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Is your job leaving you uninspired?
Are you feeling the effects of burnout?
Do you want to shake things up and try something new?
A career change might just be exactly what you need. Let’s take a look at some of the best careers for women.
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The Gender Pay Gap
In a perfect world, we’d all be in careers that we’re passionate about and paid well for, but the ugly truth is that the gender pay gap remains a reality. In Australia, women typically earn $239.80 less than their male counterparts. That’s 14.1 percent less!
While you would expect that salaries would vary between industries, surprisingly the pay gap is biggest in the arts. This holds particularly true for writers, visual artists, and musicians. Careers that are dominated by women, such as the care providers and educators, also tend to have lower wages.
Careers And Trades For Women: Where To Start
It may be a while before the gender pay gap disappears completely, but that doesn’t mean you should settle for low pay! Know what you deserve and be ready to negotiate for it! Once you get it, it’s a win not just for you, but a win for working women everywhere.
Of course, you can’t just jump blindly into a new career. It might be worth considering going back to school – technology now makes it more convenient than ever to get your degree online!
Another path to consider is an apprenticeship. Apprenticeships will give you valuable training and experience in trades. Trades have traditionally been considered men’s domain, but more and more women are entering this field. There are lots of companies that provide apprenticeships for women – look into those you’re interested!
Finding The Best Career
There are lots of things to consider when choosing a career path: Does it pay well? Am I qualified? Will I be happy doing this kind of work?
Job satisfaction isn’t just about having a competitive salary, it’s also about opportunities for career advancement and getting a sense of meaningful accomplishment from your work. So with that in mind, let’s take a look at some of the best careers for women to get you started on your journey:
Best Careers For Women
1. Marketing, Events, and Public Relations
Marketing, events, and public relations require creativity and a keen understanding of your audience. With women now wielding a lot more purchasing power, companies need people who understand the female needs and know just how to connect with them.
If you’re the creative type who hates being stuck behind a desk, this career may be for you! You can choose to work for an agency, or you can strike out on your own and offer your services to companies. A marketing executive typically earns around $71,000, leading to $125,000 for marketing directors.
2. Healthcare
Meaningful work, job stability, and flexible working hours are just some of the perks of working in Healthcare. It’s predicted that occupations within this industry are going to be in high demand within the next few years, which may mean a raise from the current average of $70,000 for nurses.
3. Trade Professions
Girl power in this traditionally male industry is on the rise! With the infrastructure boom, there’s a very high demand for skilled carpenters, electricians, plumbers, and so on. Even if you’re just starting out, there’s the opportunity to earn and learn through apprenticeships.
If you love working with your hands and want physically-engaging work, consider going into a trade! It’s very satisfying to see the fruits of your labour before you, and earning $70,000 to $90,000 is the cherry on top.
4. Professional Sports
The gender pay gap is closing in sports: AFL Women’s players are getting a pay rise this 2019, and the Male Champions of Change have the Pathway to Pay Equality. Australia is well on its way to an even playing field in terms of salary, and women can now be justly compensated for their achievements.
Women’s AFL players are split into four tiers, with the following wages:
- Tier 1: $24,600
- Tier 2: $19,000
- Tier 3: $16,200
- Tier 4: $13,400
Rugby entry-level players receive $44,500 (no matter their gender!), and cricket players have also received a raise.
5. Armed Forces
Just because an industry is currently male-dominated doesn’t mean that they aren’t looking for women like you to join their ranks! There are plenty of army jobs for women available, with the Australian Defence Force targeting a 25 percent female participation rate by 2023.
Keep in mind though, if a career in defence is something you’d like to pursue, you’re going to have to endure a lot of training. There are also a lot of benefits on top of the usual salary of $74,872 for general service officers.
6. Massage Therapist
The hustle and bustle of the modern world can be highly stressful, and people pay very good money for the opportunity to destress. Enter the massage therapist; a professional trained to treat pain and bring relaxation. Massage therapists may also specialise in more specific forms of massage such as: remedial, sports, pregnancy, and so on.
Being a massage therapist will entail training and a diploma, but as a career that allows for good work-life balance and minimal stress, it’s totally worth it. On average, massage therapists will earn anywhere from $55,000 to $65,000.
7. Entrepreneurship
If there are any ideas for products or services lurking in the back of your mind, don’t just keep them there! As long as you have passion and grit, anyone can be an entrepreneur!
One great thing about being an entrepreneur is that you can have a positive effect on society! If you’re unhappy with inequality in the workplace you can directly change that by offering jobs for pregnant women, jobs for women over 50, or even jobs for women who didn’t go to university.
You get to provide income not just for yourself, but for other struggling women too!
Conclusion
When choosing a career, you shouldn’t limit yourself. There are plenty of satisfying and high paying jobs for women out there!
Forget the stereotypes that traditionally come with jobs: you can be the one that breaks them! You’re perfectly capable of doing anything you put your mind to, and you never know… it just might be the perfect career for you.
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