Women Are More Unhappy at Work Than Men

Despite an increasing gap between the number of men and women who attend college, women are still not finding greater satisfaction in their careers than their male counterparts.

Women first outpaced men in college graduation in the 1990s, and the gap has only increased since then, with women making up 60 percent of the college student population nationwide in the 2021-22 school year, according to the National Student Clearinghouse Research Center.

But against these educational achievements, women are still meeting obstacles in the workplace, and 37 percent said they experienced career dissatisfaction in a new Robert Half survey. That was compared with 32 percent of men surveyed.

"Unfortunately, the workplace wasn't exactly designed with women's needs in mind," Ally Nathaniel, owner at Soul Staffing Solutions, told Newsweek. "It was built by men, for men, and still largely operates under those same standards, which don't always align with what women require."

Today's work systems still rely on the "old ways" of doing things, and that includes women being left out of bathroom and golf conversations while being expected to work harder and longer to prove themselves for every opportunity, experts say.

On top of this, women still shoulder the bulk of care-giving responsibilities at home, Nathaniel said. Spending significantly more time doing unpaid domestic work like cooking, cleaning and childcare, it's more likely that their paid career work will lead to burnout and frustration.

This is especially true when workplaces lack flexible policies.

"Without flexible work arrangements, such as remote options, it can leave women feeling undervalued and unheard," Nathaniel said. "And let's not forget the imbalance in leadership positions, where men tend to dominate, creating this metaphorical glass ceiling that women struggle to break through."

Some generations were more likely to express discontent with their careers as well. Millennials were by far the highest, with 38 percent saying they feel stuck. Some job sectors also experienced higher than average rates of dissatisfaction, with 33 percent of tech workers saying they were not content amid mass layoffs within the industry.

In the survey of over 1,000 U.S. professionals conducted from February 29 to March 13, 2024, there were a few things respondents said could re-energize them and leave them feeling more satisfied.

For 64 percent, that meant a raise or bonus. Meanwhile, 43 percent said they wanted opportunities for career advancement with their employer, and 18 percent admitted they were actively seeking a new job.

According to Nathaniel, companies that want to see more women in leadership roles need to step up and address challenges head on.

"There's a disconnect between the belief in equal opportunities and the actual reality of workplace dynamics, which are heavily influenced by traditional gender norms," Nathaniel said.

By offering more generous parental leave policies and updating childcare support structures, companies can get ahead and create more diverse executive teams.

"It's not just about individual discontent," Nathaniel said. "It's a symptom of broader issues rooted in systemic mistreatment and unrealistic societal expectations. Companies that genuinely care about inclusivity and equality need to rethink their benefits and perks to better support women."

Salary and advancement play a key role too.

According to a recent report from international recruitment consultancy Robert Walter, 40 percent of women feel underpaid for what they do, versus just 24 percent of men. Additionally, 67 percent of men said they earned a median salary of $55,000 or more, whereas only 39 percent of women did.

"It highlights a systemic failure to address the unique challenges and biases women face in their careers," HR consultant Bryan Driscoll told Newsweek. "Have we made progress? Sure, but it's not nearly enough. As a society, we're failing women in the workforce."

Driscoll said that as more women graduate college than men, the repercussions of lower career satisfaction in women are severe—both for women and for companies potentially wasting the talent they possess.

"The high rate of career dissatisfaction among women is not just a 'women's issue,'" Driscoll said. "This is a business issue and, more broadly, a societal issue. Despite progress, we are still far from achieving true equality in the workplace."