Finance is for Females Too: Discrimination in The Workplace

It’s time to ditch the idealization of the “finance bro” lifestyle because the industry is for females too. You would think that by 2022 women would be equal to men in finance, right? Wrong.

Feminist activists have been making significant efforts toward acceptance in the workplace for years. Female CEOs of major corporations such as Rosalind Brewer, CEO of Walgreens Boots Alliance, are paving the way for other females to rise up. However, the finance industry is one that just won’t budge.

The “finance bro” culture has been championed by films such as The Wolf of Wall Street which highlights the lack of female representation in the industry. Throughout the course of the film, the very few women in the office are highly sexualized and are seen sleeping with the men as a means to “get ahead.” But, this film isn’t something that Hollywood just made up—it’s a true story.

Unfortunately, the sexist nature of the work environment shown in pop-culture films is a reality for many women.

As the media points out, the finance industry is a male-dominated field. According to Zippia’s statistics, “26.4% of all Finance Professionals are women, while 68.8% are men.” More than 50% of the industry is male, making it hard for women to find their place in finance.

As if working in a field that is frowned upon isn't already difficult, the United States wage gap still exists. The U.S Department of Labor Blog points out that “women earn 82 cents for every dollar a man earns.” The gap in earnings is a sheer representation of the disadvantages women face in the workforce.

The male power structure has created a division throughout the industry that has lasted across decades. But, it’s time to bring awareness to the finance bro epidemic. Here are some shocking stories from two women that have and are currently facing adversity in the finance industry.

While working in Manhattan, Susan Filingeri was contacted by a headhunter from a retail brokerage firm. She decided to take the job even though she did not have any prior experience in the field, and has been working in finance ever since.

During the ‘80s and ‘90s, Filingeri had first-hand experience with the extreme sexist environment of the workplace that is portrayed in The Wolf of Wallstreet.

“When I was starting out the way the office worked was the men were brokers and the women were just the support staff. Clients did not want to work with female brokers because of the stigma that ‘women can’t handle money,’” she explains.

Filingeri stresses that at the time, women who wanted careers in the industry needed to have thick skin and stand their ground—but that did not stop workplace harassment.

“I was working at a firm in Manhattan that was looking to hire more female support staff. The Brand Manager at the time had a glass office that the rest of the staff was able to look through. When the female interviewees would be in the Brand Manager's office, he made sure their backside was facing the direction of the staff. The men would then hold up place cards rating her out of ten,” she says.

“If she had a smaller skirt she was more likely to get the job.”

— Susan FIlingeri

Through all the years of dealing with outright sexism in the office, Filingeri noticed a shift in the early 2000s. “The SEC began putting more regulations on supervision which enabled more women to start working and getting degrees in finance,” she explains.

Cameras in offices and regular SEC check-ins lessened abuse and workplace harassment but definitely did not eradicate it entirely.

“It is an obligation for women working in finance to speak up to educate and empower other women seeking careers in the industry. To take it even further, schools should be educating women on how to identify red flags and handle sexism or abuse in the workplace,” Filingeri stresses.

Educating young women is key going forward, and something Filingeri wishes she had when starting out in the field. In light of that topic, we have also spoken to a woman currently being educated in finance.

Bianca Donarumia, a female studying Finance at Pace University, gave insight into what it’s like being a student in this field. Pace University specializes in finance, which is a major reason she chose to go to the school.

“Choosing to study finance as a woman is definitely challenging when it comes to closing the gender gap in the field,” Donarumia mentions. She adds that “finance is notorious for being male-dominated and that’s the single reason I chose this as my major.”

Her initial feeling when she began studying finance is that the field is not very welcoming. “In all of my business classes, it’s predominately men. But, I do think that more women would like to take these classes but are almost afraid to because of the tremendous gap,” she says.

According to College Factual, “Of the 125 students who earned a bachelor’s degree in Finance & Financial Management from Pace University in 2019-2020, 63% were men and 37% were women.”

Not to say that men should not major in Finance anymore, but it further affirms their dominance in the industry. It also makes it difficult for women in these classes.

“In certain classes, I experience an almost unintentional form of discrimination. The men don’t even realize they are doing it because it’s been ingrained in their minds that ‘finance is for men only,’” she mentions.

Though this issue may not be resolved overnight, it needs to become a part of the conversation. As always, women should be supporting women. Donarumia believes that encouraging women to study finance and work in the field is imperative to changing the narrative.

“I want to empower women seeking to major in Finance so we can close this gender gap and change the way men perceive women in the business industry as a whole,” she concludes.

Pictured below are some of the top females who are striving to change the trajectory in the finance industry.

Going forward, bringing awareness to this issue is key. Whether it be taught in classrooms or spoken out about by women in the industry, it is time to show that finance is for females too. Make sure to keep up with all of the leading ladies in the field and continue to strive for a better future.