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<\/a><\/p>\nDr. Claudia Wright (UWinnipeg Archives)<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was very significant and unusual, for a department to have two women faculty members in political science back then,\u201d Charlotte recalls. \u201cThey taught me classes, but more importantly, they mentored me throughout my undergraduate years. Having strong women with PhDs guiding me was an essential part of my education.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
Even with that support, Charlotte faced\u00a0real challenges\u00a0as a young woman entering a male-dominated field. She\u00a0encountered\u00a0subtle and overt sexism, wage inequality, and deeply gender biased expectations. Later, balancing motherhood with the demands of publishing, tenure, and teaching\u00a0very large\u00a0classes added another layer of complexity.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOne thing about an academic job\u2014it\u2019s constant,\u201d she says. \u201cIt never really leaves you. It can be all-consuming. But I often reflect on lessons from Audrey Flood and Claudia Wright which gave me the confidence that I could navigate it all and succeed.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
That determination fueled Charlotte\u2019s career. \u201cI\u2019ve always been competitive and wanted to do meaningful work. I wanted my research to engage with the community, to be industry-focused, and above all, relevant. I loved what I was doing, and I still do.\u201d<\/p>\n
Research and leadership<\/p>\n
Charlotte is recognized as one of Canada\u2019s leading experts in the automotive industry, a field that might seem far removed from political\u00a0science at first glance. But her research focus on industry, employment and building Canada\u2019s economy was a logical outcome of her undergraduate training with its strong emphasis on economic development and building prosperous and independent nations. As a faculty member at McMaster, she was one of the founding members of\u00a0Labour\u00a0Studies in Canada and went on to found the Automotive Policy Research Centre. Her work bridges academic research and practical application, focusing on industrialization, union representation, women at work, and equity.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Her commitment to equity, borne in part out of her own experience, extended beyond research into institutional change. Charlotte played a pivotal role in developing McMaster\u2019s first parental leave policy and led the university\u2019s first study on pay equity among women faculty. These efforts resulted in increased faculty representation and greater institutional support for women\u2019s advancement. \u201cParental leave has been a game changer for women in all walks of life,\u201d she notes. \u201cWe all need it, and it has made a real difference to women\u2019s opportunities.\u201d\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n
Empowering women through leadership<\/p>\n
Throughout her career, a consistent theme\u00a0emerges, leadership and the empowerment of women. Charlotte made it a personal mission to support students, especially women, just as she was supported. \u201cI decided I would make that part of my mission as a professor, and ultimately as a leader\u201d she says. \u201cI\u2019ve mentored many students\u2014not only because they gravitated to me, but because I believe I have a particular value in helping them navigate the stages of their careers.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The path taken is often not the path you imagined<\/p>\n
Dr. Charlotte Yates<\/p>\n
Reflecting on her lifetime of work, Charlotte\u00a0observes\u00a0significant progress\u00a0in women\u2019s leadership. \u201cI\u2019ve seen a lot of changes in my lifetime,\u201d she says. \u201cWhat\u00a0I\u2019ve\u00a0learned is that\u00a0ultimately there\u00a0will be moments when you think,\u00a0Why\u00a0am I doing this?\u00a0Why do I continue to struggle? At these times, it is critical to have people who support you to continue the struggle, and to reinforce that you have an obligation to continue to advance the rights and opportunities of others in order to improve your own community and the world.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThe path taken is often not the path you imagined. And the path forward is winding. It is never a straight line. My advice has always been to be open to new and unexpected opportunities and persevere. It can be tough. You cannot thrive on your own. That\u2019s why, for me, I like to give back to students and faculty and my community.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
In honour of International Women\u2019s Day<\/a> (IWD), UWinnipeg is proud to recognize women from our University community who all make important contributions to our institution, within their fields of study, and to the greater community. This year marks the 115th IWD. The first International Women\u2019s Day was marked on March 8, 1911, when over a million people across Europe came together to support women\u2019s rights, including the right to work, vote,
hold public office and live free of discrimination. In Canada, it\u2019s a time to celebrate progress on women\u2019s rights and to recognize the ongoing work underway to support women and girls\u2019 fully participation in all areas of society.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\u201cThere was never a doubt that I would go to university,\u201d says Dr. Charlotte Yates (BAH 78), reflecting…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":524739,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194296],"tags":[80741,206601,49,48,206602,206603,206604,205420,22073],"class_list":["post-524738","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-winnipeg","tag-alumni","tag-alumni-spotlight","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-charlotte-yates","tag-department-of-political-science","tag-dr-claudia-wright","tag-international-womens-day","tag-winnipeg"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/524738","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=524738"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/524738\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/524739"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=524738"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=524738"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=524738"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}