Conference! My name is Michaela Borthwick and I will be your Head Chair. A little about myself – I am a senior at MVHS, I am involved in Cross Country and Track & Field, I have been a part of MUN for 4 years, and I am also involved in AP/IB classes. I look forward to having you all in my committee and I wish the best of luck to you delegates!

Gender Equality Specifically in Work and School

Background: Many countries around the world have improved in their progress towards gender equality, in areas such as education and the workplace. From the beginning of times up until the nineteenth century, men held a superior position than women, who were excluded from being involved in politics, education, and certain work. Although there has been improvement in the workplace, wage discrimination and income disparity still hold our world back from reaching full gender equality. Wage discrimination happens when there are two or more workers fully qualified, with equal performance of the same job, yet one worker receives more pay than the other(s). Income disparity is the unequal distribution of household or individual income across various participants in an economy. Men have been favored over similarly qualified women in each of these instances. The glass ceiling effect contributes to the gender wage gap, preventing women from advancing within their jobs or achieving promotions. Work in politics is especially difficult for women, considering they either received very little or no education at all in their lifetime. During the mid-1960s, about 5% of first-year students in professional programs were women. The percentage has risen significantly since then, but many women and young girls are still held back from receiving a proper education, due to taking care of children/family at home and household work.

Past UN Action: UN Women at the 68th session of the General Assembly called for inclusion and investment in women’s rights and gender equality. They look to “accelerate achievement of the Millennium Development Goals”1, ensuring women’s concerns and voices are the main criteria to all discussions on the future development goals. Implementation of UN Security Council resolution 1325 “requires that peace agreements include measures that ensure the protection of and respect for human rights of women and girls” (UN Rule of Law).

1 The eight Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), agreed on by world leaders at a UN summit in 2000, set targets to: Eradicate extreme hunger, achieve universal primary education, promote gender equality and empower women, reduce child mortality, improve maternal health, combat HIV AIDS malaria and other diseases, ensure environmental sustainability, and develop a global partnerships for development.

Questions to consider:

·  What does you country suggest be done to improve the equality between men and women in work and school?

·  How can the international community help to solve this world renowned issue?

·  Should the United Nations follow through with their current goals of improving gender equality in schools and the workplace?

Bibliography:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gender_inequality

http://datatopics.worldbank.org/gender/

http://www.usaid.gov/what-we-do/gender-equality-and-womens-empowerment

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http://www.unrol.org/article.aspx?article_id=28