The Battle for Female Talent in Brazil - Center for Work-Life Policy

city streets. “I could walk by myself at night and
not feel terrified. I would never do that in São
Paulo. You’re always looking to see if someone is
following you.”
With favelas, Brazil’s desperately poor
urban slums, sprawling literally in the shadows
of glittering high-rise condominiums, it’s not
surprising that São Paulo and Rio are notorious
for the high incidence of crime; according to a
recent U.S. State Department report, “assaults
and burglaries continue to be a part of normal
everyday life.” 29
Armed hold-ups of pedestrians and motorists
by “motoboys”—young men on motorcycles—
are a common occurrence. As a result, in Rio de
Janeiro, motorists are allowed to treat stoplights
as stop signs between the hours of 10 p.m. and 6
a.m. to protect against attacks at intersections. 30
“Most of my friends drive low-key cars with
darkened windows so you can’t see who’s inside,”
says an equity analyst for a multinational financial
firm in São Paulo. She doesn’t own a car, so has
to rely on taxis, most of which don’t have tinted
windows. “What happens is you’re using a cell
phone or a BlackBerry and you get caught in a
traffic jam. People on motorbikes see you and do
a quick robbery. If they have a gun, you open the
door. When I’m in a cab, I take care to keep my
bag on the floor and to not be seen on a mobile
phone.”
Robberies on the street are also common,
with laptop computers and cell phones the first
choice. “If you’re walking with a laptop on the
street, you’re making yourself a target,” says the
analyst, adding, “I’d never use a BlackBerry or cell
phone on the street, to avoid calling attention to it.”
Despite the presence of armed security guards
around the building, she and her colleagues have
to exercise constant vigilance. Knowing that “there
could be someone hiding and watching—it’s
become part of the reality,” she says.
All of the female professionals we interviewed
for this study either know someone who has
been assaulted or has had first-hand experience
of being assulted. One focus group participant
had her cell-phone stolen at gunpoint when she
stopped her car at a traffic light. Another was
driving with a friend from a prominent family
who suddenly and terrifyingly became a kidnap
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target; they were followed and fired at on a major
highway. According to one interviewee, the
attacks are especially violent in large cities. “In a
small city, they break your car window and steal
your radio. In São Paulo, they put a gun to your
head and say, ‘Let’s go to the ATM.’”
Many employers have introduced safety
provisions in response to the urgency of safety
concerns. These range from secured parking
lots to company buses and transport with guards,
with a lucky few even having access to armored
cars with tinted windows. Nonetheless, vigilance
is critical, and one senior executive stresses how
vulnerable she feels in spite of the protective
measures put in place by her employer, “You
have to pay attention at traffic lights. We get
training in dealing with threats—it’s mandatory.
I know how to escape from a kidnapping, from a
shotgun situation. And I have to train my family, so
they all know.”
In Brazil, safety concerns exert an
unexpectedly large influence on preferences
about where to work, what role to take and what
type of career to pursue. And women—partly
because they are caregivers and partly because
they see themselves as more vulnerable—tend
to give these concerns more weight than men.
“I could make more money and have a more
comfortable life in São Paulo,” said Carolina, a
Brazilian national and mid-level manager at a
global financial services company, now based
in corporate headquarters in the United States.
“I would have a comfortable life, have great
professional opportunities, but, frankly, the
violence is too much.”
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