Does the Bamboo Ceiling Still Exist?
CONFLICT: In New York City, the peak can seem so far and all the while so close. That's the case for many Asian New Yorkers employed or attending college in the city. Compared to their proportion of the New York City population, East Asians are overrepresented in prestigious high schools, universities and in many professional settings. Yet they are still less likely to be promoted to leadership positions compared to Whites and other racial minorities due to hidden bias and cultural stereotypes. In fact, they represent 15-25% of Ivy League enrollment. However, Asian Americans make up less than 2% of Fortune 500 CEOs and corporate officers. The victims of the issue are usually stuck in professional and related occupations, and as seen in figure 2, that is where the most Asians are as of 2011.
Table 1: Fortune 500 directors by race, ethnicity and gender
% of directors | % male directors | % female directors | M/F ratio | |
Whites | 87.2% | 74.4% | 13.3% | 5.6 to 1 |
African Americans | 6.8% | 5.3% | 1.5% | 3.5 to 1 |
Latinos | 3.1% | 2.4% | 0.7% | 3.4 to 1 |
Asian Americans | 2.4% | 2.0% | 0.4% | 5 to 1 |
TOTAL | 84.5% | 15.5% | 5.5 to 1 |
Figure 2
PATTERN: Tulane University assistant professor Lei Lai stated that Asian Americans have the lowest probability to be promoted to managers among all racial minorities in both public and private sectors.
This ratio is most notable when applied to legal professions. According to the National Association for Law Placement (NALP), Asian Americans are hired as associates at New York City law firms, representing 10.5 percent of all associates. However, only 2.7 percent are become partner. That's a lower percentage than those of African American or Hispanic attorneys. This is due to many different factors. Firstly, many companies consciously or unconsciously...