Is it just as hard as ever for women to get ahead?

by Rudy Scheinost

A recent survey by Co-operative Financial Services revealed that the country's 14 to 24-year-old women take inspiration from success stories like author J.K. Rowling, fashion designer Stella McCartney and Dragon's Den star Deborah Meaden.

But is it just as hard as ever for women to become as successful as their male counterparts?

The European Commission (EC) recently revealed that the pay gap between men and women has hardly changed in the past 15 years. It's a damning revelation and one that has triggered the EC to launch a five-year plan to remedy the situation.

Viviane Reding, a European commissioner for fundamental rights, said that she is deeply concerned about the pay gap and believes in some places it is actually increasing.

But there has been progress in certain areas. For example, female and male tennis players are now paid the same amount of money in Grand Slam events and political parties have increased the number of female MPs.

There is no doubt that female role models are important and help to raise the aspiration of young women. Now bodies like the EC needs to ensure women can reach their goals without gender-based obstacles.