What does Women’s Day mean to you?

March saw the celebration of International Women’s Day, and we asked a couple of the women in the broader Atterbury Europe family to share their experiences of being female in the working world of today.

What do you consider to be the main challenges for women in the workplace in 2021?

Antonia Constantinou, financial manager, Mall of Cyprus and Mall of Engomi: I believe the main challenge is to keep up with the increased load of work and demands in business while also maintaining a household, and the discrimination that arises from this. Nowadays, it is all about work, and today’s technology that allows access to emails and people 24/7 means there is continuous demand for employees to invest more of their time in their jobs. This creates a conflict for women who really want to commit to their career and move forward in their field, but also want to have a family. I sincerely believe that this is possible if there is a good support system behind the woman who desires this, including assistance from her spouse, family, friends and so on. The misconception that women’s commitment to family means that they are less devoted to their careers than a male colleague is still keeping women from getting deserved promotions. This leads to women needing to work twice as hard to prove that they are worth a position, even though they might just be better at the job than any other person in the organisation. There is also the discrimination of people treating women as if they are not smart enough or don’t have the skills, simply by virtue of their gender and no other significant reason. Even though I haven’t personally faced any sort of discrimination in my career so far, I have seen it happen to others who were diminished and undermined because of the culture in an organisation that held men at a higher standard than women.

Marelize van der Merwe, Head Office Accountant and administration officer, Leiden: I see work-life balance (or imbalance) as the main challenge for women. However, this is often a problem that is self-inflicted.

As a working woman, what steps do you personally have in place to allow you to multitask?

Marelize van der Merwe: For me it is all about having the support and understanding of my husband and family and to have a flexible work option.

Antonia Constantinou: My main objective is to keep my work out of my personal time. This means that when I turn off my computer and leave the office, work stays there. Even if I have a deadline I prefer to stay in the office until late and finish, rather than take the laptop home with me and working from home. To me the office is for work and home is for entertainment and resting. This helps me keep the balance and be productive in both my job and my personal life.

What would you change for women if you could write a new law into being?

Marelize van der Merwe: Gender diversity and equality in the workplace. Probably the most spoken about topic at any organisation currently.

Antonia Constantinou: I would definitely write the law giving women equal rights in the workplace. For me it’s not just about women, it’s equal rights to all, since we are all human beings at the end of the day. And even though each person is different, no matter the gender, race or beliefs, the inherent potential is the same. So, my law would be set up in such a way so that it allows employers to look past gender, race or beliefs and actually focus on the potential of the person and what that person can bring to the organisation.

Name any woman on the global map who inspires you – tell us who she is and why she is inspiring to you.

Antonia Constantinou:  There are a lot of great women through history who paved the way so that women of future generations have a voice. Even though I admire Greta Thunberg for her courage to speak out to governments about the environmental crisis, especially at such a young age, my main inspiration and the woman I am totally in awe of is Madonna. What I truly admire about her is that she was not afraid to be who she wanted to be and live the way she wanted to live, no matter what other people thought. Even though she still faces criticism for her music, and her life choices, she still makes a difference and has opened the way for future generations of women to live their own truths on their own terms. To me that’s truly an inspiration and that is how I live my life. I make my choices for me, not based on what others expect of me, because at the end of the day, it is my life.

Marelize van der Merwe: There are a few women who immediately spring to mind – Michelle Obama, Malala Yousafzai, Rosa Parks and Miriam Makeba – but I recently read Educated, the book by Tara Westover. It’s a memoir of her own hardship in life; growing up on a farm in rural America, with parents who did not believe in school or doctors, and completely isolated from mainstream society. She had the courage to secretly educate herself, she had the perspective to see her life though new eyes and had the will to change it. Such an inspiring story.