Women in major leadership positions in South Carolina say the state has a long way to go to expand opportunities for women. One Charleston leader said when it comes to women’s representation in the halls of power, the “old boy network” continues to stand in the way.
“Oh boy … the Old Boys!” said Linda Ketner, a Charleston philanthropist and co-founder of the local LGBTQ advocacy group Alliance for Full Acceptance. She said it will take South Carolina more than 200 years to achieve gender parity, according to The Institute for Women’s Policy Research.
“That’s your great, great, great, great, great, great granddaughter’s generation,” she said.
Ann Warner of Columbia, CEO of Women’s Rights and Empowerment Network (WREN), said South Carolina is one of the least gender-equitable states in the nation. One of the areas the state struggles in the most is electing women into office, she said, which has a broad negative impact.
“We need our elected bodies to reflect the population they serve, and right now, the South Carolina General Assembly is overwhelmingly White and male,” she said. “In a state with a population that is 51% women and where women are nearly 55% of voters, the South Carolina General Assembly is less than 15% women. And with the recent retirement of Justice Kaye Hearn, we are now the only state in the nation that has a state Supreme Court with zero women.”
Statistics strongly suggest South Carolina seems to be going backwards when it comes to female representation and empowerment, Warner said, especially when the legislature is fixated on stripping away abortion rights and policing gender identity — which makes life harder and less safe for women and gender expansive people.
“According to a 2020 index of best and worst places to be a woman compiled by Georgetown University, South Carolina ranks 44 out of 50 states,” Warner said. “Statistics show that it is harder to be a woman of color in South Carolina.”
Women are not unable or unwilling to lead in South Carolina, she said. The statistics result from systemic barriers and cultural biases that constrain women — especially women of color — in pathways to leadership.
“These barriers include systemic pay gaps, lack of availability to good childcare and health care (including reproductive health care), high rates of violence and an educational system that simply doesn’t set all children up for success,” Warner said.
Women unlikely to be bosses in S.C.
A recent study analyzing 2021 data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics found South Carolina is one of the states least likely to have females in senior management positions with 41% of those positions filled by women. Nevada had 58% of its senior management filled by women, and was named the state most likely to have females in senior management positions. While women represent 47% of the U.S. workforce, only 35% hold senior leadership positions, according to the study.
Charleston author and speaker Margaret Seidler, also known as The Accidental Historian, said many women open their own businesses due to how difficult it is to gain a footing in the male-dominated workplace. She said she feels there is a significant lack of women in senior management in Charleston area businesses.
“Senior management in medium to large businesses, where salaries are higher, remain male-dominated,” Seidler told the Charleston City Paper. “People generally feel more comfortable hiring someone with whom they feel commonality.”
The conversation on women’s representation is essential, Seidler said, because women continue to be underrepresented in the senior and executive roles in the business sector.
“If people aren’t speaking about underrepresentation, then our community can expect the status quo — that is, companies predominantly led by males,” she said. “Charleston is a community of tradition. This tradition of women being in the lower ranks is one worth changing.”
Making a difference for the next generation
Ronda Dean, president and CEO of Charleston-based health care company Afaxys, said it’s not surprising that South Carolina lacks women in senior management positions. She came into a leadership position in the 1990s, running a women’s health division of a large pharmaceutical company. She’s called Charleston home for more than 20 years. Today, the leadership team at Afaxys is 65% female.
“I began to see very clearly the inequities across the spectrum of women’s issues,” Dean said, “and how healthcare, economics, politics, religion and advocacy intersect and shape the opportunities that women are presented throughout their life.”
She said every new generation improves women in leadership statistics.
“However, change is slow, and there is still work to be done,” Dean said. “We must keep inclusion and diversity front and center if we want to ensure the best talent is sitting at our leadership table. We all must do our part. Together, by modeling and speaking up for what’s right, we are doing our part to address existing inequities and hopefully, make a difference for the next generation.”
Warner said there is a bright spot: the recent expansion of paid parental leave in South Carolina.
“We need more common sense policy changes like these. When the economy works for women, it works for all of us.”
Jennet Robinson Alterman of Wadmalaw Island has been a full-time women’s rights activist in Charleston for more than four decades. She has served as executive director of the former Center for Women and a founding chair of WREN.
“The conversations about women in positions of authority and leadership have been going on for more than 50 years and the needle has barely moved,” Alterman said. “As we have currently seen at both the national and state levels women are having to fight for not only basic human rights but economic equity. It’s like a throwback to the 1960s. We should be well ahead of the curve by now.”
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