Over the past 50 years, the role of women in the workplace has steadily increased, but research shows room for more improvement in gender equity.

“I look at the data [for women in the labor force], I see a lot of progress, and a lot of potential for more progress today,” said Heidi Hartmann in her Thursday night lecture, “Women in the Labor Force.”

Hartmann is the president of the Insititute for Women’s Policy Research and a research professor at George Washington University.

“It’s important to look at how much women are working today, where they are working, and how much [money] they’re making in the workplace,” Hartmann said.

Hartmann’s lecture, given to a crowd of more than 40 people in the Great Hall of the Memorial Union, was centered around statistics and research concerning women and the workplace.

“When you compare men and women, we see that over 15 years, women still have more years out of the labor force than men,” Hartmann said.

By the numbers, in 1950 only 33 percent of women entered the work force compared to 94 percent of men. In 2000, these statistics have drastically changed to 74 percent of women in the workforce and 86 percent of men.

Hartmann emphasized although more women are entering the workforce, there is still inequality in the number of hours worked and the pay received. She attributed some of this difference to childbearing and parenting along with societal standards.

“Child rearing is a lot like global warming; even if you aren’t personally contributing, your future is being effected,” Hartmann said.

She discussed the important role strong parenting plays for the future and the need for better work and family policies.

“Paid parental leave, more subsidized childcare and universal pre-K would be great steps [toward gender equity],” Hartmann said.

She also discussed the need for strong equal employment opportunity policies in the United States.

“I am relatively optimistic because you really can change it if you work hard, lobby politicians and get the right people into office,” Hartmann said.

As a state, Iowa ranked 37th in the composition of women elected to office, although it is eighth in the nation for percentage of women voters.

“You would think that in a state where more women were registered and voting we could get more women elected into office, but this isn’t the case,” Hartmann said.

Students attending the lecture showed a strong interest in learning about gender attitudes in the workplace today.

“As a senior, I’m looking forward to the job market and would like to see what the atmosphere in the workforce will be like for women,” said Emily Arentson, senior in agricultural biochemistry.

The lecture also prompted some students to reconsider the powerful roles of gender in the labor force today.

“I haven’t really thought very much about [women in the labor force,] but I think it is fairly equal in society today,” said William Klema, freshman in electrical engineering.