As soon as we are able to see the world and to make judgments, we experience hierarchy, status, and power. As early as elementary school, children are grouped; lined up by size and sex and certain individuals are always chosen to be leaders. As we grow older, there are those who are able to get what they want and have a life of one opportunity after another, while others live in a daily struggle characterized by suffering and the lack of opportunities.
             By inequality, we refer to the distribution of rewards, goods, and services, benefits and privileges, honor and esteem, and power and influence available to incumbents of the different social roles and social positions associated with different roles and positions. Whites usually occupy the more desirable positions and minorities will end up with the leftovers.
             Women who devote their full attention to career issues fail to understand how the corporate world works. Advancement in the business world frequently is based upon principles most men learn as they grow up. It operates in ways emulating team sports. Women who fail to understand the importance of office politics, going through the proper channels, and being able to make decisions quickly put themselves at an automatic disadvantage. Corporate life is a game not always fair for women. Being able to take risks without making waves, being a team player that can operate independently when necessary, and participating in after-hours activities may not set well with some women. Despite evidence that differences between the economic characteristics of men and women account for most of the gender pay gap, the gap primarily reflects workplace discrimination.
             Ethnic-racial stratification follows the overall stratification structure (rich, middle class, working class, and poor). Structural discrimination exists when minorities groups are unduly denied access to good jobs and other social rewards by social forces and policies that...