On Thursday, November 7, hundreds of women gathered to hear from guest speakers and each other about the inequalities women face in the workplace.
Crossroads Chamber, Northwest Indiana’s Chamber of Commerce, hosted its third annual Women’s Brunch at the Center for Visual & Performing Arts in Munster. Women of different industries, ages, and locations were present, but they all shared the feeling of having once felt undermined in a job or setting because of their gender.
The Women In Leadership Development (WILD) committee helped organize the brunch. Inequalities in the workplace is a topic that Crossroads Chamber has been shining a light on since it started the Women’s Brunch three years ago. This year, the committee went straight to Indiana University Northwest Economics Professor Dr. Surekha Rao, who through her own research found women in Northwest Indiana are historically paid less than the national average.
The purpose of the event today is to create awareness and provide resources and additional information for women to empower themselves. Christina Holloway, a WILD committee member, wanted women to feel like they can take action after leaving the event. “Maybe not all of them are going to come away with the resources saying, ‘Oh, I am being historically underpaid,’ but many will. In that case, we all know the only way we're going to be able to make changes is if we speak up and start saying, ‘Here's the data and I need to understand why.’”
Rao opened the discussion portion of the event with her research, emphasizing how the economy is impacted and urging everyone that the issue must be addressed. A range of other women shared their experiences, such as Athena Kasvikis, the founder of BeHave Bras. The keynote speaker shared her career journey, experience as a “Shark Tank” Season 13 winner, and sometimes being the only woman in leadership roles.
“I'm really interested in hearing stories because there are 200 plus women here,” Kasvikis said. “I can guarantee you we all have the same variations of the same stories within our career. I don't care what you do and at what level. We all face the exact same things.”
Finding a mentor is important for women to reach further in a job and an industry, something Kasvikis emphasized. Fiona Steuer, a freshman at Portage High School and the second-place winner at the State Civics Bee, read the speech she gave at the competition. Steuer believes prominent female figures should be highlighted to inspire other women and bring awareness to the pay gap.
“By sharing their stories, mentors and inspirations, we can show that women can achieve high paying jobs, and we will provide necessary role models for the next generation to help bring this to life,” Steuer said.
This event means a lot to Holloway and it touches her that so many women want to see a change. She hopes the event grows every year and that strong women continue to come together, uplift each other, and acquire the tools they may need to advocate for themselves.
