Women''s reluctance to ask for a raise acts as a roadblock when it comes to advancements in the workplace

Updated on: Monday, June 03, 2013

When it comes to getting ahead in the workplace, women are their own worst enemy, a new survey has claimed.

Women''s reluctance to ask for a raise acts as a roadblock when it comes to advancements in the workplace, according to the survey.

The survey, which was conducted in March among 954 members of LinkedIn''s Professional Women''s Network Group, showed that women workers may be creating their own blockades when it comes to career advancement and salary raises, the New York Daily News reported.

For example, only one in four professional women asked about receiving a raise in the last year. However, 75 per cent of the workers who did enquire got the wage bump.

“We have to be willing to ask explicitly for what we want,” Linda Descano, President and CEO of Women & Co, Citi''s personal finance resource for females, told the paper.

When asked what was holding them back professionally, many of the survey respondents cited a lack of promotion opportunities (41 per cent), hesitancy when it came to taking time away from family and personal life (30 per cent), and a disinterest in staying put at their current companies long enough to climb the ranks (20 per cent).

Descano said that another roadblock was that women have been underestimating the importance of networking.

Connecting with a co-worker over coffee or going out to lunch with someone may prompt him or her to move your promotion request to the top of the pile or at least put in a good word for you.

Women''s reluctance to ask for a raise acts as a roadblock when it comes to advancements in the workplace

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