Women Avoid Leadership Over Work-Life Concerns

Mumbai: A significant percentage of women feel encouraged to pursue leadership roles, however, fear over work-life imbalance holds them back from actively pursuing their goal, a report said on Thursday.

According to Naukri’s “The Unfiltered Truth: What Women Professionals Really Want” report, over 66 per cent of women feel encouraged to pursue leadership roles, challenging perceptions about professional ambition. However, 44 per cent of women ultimately hold back, citing concerns about work-life balance, which indicates a complex decision-making process beyond simple career progression, said the report.

Struggle with unclear or biased promotions (35 per cent), limited leadership programs (14 per cent) and lack of visible role models (7 per cent) were some other roadblocks holding back women from pursuing leadership roles, it added. The report was based on responses from 70,000 women across 50 cities. Further, the report found that 34 per cent of women professionals rank menstrual leave as their number one workplace policy request - surpassing traditional equal pay discussions. Nearly half of early-career professionals consider it non-negotiable, yet 75 per cent report their workplaces still don’t support such policies, it added. While 75 per cent of early-career professionals (between 0-2 years) push for equal leadership representation, nearly a third of senior professionals (over 15 years) prioritise pay transparency, the report noted.